SAN ANGELO, Texas – The Angelo State baseball travels to San Antonio, Texas for a midweek match-up on Tuesday, March 29 to take on the Rattlers of St. Mary's University at 6 p.m.
This will be a pivotal non-conference game for the Rams which is currently sitting at 18-11, 11-5 LSC. ASU will be looking to improve upon its 8-6 non-conference record to assist in its South Central Regional ranking. As a team, Angelo State is currently boasting a .303 batting average at the plate and is second in the conference with a .402 on base percentage. Its 24 sacrifice bunts on the season lead the LSC and is within the top 20 nationally. With a .972 fielding percentage, the Rams defense is second overall in the conference. It has recorded a LSC best 18 double plays this season which averages the team a conference second .69 per game.
Coming off a 25-4 win against Oklahoma Panhandle State, St. Mary's is 16-13 on the year and 12-8 at Dickson Stadium. The Rattlers offense is currently hitting .317, with a .462 on base percentage and a .414 slugging percentage. As a team the pitching staff has a 4.69 ERA and holding its opponents to a .294 batting average at the plate.
Expected to receive the call to start on the hill for the Rams will be junior pitcher Joe Hauser. Hauser is 1-0 on the year earning the win with a 3 2/3 inning performance in which he gave up one run on three hits. This past weekend the Georgetown native made a pair of appearances against Cameron. In the second game of ASU's doubleheader with the Aggies, Hauser played a defining role on the mound holding the opposition scoreless for five innings. He struck out four, walked none and gave up only three hits for the game. His is currently boasting a 2.55 ERA on the season.
Leading the Rams offensive attack will be seniors Sam Kohler and Paxton DeLaGarza. Kohler is currently leading the team and is second in the LSC with 39 total hits on the season. He is sporting a .374 batting average at the dish and is within the top 25 in the nation having recorded seven sacrifice bunts. Kohler also remains in the number one spot in the LSC fielding 15 double-plays and is second with 96 assist. DeLaGarza is second on the team and fourth in the LSC with 36 hits. His team most, 23 RBIs is second in the conference. He has also recorded eight doubles and five home runs which are also team highs. DeLaGarza leads the squad having scored 27 runs this year and has jumped to a four-way tie for second in the conference after he cranked a pair of long balls in the first game of ASU's double header with Cameron last Friday. The shortstop out of Lubbock, Texas has not only been solid in the middle of the field for Angelo State, but has also provided another arm in the rotation. With a record of 2-2 on the season, DeLaGarza currently has a 4.26 ERA thus far and has held opposing batters to a .243 batting average.
Steven Pinales, Tyler Coolbaugh and David Goggin have also made solid contributions to the Rams offensive attack. Pinales leads the team and is third in the conference with two triples this season. He has a .329 batting average and his team high nine stolen bases is third in the LSC. Coolbaugh is second on the team and is third in the conference with 22 RBIs on the year. At the plate, he is hitting .298 and has marked a team fourth 25 hits. Goggin has recorded 26 hits and is averaging .289 at the plate. His 13 walks on the season place him third on the team and he has scored a team fourth 20 runs.
Christian Abilla and Jay Gonzalez complete the top performers at the plate for the Rams. Abilla's 18 RBIs on the year have placed him third on the team. He is hitting .302 and recorded a team third 26 hits this season. Finally, Gonzalez has recorded 16 hits and 11 RBIs on season. He is averaging .281 at the plate and hit his first home run of the season during the Rams series with Cameron.
