HAMMOND, La. – It doesn’t get any better than postseason baseball as No. 3 Southeastern Louisiana came back from down nine in the fifth to top No. 2 New Orleans 15-13 on Friday afternoon at the 2021 Southland Conference Baseball Tournament, presented by GeoSurfaces.
The Lions put up six runs in the top of the ninth inning, capped off by Jacob Burke’s three-run jack to produce the game’s final score. Gaby Cruz and Evan Keller got the scoring going in the team’s final inning at bat with back-to-back RBI singles, followed by another run coming on a Tyler Finke groundout.
Hunter O’Toole (1-0) and Trey Shaffer (4) each pitched a perfect inning of relief with a strikeout to earn the win and save, respectively. Caleb Seroski (4-4) suffered the loss after giving up seven runs on six hits over three innings out of the bullpen.
The Lions jumped out to an early lead on Burke’s first three-run home run in the opening frame, but SLU’s advantage was once again short lived as Luther Woullard responded with a bases clearing double in the home half of the first. Three batters later, Beau Bratton belted a home run to right to put the Privateers on top.
After Pearce Howard pushed the lead to three with a second-inning sac fly, Blake Way made it a 7-3 advantage in the bottom of the fourth with a solo shot over the scoreboard in left. UNO loaded the bases with three-straight singles, leading to Howard blasting the fourth Privateer grand slam in two days to make it 11-3.
The Privateers mirrored their score line from the first two innings, following up a five spot in the fourth with another score in the fifth on Way’s second long ball of the game.
However, SLU was not going to go away quietly, roaring back with a four spot in the top of the sixth, including three-consecutive RBI base-hits, to cut the deficit to five. Rhett Rosevear made it a four-run game in the eighth with a two-run blast, the first of his career.
The Lions earn a rematch with No. 7 McNeese at 7 p.m. CT Friday.
{Courtesy: release from the Southland Conference}
