Pilots split double header with UTB, magic number now 1
April 15, 2011
BROWNSVILLE, Tex. - The no. 5 LSU Shreveport Pilots baseball team split Friday's double header with the University of Texas-Brownsville Scorpions at Scorpion Field. UTB won the first game 5-0 while the Pilots cruised to a 7-1 win in the night cap.GAME 1, L 5-0
The Scorpions right-hander, Danny Gidora, and a 20-30 mile an hour wind blowing in from center field kept the Pilots offense at bay as Gidora tossed his eighth complete game and his fifth shutout of the year. UTB is the first NAIA team to shutout the Pilot offense this year.
Gidora (9-2) gave up only three hits to the Pilots while walking two and striking out five to earn the win. Jared Mata (5-3) suffered the loss for the Pilots as he scattered nine hits, allowing five earned runs, two walks and six strike outs.
UTB scored two runs in the first, one in the fourth and two more in the sixth for the win.
GAME 2, W 7-1
The Pilots left-hander was just as impressive in the second game of the double dip as Cody Boutte threw his second complete game of the season allowing the only run in the first inning. UTB got two hits in the first and two in the second and then Boutte retired 19 of the next 22 batters that he faced. He ended the game retiring the final seven UTB hitters. Boutte allowed just five hits, two walks, and seven strike outs.
UTB scored in the first inning to take a 1-0 lead until the Pilots scored their first runs of the day with a two-run double from Shawn Moy in the second inning as they took the lead for good.
Manny Estrada extended the lead for the Pilots in the sixth inning as he ripped a two-run single, which was set up by a sacrifice bunt by Curtis Beaudoin to move both runners into scoring position, up the middle to make it a 4-1 advantage for the Pilots.
LSUS added three more insurance runs in the top of the ninth as Michael Diffie hit a two-run shot to left, his fourth homer of the year, and then Chase Wentz drove in a run with a double off the left field wall for the seventh run of the game.
The Pilots had a magic number of three when the day began and after Northwood split their double header with Wiley, the magic number is down to one for the Pilots meaning that the Pilots will clinch the RRAC regular season title tomorrow with a win or a Northwood loss. The Pilots meet the Scorpions at 1:00 tomorrow for the rubber-game of the series at Scorpion Field. If the Pilots win tomorrow they not only win the series two out of three over UTB but they would also wrap up the RRAC regular season championship. The last time the Pilots won a regular season title was back in 2005 when the brought home the hardware in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference.
