The WSU men’s baseball team (5-3) is set to travel to Stephenville, Texas, to take on the Tarleton State Texan Raiders (2-3) for one game on Wednesday. 

The Cougs are coming off a 3-1 series win over the Long Island Sharks last weekend, while the Texan Raiders are currently playing against Eastern Illinois before they take on the Cougs. 

The Texan Raiders’ last game was a 3-13 loss against Eastern Illinois. Their other games this season were a 5-21 loss and an 8-12 loss against University of Texas at San Antonio. Tarleton State then won 12-1 in seven innings against UTSA and earned a 1-0 victory against Incarnate Word.

Last season, the Texan Raiders finished with a 20-35 record, including 13-23 in their WAC conference play. Notable games for the Texan Raiders last season include a sweep of Arkansas-Pine Bluff and a win against Missouri State. They also lost by a run to Texas A&M and lost by four runs to then-No. 10 TCU.

For the Texan Raiders, their hitting is led by Carter Dobrinski with eight hits, Alec Williams with five hits and Kemuel Thomas-Rivera with four hits. Six players have three RBIs on the season, including Dobrinski. Pitching for the Texan Raiders is led by Bryce Hackett with 7.2 innings pitched. Isiah Campa has pitched six innings also for Tarleton State. Campa has given up one hit, zero walks and has recorded six strikeouts on the season, while Hackett has given up eight hits, three walks and six strikeouts on the season. 

For the Cougs so far this season, their hitting is led by Kyle Russell with a .379 average on 11 hits. Jack Smith is close behind, batting .323 with 10 hits on the season. RBIs this season are led by Justin Van De Brake with seven, Hylan Hall with six, followed by three Cougs with five RBIs. The Cougs’ pitching is led by Cole McMillan who has 13 strikeouts in nine innings pitched on the season. McMillan has also given up four runs on eight hits with two errors. McKabe Cottrell has 11 strikeouts in 10 innings pitched this season. Cottrell has given up four runs on nine hits and four errors. 

The Cougs have been swinging the bat well as of late, most notably against the Long Island Sharks. The Cougs scored 30 runs in their four-game series against the Sharks, while only giving up 10 runs.  

The Cougs have shut out opponents twice this season, something they never did last year. 

After their game in Stephenville, Texas, against Tarleton State on Wednesday, they head to Frisco, Texas, for the Frisco Baseball Classic. The Classic starts Friday with a game against Texas A&M, then a Saturday matchup against Wichita State, followed by a Sunday game against Iowa.