Lamar sports information

NATCHITOCHES, La. — Despite scoring six runs on 11 hits, Lamar (9-14, 2-7 Southland) didn’t have quite enough offense to cancel out free bases awarded to Northwestern State (12-9, 5-4 Southland). The Demons emerged on top of the Cards in a 10-6 decision Sunday despite being outhit 11-7 by Big Red’s bats. Seven walks, five hit batters, four wild pitches, three errors, and a passed ball allowed plagued LU in the game.

The Cardinals got off to a great start in the top of the first. Avery George re-started his on-base streak in the first after reaching on a dropped strikeout, and Cole Girouard advanced him on a bunt single to second. Cole Coker was walked to load the bases with no outs and a single from JC Correa scored two Cardinals and put Coker on second. A flyout from Robin Adames put Coker on third before a one out double from Logan Berlof scored Coker and put Correa on third. The final run came on a foul-out sac fly from Rhett McCall, who scored Correa.

All nine Cardinals came to the plate in the first inning when Brennan Lambert was walked and a deep fly ball from Anthony Quirion didn’t have quite enough to travel the 400-plus feet for a center-field homer. Lamar led 4-0 heading into the bottom of the first.

Northwestern State also got off to a quick start, scoring on the fourth pitch of the game. A long fly ball to Coker got away from the junior left fielder when collided with the outfield wall and was winded on the play. The Demon third base coach was waving all the way home and NSU’s base runner scored on an inside-the-park homer. Two flyouts and a strikeout ended the inning and stranded a runner on first. After one inning Lamar led 4-1.

LU added one more run to its total in the top of the second. Girouard tripled to right center field with one out and came home on a one-out double from Coker. Correa singled in the next at-bat and stole second but was stranded there on back-to-back strikeouts. Lamar led 5-1 at the start of the bottom half of two.

Northwestern State got several breaks in the second inning that swung momentum heavily in NSU’s favor. The Demons earned back-to-back walks with two outs and brought both home on a first-pitch double down the left field line. A bobbled throw allowed the runner to reach third, and he was joined on the base paths after a walk. A wild pitch scored the runner on third and a hit-by-pitch put runners on first and second before another wild pitch and an error scored the final Demon run. After two innings the game was tied 5-5.

NSU struck again in the third with on run on a walk, two hit-by-pitch, and a passed ball, putting NSU up 6-5 after three. Lamar attempted a response in the top of the fourth on a two-out single from Coker, but Correa was called out in the final at-bat of the inning on what was ruled a batter’s interference as Coker stole second. A lead-off hit-by-pitch, a stolen base, an error, and a one-out single scored another run in the bottom of the fourth and NSU led 7-5 after four innings.

Robin Adames did his best to pull Lamar back into the game in the top of the fifth. The senior from The Bronx, New York, hit his fifth homer of the year and the 23rd of his career on the first pitch he saw, pulling Lamar within one run, 7-6. A two-out hit-by-pitch of Lambert was stranded on a flyout, a strikeout, and a 5-3 grounder. Two hits, an error, and a sac fly in the bottom of the inning erased the Adames run and added another for good measure, putting NSU up 9-6 after five.

Girouard doubled in the top of the sixth and reached third on a grounder from Coker but was stranded on a foulout. Adames singled to lead off the seventh but was stranded, and Girouard again singled in the eighth to give Lamar a chance at a run before being stranded. LU’s final cahnce came in the ninth when Berlof was walked with two outs. He reached second on defensive indifference but was left there on a strikeout. NSU won 10-6 after a solo homer in the seventh inning.

Girouard (4-for-5), Coker (2-for-4), Correa (2-for-5), Adames (2-for-5), and Berlof (1-for-4) had 11 hits for LU and two of the three walks the Cardinals drew. McCall had an RBI and George scored a run.

Lamar returns to action on Tuesday with the finale of its four-game road trip. The Cards will play at Texas A&M at 6:30 p.m. Nicholls will start a five-game home series for Lamar on March 29-31 and then Houston (April 2) and Houston Baptist (April 3) will come to town. A trip to Sam Houston State (April 5-7) will be followed by a non-conference game at UTSA (April 9) and a three-game homestand against A&M-Corpus Christi (April 12-14) before LU goes on its nine-game road trip to end April.