Lion baseball traveled to McNeese (27-22, 16-9 Southland) this Friday to compete in three games which counted toward the Southland conference series. The games took place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Southeastern (30-21, 15-10 Southland) won two out of the three, and the final scores were 10-2, 13-3 and 3-5.
During game one, the Lions managed to score eight runs in the 11th inning. In the midst of breaking through the first, sophomore infielder Daniel Midyett led the inning with grabbing his third hit of the game, slinging to right and moving to second on a bunt single by freshman infielder, Kennon Menard. An RBI bloop single in the left-center field was dropped by freshman outfielder, Jacob Seward.
Junior outfielder Andrew Godbold led the inning as senior outfielder Corey Bryan was sent out as a pinch runner. The ball was ripped into the right-center gap by junior catcher, Sam Roberson. With a two-base error managed by the Cowboys, junior infielder Brett Hoffman managed to drive in Bryan with a ground out to short stop. Senior pitcher Dylan Hills fanned the side, which forced extra innings into the game.
In the 11th, bases were loaded and there were no outs. To lead off the inning, Roberson doubled and traveled to third base on Hoffman's single up the middle. A walk was drawn by Midyett to load all bases. Menard singled down the line and passed the first baseman as Roberson and Hoffman drove in. A throw back from the right caught Menard, but sophomore outfielder Kyle Cedotal reached on a fielder's choice. Although Midyett was thrown out at plate for the second time, six Lions were able to reach base safely before the final out of the inning.
With a walk by junior infielder Jacob Williams, Seward managed to single up the middle as Cedotal drove in. Sophomore catcher Jameson Fisher and freshman outfielder Ryan Byers also walked. Roberson managed to rip the ball into the left-center gap, clearing all bases. Roberson gained a final run coming off of a single from Hoffman. Midyett followed with a single-up the middle.
During game two, Lions gained a 1-0 lead with a break through performance in the third inning. Fisher reached on an error, which caused the first baseman to open the inning and move to second base on Godbold's single. While Roberson was hit by a pitch to load all bases, Hoffman manged to rip an RBI single to right field.
Menard reached first on a swinging bunt to load bases once again, immediately following an RBI sacrifice fly made by Midyett. As Cetodal singled to the right, he managed to drive in Roberson as Williams hit an RBI sacrifice fly giving Southeastern a 5-0 lead.
Seward was hit by a pitch to load all bases for the third time in the inning. Godbold managed to get hit by a pitch as Roberson drew a bases-loaded walk to drive in Seward with the final run of the inning.
After winning against McNeese, Head Coach Matt Riser gave insight of how the baseball performed on Friday and Saturday.
"I was actually proud of the team this week. Record-wise it has been showing," said Riser. "I thought they came out and competed the right way. That's what it's all about."
During game three, the lead was gained by the Lions in the first inning. Fisher managed to knock a one-out single up the middle as he moved up to second base on a wild pitch. Godbold managed to rip an infield single off the third baseman's glove as Fisher advanced to third. Hoffman hit a sinking line drive to left field, following a walk to Roberson. Hoffman was robbed of a hit, but Fisher returned and tagged from third.
In the bottom of the inning, McNeese took the lead with a score of 2-1. The lead was added to two more runs as the Cowboys managed to chase Cetodal from the game. After scoring single runs in the fifth and sixth inning, Southeastern took the lead with a score of 4-3.
Advancing to third on Godbold's double down the left-field line, Fisher led off the fifth with a single and also managed to score on Hoffman's sacrifice fly to center. A two-walk out in the sixth was drawn by Williams as he continued to chase McNeese starters. Singles into the right were pulled by Seward and Fisher as Williams managed to score on the latter.
Aside from coming up short in the last game of the series, Riser took note of some strengths the Lions showcased.
"Getting the right mentality along with getting back to work and playing both harder and faster, we got the results we wanted," said Riser.
Southeastern will return home to compete against Northwestern State, Thursday through Saturday. These will be the final games of the season. Then the Lions will travel to Conway, Arkansas to compete in the Southland Baseball Conference Tournament which will take place May 21-24. Lions held their eighth consecutive conference tournament bid with Saturday's win.
"This is the time to let it all click like we've done in the past," said Riser. "To see that mentality come around with all the talent, we got to step it up, and it's definitely going to be good to see."