SAN ANTONIO — Texas State broke a 2-2 tie with a four-run seventh and the Bobcats pulled away with six more runs two innings later to clinch this weekend's series at UTSA with a 12-3 victory on Sunday afternoon.
Texas State (23-24, 13-8 WAC) tied up the game with two runs in the sixth and took the lead for good with its four-run seventh.
The Roadrunners (25-22, 9-11 WAC) pulled to within three in the bottom half of the frame on Daniel Rockett's ground out, but the Bobcats put up a six-spot in the final frame to put things out of reach.
Texas State pounded out 17 hits, including eight in the final frame. Garrett Mattlage was 3-for-4 with two RBIs to pace the visitors, while Austin O'Neal went 2-for-4 and drove in four runs.
Mitchell Pitts (3-3) allowed three runs on eight hits in six-plus innings of work, while Kyle Finnegan gave up just two singles in the final three stanzas to earn his first save of the year.
UTSA managed only four hits over the final six panels. Riley Good went 3-for-5 with a triple, while Jesse Baker was 2-for-3 with a double.
The Birds took a 2-0 lead in the third on Mike Warren's RBI ground out and John Bormann's bunt single, which drove in Rockett.
Nolan Trabanino shut down Texas State through the first five frames, allowing just two hits. However, he surrendered three consecutive singles in the sixth, which cut UTSA's lead in half. After a sacrifice bunt by Andrew Stumph, O'Neal hit the first pitch from the southpaw out to left center for a sacrifice fly and Cody Lovejoy scored from third to tie the game.
The Bobcats loaded the bases with one out the following inning against reliever Logan Onda. The right-hander then hit Garrett Mattlage on the foot, which forced in the go-ahead run. Texas State scored two tallies on a fielding error and tacked on a final mark on O'Neal's run-scoring single through the middle of the infield to take a 6-2 advantage.
After Good tripled to lead off the seventh and Rockett drove him in with a ground out, Finnegan shut down the Roadrunners.
The right-hander retired eight straight before Good and Rockett posted back-to-back singles with two outs in the ninth.
Onda (0-2) surrendered four runs (two earned) on four hits in his inning of work.
UTSA will return to action on Friday, May 10, when it hosts New Mexico State (27-21, 12-9 WAC) in the opener of a three-game series.