Troy Baseball Scores Five in the Seventh to Tie Series Against Texas State, Brooks Bryan Breaks Troy Single Season RBI Record

Saturday, May 11

San Marcos, Texas

4 p.m.

Troy University

35-17, 17-9

Texas State

25-26, 11-15

Troy

Texas State

Troy Baseball Scores Five in the Seventh to Tie Series Against Texas State, Brooks Bryan Breaks Troy Single Season RBI Record

5/11/2024 8:55:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: Troy Athletics Communications

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Brooks Bryan immortalized his 2024 season by breaking the Troy single-season RBI record at 82 on a full-count walk in the seventh to help Troy rally and defeat Texas State, 5-3, Saturday evening at Bobcat Ballpark.

Troy (35-17, 17-9 SBC) looked primed to score early in the first when Ethan Kavanagh earned a full-count walk followed by an 0-2 single by Brooks Bryan and a balk to put runners on second and third. Texas State's (25-26, 11-15 SBC) Drayton Brown got the opposition out of the inning with a flyout to leave two runners on.

A single through the left side for Aaron Lugo and an HBP on Daylan Pena allowed August Ramirez to send an 0-1 shot over the right-center wall in the second, scoring three, 3-0, for the Bobcats.

The third inning saw the Bobcats open with a 0-0 double to right center for Chase Mora as they looked to push the advantage. However, Kole Myers showed off his arm strength when he got the flyout in shallow center field and caught Mora trying to advance to third, meeting Aidan Gilroy's glove for the double-play – line out to Tremayne Cobb Jr. ended the inning.

Innings 4-6 saw a combined three hits as the Trojans had an opportunity to end the drought in the sixth after Myers earned the single on a 1-0 ball to right field and Will Butcher earned a 4-2 walk. After a mound visit for Texas State, Bryan put the ball in play for the fielder's choice and loaded the bases. Despite one out on the board, the Bobcats managed a strikeout and groundout to hold the Trojans.

After 16 scoreless innings, Troy broke through in the seventh with five. With one out on the board, Mikey Bello pushed his season-long hit streak to four with a 0-1 single to center field, followed by a 4-1 walk for Peyton Watts. A pop fly got Troy's second out, but Kavanagh answered to end the drought, 3-1, with an 0-2 RBI single straight up the middle.

The following five batters earned their base via pitching woes for the Bobcats on four walks and an HBP as Butcher earned a 4-1 walk to start. Then, Bryan made history with his 82^nd RBI of 2024 to claim the most in a single season at Troy, battling eight pitches for the walk – scored Watts, 3-2. Cobb Jr. and Kyle Mock earned 4-0 walks despite a pitching change to score a pair, 4-3, and take the lead. Gilroy finished the inning with an HBP on his first pitch for Troy's fifth run of the seventh, 5-3.

Logan Ross came in for relief in the bottom of the seventh for Luke Lyon (8-2) and kept Texas State silent in his two batters faced with a pair of groundouts. Then, Jay Dill came in to earn his second save as he got out of the eighth in 10 pitches before striking out back-to-back to end the game.

Troy's pitchers played near perfection, allowing zero walks while earning eight strikeouts. Lyon earned his eighth victory with 6.1 innings, leading the team with five strikeouts, while Ross and Dill – earned his second save – combined for 2.2 innings with one hit, three strikeouts and no runs for the victory.

Head Coach Skylar Meade
"It was a heck of a college baseball game with a ton of fight from both sides. We won the battle of the freebies, which they won yesterday. They made a ton of great plays to keep us off the board for a while. It would have been easy to say, 'Here we go again.' But our guys didn't do that and Lyon put another zero as our bullpen did fantastic. They put us in a good position to win. Also, we think the world of Bryan and the things he is doing. His walk was a battle, and he had a chance to cut it with any pitch. He was disciplined, and if you want to be good at RBIs, you have to be good at the little stuff. And that's what he does. Records are meant to be broken, and I hope he can expand it."

Brooks Bryan Quotable
"It was an awesome feeling. I did it in a somewhat boring way, but it still felt amazing. The judgments I've made all season have been working themselves out, and the work I've put in is being paid off. I didn't even know I was close until someone told me I was at 77, and I said, 'Oh, wow, that's so cool.' I got to thank all the guys for encouraging me and the boys ahead of me for getting on base and allowing me to bring them home."

Up Next
The series finale for Troy-Texas State is scheduled for Sunday at noon in Bobcat Ballpark, with the series winner to be determined.

Game Two Numbers
• Bryan broke the single-season RBI record at Troy (82) with a full-count walk. No. 17 totaled 21 multi-RBI games with 29 extra-base hits, 17 home runs and 123 total bases.
• Bello's single in the fifth pushed his season-long hitting streak to four.
• Troy's bullpen allowed zero walks for the first time since April 13 at App State and the third time in 2024.
• The Trojans won despite being outhit 7-4, marking the 14^th time they've been outhit in 2024 – won its third game in that situation.
• Troy earned eight walks in the victory, with Butcher leading the team with a pair for his seventh multi-walk game.
• Dill's save marks the second of 2024 solidified the Trojans' 14^th come-from-behind victory of 2024, overcoming a 3-0 deficit.