POPLARVILLE, Miss. - LSU Eunice split a doubleheader at Pearl River CC on Wednesday as the Bengals closed out a 39-day gap between home games.  The 17th-ranked Bengals (12-11) lasted played in Eunice on February 4, and return home on Friday to host No. 2 Mississippi Gulf Coast.
 
The Bengals rallied to take the opener against the Wildcats, 7-6, before falling 10-3 in the twinbill finale.  Olivia Hennen (Choudrant, LA, Choudrant HS) was an offensive sparkplug on the day, leading the team with four hits, three RBIs and one run scored.
 
LSUE and Mississippi Gulf Coast are scheduled for a 1:00PM doubleheader on Friday.  The Bengals will also host Blinn College for two games on Saturday, starting at noon.  All four games can be seen on Bengal All-Access.
 
Game 1 vs. Pearl River CC – W, 7-6
LSU Eunice dug itself out of a four-run hole to rally and defeat Pearl River, 7 -6, in game one of the doubleheader.  The Bengals outscored the Wildcats 6-1 in the final three frames to complete the comeback.
 
PRCC raced out a to 5-1 lead thanks to a pair of two-run home runs by Faith Peterson and Brooke Fagan.  The Bengals would enjoy their own power surge with a trio of home runs including back-to-back home runs by Jacie McFarlain (Pine Prairie, LA, Pine Prairie HS) and Olivia Hennen to take its first and only lead of the game in the seventh inning.
 
Sydnei Simon's (Rayne, LA, Notre Dame HS) two-run home run in the sixth inning tied up the game 5-5 before PRCC answered with another long ball in the bottom half of the inning to temporarily regain the lead.
 
Hennen combined with Gracie King (Winnsboro, LA, Franklin Parish HS) in the fifth inning to jump-start the LSUE offense with a pair of RBIs.  Hennen paced the LSUE with a 3-for-4 outing, driving in a pair of runs and scoring once.  Simon and Morgan Harlow (Lake Charles, LA, Westlake HS) also had multi-hit games.
 
Karli Ortego (Pine Prairie, LA, Pine Prairie HS) (W, 9-5) picked up win after going the distance, scattering six earned runs off 11 hits and two walks.  Ortego also struck out six batters in the complete game effort.
 
Game 2 vs. Pearl River CC – L, 3-10
The Bengals could not overcome a six-run inning as LSUE saw its early lead slip away in a 10-3 defeat to close the day at PRCC. 
 
LSUE took an early lead thanks to a Rylie Candella (Centerville, LA, Centerville HS) solo home run and pair of runs in the third inning.  Sydnei Simon and Olivia Hennen would each drive in runs to make it a 3-1 LSUE game in the top of the third.
 
The Wildcats would respond with three runs of its own in the third, followed by a six-run frame in the fifth.  PRCC would score four runs in that critical inning with two outs as LSUE also committed two errors.
 
Rylie Candella managed two of the team's three hits as PRCC's Gracie Barnett kept the Bengal bats in check.  Syndei Simon (L, 3-6) was credited with the loss after pitching all six innings for LSUE.