Box Score Box Score
LAKE CHARLES – Cass Hargis went 3-for-5, driving in the eventual go-ahead run in a three-run fifth inning, and
Tyler Watkins fanned seven batters in 5.2 innings as No. 17 Southeastern Louisiana held off a ninth inning rally by McNeese State to claim a 6-5 victory Friday night at Cowboy Diamond.
Freshman
Brock Hebert went 2-for-4 and drove in three runs as Southeastern (17-1, 4-0 SLC) scored six unanswered runs after trailing 2-0 after three innings. Southeastern (No. 17 Collegiate Baseball; No. 30 National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association) scored a run in the fourth inning on a solo home run by
Josh Cryer before taking the lead for good in the fifth.
Joe Sparacino led off the inning with a double before scoring two batters later on a single by Hebert. Hargis gave Southeastern a 3-2 lead when he doubled to left-center field off MSU starter Dustin Lloyd (0-4) that scored Hebert and
Justin Boudreaux extended his hitting streak to 10 games when he doubled off Lloyd to drive in Hargis.
Hebert gave Southeastern a 6-2 lead in the ninth with a bloop single over the head of shortstop Matt Fontenot that scored
Chris Franklin and
Philip Freeman.
Watkins (2-1) earned his first win since a March 3rd win over Louisiana-Lafayette. The right-hander retired the side to open the game before McNeese State (7-8, 1-3 SLC) scored a run in the second and third inning.
Fontenot, who went 3-for-4, tripled to the gap in right-center field to drive in Steven Irvine that gave the Cowboys a 1-0 lead. McNeese State built a 2-0 lead in the third as Jace Peterson hit a one-out single, moved to third on a single by Lee Orr and scored on Irvine's sacrifice fly to center.
The Cowboys threatened in the sixth inning after Fontenot hit a one-out single and Bryn Thompson followed with a double to right. After Watkins fanned Jordan Venable for the second out,
Josh Janway came in for the Lions and got Andy Riche' to ground back to the mound to end the inning.
The Cowboys put runners on first and second in the ninth off Janway before Franklin came on in relief. Blake Ellender greeted Franklin with a two-run triple and scored on Peterson's ground out, but Franklin fanned Orr and got Irvine to ground out to third to record his fifth save of the year.
Lloyd scattered nine hits and fanned five batters in his longest outing of the season for McNeese State.
The series will resume Saturday as the teams will face off at 1 p.m. The game was originally scheduled for 3 p.m., but was moved up due to the threat of inclement weather in the area on Saturday. The game can be heard in the Hammond area on KSLU-FM (90.9) and on the internet at www.LionSports.net.
Southeastern La..... 000 130 002 - 6 11 1
McNeese State....... 011 000 003 - 5 10 0
Watkins, Janway (6); Franklin (9) and Gough-Fortenberry. Lloyd, Click (9) and Venable. W – Watkins (2-1). Sv. – Franklin (5). L – Lloyd (0-4). E - Gough-Fortenberry (2). DP - MCN 1. LOB - SLU 6; MCN 8. 2B – Hargis (7); J. Boudreaux (5); Sparacino (1); Thompson (4). 3B – Ellender (1); Fontenot (1). HR – Cryer (2). HBP - Gough-Fortenberry; Riche'. SH - Gough-Fortenberry (3). SF – Irvine (2). SB – Orr (8). T - 2:35. A – 802.
