The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns defeated the Marshall Thundering Herd 11-1 in seven innings on Tuesday afternoon in the Sun Belt Baseball Championship presented by Troy University at DABOS Park in Montgomery, Alabama. With the win, the Cajuns move into the double-elimination portion of the tournament and Marshall has been eliminated.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Louisiana opted to send ace Cody Brasch to the mound in a critical game. Marshall, however, was the team that struck first. A hit by pitch was followed by a single from former Cajun Jackson Halter. Then, an error on the throw in allowed the Herd to score the first run of the game, taking a 1-0 lead.
Marshall also tossed their ace, going with lefty Bryce Blevins. He was rudely greeted by the Cajun lineup. Lee Amedee and Drew Markle contributed RBI singles. A Marshall error provided an additional run. By the end of the inning, Louisiana had taken a 3-1 lead.
Brasch was able to settle in after a shaky first. However, Blevins continued to give up loud contact. In the bottom of the third, Owen Galt drove in a run with an RBI single off the wall and Mark Collins brought home two with a run-scoring double.
That frame made it 6-1, and the Cajuns made it 9-1 in the fifth. Noah Lewis provided all three this time, smashing a three-run shot over the wall in center field.
Brasch made it through five and a third, and he turned it over to Parker Smith after that. Smith would get five outs, and that was all that was needed due to the offense.
In the seventh, Amedee and Colt Brown both delivered RBI knocks, using the 10-run rule to defeat Marshall 11-1.
BIG NUMBER: 15
The Cajuns pounded out 15 hits in this game, getting on the Marshall pitching staff from the very first inning. It allowed them to save important pitching pieces for later in the tournament as well.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Mark Collins
Collins returned from injury, playing in this game for the first time in several weeks. He made the most of it, going 3-4 with a double and two RBIs.
UP NEXT: #7 seed Louisiana advances to face #2 seed Coastal Carolina in the double-elimination portion of the SBC Tournament tomorrow afternoon at 12:30 PM.