LAKE CHARLES – McNeese center fielder
Payton Harden tied the school record for most hits in a career with a 1-for-3 game and second baseman
Brad Burckel extended his hitting streak to 23-consecutive games, one away from matching the school record, but the Cowboys were unable to rally back from a four-run sixth inning by Creighton as the Bluejays won 9-4 in the second game of a three-game series.
The two teams will play the rubber-match on Sunday beginning at 1 p.m.
The Cowboys got out to a first inning 2-0 lead after Harden scored on a bases loaded walk to
Kade Hunter then went up 2-0 off a
Braden Duhon sacrifice fly that plated Burckel.
McNeese starting pitcher
Derrick Cherry, the University of Houston transfer making his first start in the blue and gold, cruised through the first two innings until the Bluejays tied things up off a two-run double by Tyler Lozano in the third inning.
A Tré Obregon III double in the bottom of the third scored Burckel to put the Cowboys back on top 3-2 then
Cooper Hext scored off a
Josh Leslie sac fly in the fourth to make it a 4-2 lead.
Creighton added two runs in the fifth off of an Andrew Meggs RBI single and a Lozano sac fly to tie the game 4-4 through five.
In the sixth and with Cowboy freshman
Luke Steward on the mound to make his collegiate debut, the Bluejays got the first three batters on base to load them. Steward got a strikeout for the first of the inning and then a grounder to first base appeared to get the youngster out of the jam, but an errant throw to home plate allowed a run to score to break the tie.
A sacrifice fly followed that put Creighton up 6-4, then a two-run double by Lozano made it an 8-4 Bluejay advantage before Steward was able to close the frame. All four runs scored were unearned.
McNeese threatened in the eighth inning when
Andruw Gonzales led off with a double but would eventually be stranded at third. And in the ninth, Burckel got his second hit of the game with a one-out single, but again would be stranded.
McNeese left 10 batters on base as did Creighton.
Burckel went 2-for-4 on the day with a double and two runs scored. Obregon and Gonzales also had doubles.
Creighton was led at the plate by Lozano's 3-for-4 game and six RBIs. Meggs and Nolan Sailer each posted two hits.
Steward took the loss for the Cowboys while Creighton reliever Daniel Hammond got the win.
