GEORGIA STATE vs. No. 10 TEXAS STATE
May 19-21  |  GSU Baseball Complex

Coming off a sweep at Arkansas State, Georgia State concludes the regular season by hosting Sun Belt leader and 10th-ranked Texas State in a matchup of the top two home run-hitting teams in the conference as the Panthers look to earn a top-six seed for next week's Sun Belt Conference Championship.

THE SERIES
Thursday, May 19, 6 p.m. (Audio on GeorgiaStateSports.com/GSU mobile app)
Friday, May 20, 6 p.m.
Saturday, May 21, 1 p.m.

RECORDS    
Georgia State: 30-23, 15-12 Sun Belt
Texas State: 41-11, 23-4 Sun Belt; Rankings: 10 CB/11 NCBWA/13 D1/16 BA/17USA

PROBABLE PITCHERS    
Game 1: RHP Trey Horton (2-1, 3.97) - T-5th in GSU history with 73 career app.
Game 2: RHP Mason Patel (2-2, 2.66) - Allowed 3 hits, 1 run in 5 IP in last start (W vs. Arkansas State)
Game 3: LHP Brandon Kaminer (1-1, 3.76) - Grad transfer from LSU

LEADING OFF
> Led by Sun Belt-leader Max Ryerson's 21 homers, Georgia State is second in the conference with 72 home runs, the fourth-highest season total in program history and the most with the current bats. The only more prolific seasons: 82 in 2010, 77 in 2000, and 74 in 2009.

> The Panthers have the three of the top 10 home run hitters in the league in leader No. 1 Max Ryerson (19) and No. 3 Griffin Cheney (15) and No. 10 Luke Boynton, giving GSU three players in double figures for the first time since 2014.

> Georgia State's sweep of the Red Wolves was the fourth conference sweep of the season for the Panthers, who also blanked Little Rock (home), South Alabama (home) and Coastal Carolina (road.) 

> The Panthers have played 23 games vs. ranked teams in the last two seasons, including seven in 2022. Georgia State won at No. 15 Clemson on March 15, and last season, the Panthers downed four ranked teams, including a win at No. 2 Vanderbilt.

> The GSU bullpen has a 21-10 record with 17 saves. That's the program's second-best season total for saves, two behind the school record of 19, set in 2009.

> The Panther pitching staff has compiled 465 strikeouts on the season, just nine away from the GSU record of 474 by the 2009 staff. Georgia State has already broken the single-game record with 19 strikeouts vs. Mercer. 

> GSU stole 17-of-19 bases in the sweep of Arkansas State, giving the Panthers 72 steals on the season, their highest total since swiping 93 in 2011.

> Georgia State has reached the 30-win mark for the first time since 2015 (ninth time overall). The Panthers' 15 Sun Belt wins equal the program record, set in 2015.

MAX'S MASTERPIECE
> Max Ryerson has tied the Georgia State season record with 21 home runs, which leads the Sun Belt and ranks No. 7 in D1. Chad Smith originally set the record with 21 homers in 2000. 

> National Player of the Week by Collegiate Baseball three times, including the last two weeks:
May 16: 3 HR, 7 RBI, including 2 HR, 6 RBI in sweep of Arkansas State
May 9: 4 HR, 12 RBI, 8 Runs in 5 games, including series win vs. App State
April 4: Hit .563 (9-for-16) with 4 HR, 10 RBI in four games, including sweep of South Alabama. Also named Sun Belt Player of the Week

> Second in the Sun Belt with 59 RBI and Top 10 in OPS, slugging, hits, runs and doubles.

> Leads the Sun Belt with 149 total bases, just two shy of the GSU season record of 151 by Scott Youngbauer in 2000.

> Six two-homer games: at Kennesaw State, Purdue Fort Wayne, South Alabama Friday, South Alabama Sunday, Alabama State and Appalachian State.

MORE ON THE PANTHERS:
> Georgia State features three Sun Belt Conference Players of the Week and four National Players of the Week this season: 1B-LHP Cameron Jones (March 14, Sun Belt & National), Luke Boynton (March 21, Sun Belt) and Max Ryerson (April 4, Sun Belt & National; May 9, National; May 16, National).

> Super senior Griffin Cheney is third in the Sun Belt with 15 homers and also ranks in the top 10 in the conference in batting average (9th/.344), on-base pct. (9th/.442), slugging (5th/.639) and OPS (5th/1.081).  Five of his homers have come vs. the ACC: 3 vs. Clemson, 2 vs. Georgia Tech.

> Cameron Jones is one of the nation's top two-way players and a member of the Watch List for the John Olerud Award. The starting first baseman is hitting a team-high .369 (No. 6 in Sun Belt) with five homers, 12 doubles and 29 RBI. On the mound he is 2-3 with five saves (No. 7 in Sun Belt) and a 2.45 ERA.

> Infielder/DH Luke Boynton is Georgia State's second-leading hitter at .356. He is seventh in the Sun Belt in average and OPS (1.061) and 10th with 11 homers.

> Since moving into the weekend rotation, super senior right-hander Trey Horton is 2-1 with 2.62 ERA and .186 average against in six starts.

> Junior Ryan Watson saved two wins in each of Georgia State's Sun Belt sweeps vs. Little Rock, South Alabama and Coastal Carolina. He is third in the Sun Belt lead with nine saves on the season, just one behind the GSU season record.

> Watson is the Panthers' active leader with 12 career saves (third in GSU history) and 13 career victories (T-11th). Justin Malone (14 saves, 13 victories from 2009-12) is the only pitcher in GSU history with more combined wins and saves.   

> Third-year head coach Brad Stromdahl took over the Georgia State program in 2020 after seven seasons as the head coach at Georgia Gwinnett, where he started the program from scratch in 2013 and compiled a record of 328-104. He led the Grizzlies to the Avista-NAIA World Series three times, including his last two years (2018-19). Before going to Georgia Gwinnett in November 2011, Stromdahl spent five seasons (2007-11) as an assistant coach at Georgia State.