Friday, March 4
Lafayette, La.
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Southern Miss
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Photo by: Joe Harper/bgnphoto.com
Big Fifth Inning Lifts Louisiana to 5-3 Win Friday Night
3/4/2022 8:46:00 PM | Baseball
LAFAYETTE, La. – Louisiana exploded for a four-run fifth inning to lift the Ragin' Cajuns to a 5-3 series-opening victory over Southern Miss at Russo Park Friday.
The Golden Eagles dropped to 6-3 on the year, while the Ragin' Cajuns improved to 6-4 on the season. The two teams continue the series with a 2 p.m. Saturday contest.
UL jumped out to an early advantage with a solo run in the opening inning. After getting a pair of outs, UL's Carson Roccaforte reached on a fielding error by first baseman Christopher Sargent. After a stolen base, Roccaforte scored on a Connor Kimple single through the right side.
The home squad completed its scoring in the fifth off of USM starter Ben Ethridge. With one out, Julian Brock and Bobby Lada each singled. After a strikeout, Kyle DeBarge doubled to right-center to knock both runners home.
DeBarge scored one batter later when Roccaforte laced a pitch over the left-center wall to complete a four-run scorig frame and get his second homer of the year.
Ethridge surrendered five runs (four earned runs) over five innings while he surrendered seven hits and no walks with two strikeouts to suffer the loss and fall to 1-1.
Southern Miss cut in the final deficit a half inning later as they scored all three runs in the sixth.
After a Reece Ewing struckout, Christopher Sargent was hit by a pitch and Danny Lynch followed with a single to right off UL starter Tommy Ray. The Cajuns then went to the pen for southpaw Brandon Talley.
Talley got the left-handed hitter Slade Wilks out on a strikeout but Will McGillis got the Golden Eagles on the board with a three-run home run to left field to make the score 5-3. It was the first homer of the year for McGillis.
Ray, who did not allow a hit until an infield single to Dustin Dickerson in the fifth, gave up two of the three runs over 5 1/3 innings and fanned six while walking two and hit a pair of batters. Ray got the win to improve to 1-1.
After allowing the homer, Talley retired 10 of the final 11 batters of the game to notch his first save. Talley allowed a run on two hits and no walks with five strikeouts.
The Golden Eagles managed just four hits in the game.
The Golden Eagles dropped to 6-3 on the year, while the Ragin' Cajuns improved to 6-4 on the season. The two teams continue the series with a 2 p.m. Saturday contest.
UL jumped out to an early advantage with a solo run in the opening inning. After getting a pair of outs, UL's Carson Roccaforte reached on a fielding error by first baseman Christopher Sargent. After a stolen base, Roccaforte scored on a Connor Kimple single through the right side.
The home squad completed its scoring in the fifth off of USM starter Ben Ethridge. With one out, Julian Brock and Bobby Lada each singled. After a strikeout, Kyle DeBarge doubled to right-center to knock both runners home.
DeBarge scored one batter later when Roccaforte laced a pitch over the left-center wall to complete a four-run scorig frame and get his second homer of the year.
Ethridge surrendered five runs (four earned runs) over five innings while he surrendered seven hits and no walks with two strikeouts to suffer the loss and fall to 1-1.
Southern Miss cut in the final deficit a half inning later as they scored all three runs in the sixth.
After a Reece Ewing struckout, Christopher Sargent was hit by a pitch and Danny Lynch followed with a single to right off UL starter Tommy Ray. The Cajuns then went to the pen for southpaw Brandon Talley.
Talley got the left-handed hitter Slade Wilks out on a strikeout but Will McGillis got the Golden Eagles on the board with a three-run home run to left field to make the score 5-3. It was the first homer of the year for McGillis.
Ray, who did not allow a hit until an infield single to Dustin Dickerson in the fifth, gave up two of the three runs over 5 1/3 innings and fanned six while walking two and hit a pair of batters. Ray got the win to improve to 1-1.
After allowing the homer, Talley retired 10 of the final 11 batters of the game to notch his first save. Talley allowed a run on two hits and no walks with five strikeouts.
The Golden Eagles managed just four hits in the game.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Ray, Tommy (1-1)
L: Ethridge, Ben (1-1)
S: Talley, Brandon (1)
Batting:
HR: McGillis, Will 1
RBI: McGillis, Will 3
SH: Dickerson, Dustin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Sargent, Christopher 1 ; Lynch, Danny 1 ; McGillis, Will 1
HBP: Montenegro, Gabe 1 ; Sargent, Christopher 1 ; Lynch, Danny 1
Batting:
2B: DeBarge, Kyle 1
HR: Roccaforte, Carson 1
RBI: DeBarge, Kyle 2 ; Roccaforte, Carson 2 ; Kimple, Connor 1
Base Running:
RUNS: DeBarge, Kyle 1 ; Roccaforte, Carson 2 ; Brock, Julian 1 ; Lada, Bobby 1
SB: Roccaforte, Carson 1
CS: Brock, Julian 1
HBP: Lada, Bobby 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
3
AB
2
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
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UTIL
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