Over the weekend, Southeastern (10-2, 3-0 SLC) claimed the series over Northwestern State (5-7, 0-3 SLC) and swept them with a walk-off home run during Sunday’s game three. 

Game One — Friday, Feb. 28

Under the Friday night lights, SLU dominated NSU 6-2 during its first game and took the lead in the series.

The contest started in a standoff, with no runs from each team. The starting pitcher for the Lions, senior Brennan Stuprich, dominated NSU in eight innings with 11 strikeouts and held the Demons to one run with only three hits.  

“The preparation of doing the little things right every day throughout the week got me to this point, and it felt great to see it pay off with the win,” said Stuprich.

When Stuprich kept NSU scoreless, senior shortstop TJ Salvaggio hit a home run to left field to give SLU an early 2-0 lead in the fifth. In the next inning, he drove in another RBI after he sent a single toward the right field to increase the lead over the Demons, 3-0.

Searching for a comeback, Northwestern managed to score a run in the seventh. The Lions continued to increase their advantage in the bottom of the seventh, with a home run from senior designated hitter Logan Walters, with two more runs later on from senior right fielder Coley Parker and senior center fielder Jude Hall. 

With Southeastern securing the first win, 6-2, it went home and prepared to take the series the next day.

Game Two — Saturday, March 1 

SLU took the series away from NSU after securing the win during the second game, 7-3.

Although the Lions won, they had to cycle through five pitchers to keep the Demons at bay.

Junior Lakin Polk was the first on the mound and pitched for five innings with five strikeouts and seven hits—the rest of the pitchers combined to strike out five more through the remaining four frames. 

“Lakin gave us a great start, then these young guys came in and did well learning how to control their emotions in these moments and come out winning,” said Head Coach Bobby Barbier.

In the batter’s box, SLU took the early lead after Salvaggio secured an RBI with a single down the third base line. Then, its score increased with two runs from a single toward right-center field from sophomore designated hitter Peyton Woods.

NSU tied the game 3-3 in the top of the seventh, but SLU was quick to shut them down thereafter. 

Redshirt senior left outfielder Logan Walters would send two runners home with a single up the middle to put the Lions ahead. Junior second baseman Ben Robichaux launched a rocket over center field to secure the lead, 7-3.

“I’m always confident coming up to the plate, and I was looking to hit a heater and put the ball into play,” said Robichaux.

Southeastern claimed victory in its second game over Northwestern and looked to sweep them on Sunday.

Game Three — Sunday, March 2 

In a hard-fought win, Southeastern defeated Northwestern with a walk-off home run in the bottom of the tenth and finished the weekend with a conference sweep, 6-5.

The final matchup kept fans on their toes when Southeastern cycled through its bullpen and struggled to keep Northwestern away from home plate. 

The longest pitcher to stay on the mound for the Lions was senior Aiden Vosburg, who lasted four innings and struck out six batters.

In the end, freshman pitcher Brady St. Pierre stepped up to the mound to secure the win for SLU. In the last 1.2 innings of action, he struck out four batters with no hits and kept NSU away from the bases in the final inning.

“I didn’t think we played well early in the game, and St. Pierre is a freshman who had it rough early in the season but is very talented and gave you a glimpse of who he’s going to be later on,” said Coach Barbier. 

The Demons took the lead multiple times from the start but were never too far ahead for the Lions to tie.

In the bottom of the third, Southeastern was down by three but managed to secure the tie after an RBI double into the right field from junior right fielder Dane Watts. Then, two runners would score after an error made by the shortstop, securing the tie, 3-3, from unearned runs by Salvaggio and senior first baseman Ryan Brome.  

Northwestern took the lead with a single run in the fifth inning, but in the sixth, senior catcher Conner O’Neal hit a home run to tie the game at 4-4.

Brome would give SLU a quick lead over NSU with another RBI after hitting a single into center field, but Northwestern would tie the game once more with a run from a wild pitch.

SLU was tied through the ninth inning, while St.Pierre kept NSU from scoring through the top of the 10th, keeping the score 5-5.

It was time for the Lions to bat; the Demons claimed two outs with a double play from second to first. 

O’Neal walked up to the plate, launched a ball over the wall in right-center field for a walk-off home run and celebrated with his teammates at home plate.

“When I got to home plate, I blacked out, then I watched the ball launch out of the park and was ready to celebrate with the boys. Our team played their hearts out, and it always feels awesome getting the sweep for the weekend,” said O’Neal.

After tearing apart Northwestern over the weekend, Southeastern will travel on the road later this afternoon to take on the Memphis Tigers (8-4) at 4:05 P.M. today in Memphis, Tennessee.

The Lions were supposed to play No. 17 Ole Miss in Oxford on Tuesday (March 4) night, but inclement weather caused the contest to be canceled. 

Make sure to visit The Lion’s Roar for more articles and coverage of Southeastern baseball.