Things looked great for the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns after the sixth inning wrapped up. However, a pair of missed double play opportunities proved costly as the App State Mountaineers were able to take the first game of the series by the score of 6-5.
How It Happened:
The Mountaineers struck first when Dalton Williams grounded out to first base, scoring Riley Smith in the process. The Cajuns responded in the bottom frame with a sac fly from Todd Lott followed by a two-out RBI single from Orynn Veillon to give them a 2-1 lead.
Lott got a hold of one in the bottom of the third, sending it out of the park to extend their lead to two runs. The call of the home run was contested but the call stood after a lengthy discussion between the umpires.
Hayden Cantrelle joined in on the fun in the bottom of the fifth with a solo shot out to right field to start the inning. However, the Mountaineers started to put something together in the sixth with a pair of RBI singles to make it 4-3. Orynn Veillon reached home safely off of a throwing error by Ryan Leek to make it a two-run game once again. Luke Allison got the Mountaineers within one in the seventh with an RBI triple, but Michael Leaumont limited the damage with a pair of strikeouts. Phillip Cole tied things up with an RBI single in the eighth, but was thrown out trying to stretch it out to a double.
The Cajuns had a chance to end the inning with a double play but the throw from Hunter Kasuls was just a little late, giving App State the win off of a fielder’s choice.
Big Number: 11
The red-hot Hayden Cantrelle didn’t hit for the cycle as he did on Tuesday night, but his lone hit was still impactful with a solo shot out to right field. Also, that hit extended his streak to 11 straight games.
Player of the Game: Todd Lott
While the Cajuns lost the game, there’s no doubting that the bright spot in the Cajuns lineup was Todd Lott. He got the Cajuns on the board in the bottom of the first, responding to the early run from the Mountaineers and followed that up with an absolute bomb to extend their lead early in the contest. He made the most of his opportunities and got the Cajuns in a position to win the ballgame.
Next Up: Saturday vs App State; First Pitch at 2 pm
-Clint Domingue