BRANDON, Miss. – It was an afternoon of highs and lows for LSU Eunice softball as the Bengals split their final day of the JUCO Classic. LSUE (11-8) finished the weekend 3-1 in the Bengals' final tournament of the regular season.
The Bengals pieced a complete effort in a 7-1 victory over No. 19 Hinds CC, before suffering a 19-5 loss to No. 16 East Central CC.
Rylie Candella (Centerville, LA, Centerville HS) had a breakout afternoon with a four-hit, five RBI and two home run day.
LSU Eunice will continue a swing in the Magnolia State with a doubleheader on Monday at No.2 Mississippi Gulf Coast. The twinbill from Perkinston is set for 1:00PM. Mississippi Gulf Coast will have a live stream of the games.
Game 1 vs. No. 19 Hinds CC – W, 7-1
Three early home runs and an outstanding outing in the circle from
Karli Ortego (Pine Prairie, LA, Pine Prairie HS) paved the way for LSU Eunice to grab a 7-1 victory over No. 19 Hinds CC to begin the second day of the JUCO Classic. The Bengals avenged a loss to the Eagles last week.
Karli Fontenot (Ville Platte, LA, Sacred Heart-Ville Platte HS) set the tone with a solo home run to left field to give LSUE an early 1-0 lead. Rylie Candella would pad LSUE's lead to 3-0 with a two-run shot in the fourth inning, followed by an inside-the-park home run from
Kennedy Smith (Rayne, LA, Notre Dame HS) in the same frame.
That was more than enough for Ortego, who put together consecutive dominant outings. Ortego (W, 8-4) struck out 11 batters, while giving up one earned run off five hits and a walk. Hinds' only run was a solo home run in the sixth inning.
LSUE got valuable insurance runs from
Olivia Hennen (Choudrant, LA, Choudrant HS) and Fontenot with RBI singles in the seventh inning. Fontenot went 3-for-5 with 3 RBIs and a run scored to lead the LSUE offense. Hennen and Candella also had multi-hit games.
Game 2 vs. No. 16 East Central CC, - L, 5-19
LSU Eunice could not stop a hot-hitting East Central team as the Bengals fell 19-5 to close out the JUCO Classic. The Warriors belted seven home runs in the game including a pair from Olivia Houston and Zharia Richardson.
ECCC raced out to an 11-0 lead before LSUE would chip away in the third inning.
Sydnei Simon (Rayne, LA, Notre Dame HS) would double home a run, followed by a three-run home run by Rylie Candella to cut the deficit to 11-4.
Jacie McFarlain (Pine Prairie, LA, Pine Prairie HS) would score the final run for LSUE in the fifth inning on a single to right field. The freshman combined with Candella for multi-hit games in LSUE's 7-hit outing.
