LSUS downs LC on the diamond
March 28, 2012
PINEVILLE, La. - A day after the LSU Shreveport Pilots soared to no. 2 in the nation they took down the Louisiana Wildcats at Wildcat Stadium 5-1 in what turned into a pitcher's duel for the bullpens on Wednesday night.
The game featured 13 different pitchers between the two clubs with LC (10-11) sending eight to the mound. LSUS' starter Drew Middleton retired nine of the 10 batters that he faced with the only Wildcat reaching on a base on balls. Middleton tossed three innings and allowed no runs and no hits while walking one and striking out two.
LSUS (27-3) scored two runs in the top of the fifth with Devin Greco and David Perkins each driving in runs with singles to take a 2-0 lead until LC got a run back in the bottom half to trim the Pilot lead to 2-1. Kyle Pearson continued his dominating performance at the plate with a 3-for-4 game at the dish driving in a run with a single in the eighth inning. Pearson had two doubles early in the contest.
The Pilots added a pair of insurance runs in the top of the ninth as Jacob Lopez and Stephen Hobbins successfully completed a double steal of second and third when the LC catcher Taylor Beavers committed his first error of the season throwing the ball into left field allowing Lopez to score and Hobbins to third. Kym Barthel drove in the final run of the game with a sac fly to right field.
LSUS pounded 15 hits in the game but left 15 runners stranded including the bases loaded three different times while LC had three hits and left six runners aboard leaving the bases loaded in the fourth.
Both teams each made an error but there were some great defensive plays with the leather as Barthel made some great plays filling in a short stop and Greco made a big play in the eighth to save a double that prevented the tying run from coming to the plate.
Ben Suit (2-0) picked up the win for the Pilots after a scoreless fourth inning of work while Chris Bridges (0-1) suffered the loss after allowing the two earned runs in the fifth inning on three hits. Jason Mouton and Ben Suit did a great job getting the ball to Jake Kight for the ninth with the lead as Mouton retired eight batters in a row after surrendering two straight hits to start his outing and Cam Ellis struck out two of the three batters he faced in the eighth. Kight retired three of the five batters he face in the ninth.
The Pilots had five players with multi-hits as Tyler Alton was 3-for-6 while Pearson (3-4) and Perkins (3-5) all had three hits. David Dorton was 2-for-4 while Greg Friesen was 2-for-2 while also reaching base on two walks and a hit by pitch. The Wildcats did not have any multi-hit batters as the LSUS staff silenced their offense.
The next series for the Pilots will be in Waxahachie, Texas, as they take on the SAGU Lions (11-19, 0-15 RRAC) with the first game of Friday's double header beginning at 4:30 p.m. and the series will conclude with a single game on Saturday at 1 p.m.
