Cajuns defeat USA, 6-1
MOBILE, Ala. — The University of Louisiana at Lafayette scored six unanswered runs, while Chris Griffitt and Cord Cockrell combined to scatter eight hits in a 6-1 victory over South Alabama on Saturday night at Stanky Field, evening Sun Belt Conference series between the two squads.
ULL (18-20, 7-10 SBC) scored five runs from the second through fourth innings to build a comfortable lead for Griffitt, who held USA (15-24, 9-8) scoreless for the game’s first five innings.
Griffitt allowed only a solo home run by Brad Hook in the sixth. Cockrell shut out the Sun Belt’s top offense in league play for the final three innings to secure his first save as a Ragin’ Cajun.
The victory was 300th Sun Belt win ULL coach Tony Robichaux’s career.
NICHOLLS STATE 10, LAMAR 4: In Thibodaux, Michael LeGrange had a three-run home run in a seven-run sixth inning as Nicholls State homered three times while snapping a five-game losing skid with a Southland Conference victory.
Beau Faulk, who went 3-for-5 with three runs an RBI, and Austin Flores, who was 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI, had back-to-back solo home runs in the fifth inning as Nicholls State (19-19, 8-12 SLC) took its first lead, at 2-1.
Philip Lyons also went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI, while David Zorn was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a run as Nicholls State tallied 13 hits.
Colonels reliever Donnie White (2-1) struck out three and walked two and didn’t allow a hit in the final 3.2 innings.
Lyons scored on an error to start the sixth-inning barrage for Nicholls State. LeGrange’s three-run homer gave the Colonels a 6-4 lead, and Zorn had a two-run single and Lyons a sacrifice fly.
UTSA 9, SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 3: In San Antonio, Texas-San Antonio scored in five of the first six innings against three different pitchers to tie a Southland Conference series at one game apiece.
Daniel Rockett hit a two-out, two-run triple in the first inning, had an RBI double and scored twice to lead UTSA (17-22, 7-13 SLC).
Michael Kraft (7-3) won despite allowing 10 hits, while Jordan Hymel (5-3) lost.
Harry Slade went 3-for-5 with a run, Jonathan Pace was 2-for-4 with two runs and Cody Gougler was 3-for-4 with an RBI to lead SLU (27-13, 12-8).
CENTRAL FLORIDA 8, TULANE 7, 12 INNINGS: In New Orleans, Alex Friedrich went 4-for-6, with two doubles, two runs and two RBIs, and had the game-winning hit, a one-out single in the 12th inning to score D.J. Hicks, who led off with a double, to lift Central Florida to its second consecutive one-run win over Tulane.
UCF (33-8, 11-3 C-USA) led 7-2 in the eighth, but pinch hitter Tucker Oakley had a three-RBI double in the eighth and Garrett Cannizaro a game-tying two-run home run with two outs in the ninth for Tulane (26-13, 5-6).