HOUSTON- Houston Baptist scored five runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to lead it to a 6-2 win over the McNeese Cowboys in the first game of their final three-game Southland Conference baseball series.
Huskies starting pitcher Brady Bratton pitched a complete game and was given a big lead after a five run fifth inning by the Huskies.
Rhett Deaton (7-4) got the start for the Cowboys on Thursday night and struggled for the first time in several starts, finishing the night with 4.2 innings pitched, six runs given up on seven hits, struck out five and earned his fourth loss on the year.
The Cowboys (29-24, 14-14 SLC) took the lead quick, scoring in the first inning after a lead-off double by
Payton Harden and an RBI single by
Nate Fisbeck to jump out 1-0 after the first inning.
The Huskies (18-33, 10-18 SLC) then took control of the game, scoring six unanswered runs. They scored their first in the bottom of the second on an RBI double and then exploded for five runs in the fifth on four hits, two walks, and two sacrifice hits.
The Cowboys then scored their second and final run of the game in the eighth on a
Jake Dickerson RBI single up the middle.
McNeese had a few shots to score late in the game, having two runners on and no outs in both the eighth and ninth inning but were only able to plate one in those innings.
The Cowboys will look to bounce back from the loss when they take the field Friday afternoon to play game two of the three-game series against the Huskies. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.
KEY INNINGS
1st |
Payton Harden lead off the game with a double to left center field and then scored after
Nate Fisbeck hit a single up the middle for the first run of the game and take a 1-0 lead after the first.
2nd | In the bottom of the inning, the Huskies scored their first run of the game with an RBI double in the right center gap to tie the game up 1-1 after the second.
5th | The Huskies explode in the inning for five runs on five hits and two walks to take a 6-1 lead.
8th | In the top of the inning, Fisbeck lead off with a single, followed by a drawn walk by Rasbeary to give
Jake Dickerson two men on and one out. Dickerson then delivered an RBI single up the middle to plate Fisbeck and make it the final 6-2.
MCNEESE NOTES
Offense:
The Cowboys were led offensively by
Nate Fisbeck, he finished 3-for-5 from the plate with a double, two singles, a run scored, and one RBI.
Payton Harden also had a great game, hitting 2-for-4 including a double, one drawn walk, and one run scored.
The Cowboys out hit the Huskies 11 to 10, but left 10 runners on base.
Pitching:
Junior right-handed pitcher
Rhett Deaton got the start for the Cowboys in Thursday's game. Deaton finished with 4.2 IP, gave up six runs on seven hits, struck out five, and got the win.
Hunter Reeves relieved Deaton to finish the fifth inning. Reeves finished the game with 2.0 IP, one hit, no runs, one walk, and two strikeouts.
Bryan King relieved Reeves in the seventh with two outs. King got the Cowboys out of the inning and finished the game for the Cowboys with 1.1 IP, two hits allowed, zero runners surrendered, and only walked one.
ON DECK
The Cowboys will play game two of the series against Houston Baptist on Friday at 2 p.m. and Game three on Saturday at 1 p.m.
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