EUNICE, La. – LSU Eunice showed its range with a pair of wins over two stout Midwestern foes on Saturday at Bengal Stadium. The Bengals (9-0) defeated Jefferson College in a 17-3 offensive showcase, followed by a 6-4 nailbiter with Highland CC.
Carter Quinn (Lake Charles, LA, Barbe HS) made his presence known in both contests, combining for three hits, two RBIs, a run scored and three stolen bases.
LSUE will close out the weekend with a Sunday matinee against Highland CC at 1:00PM.
Game 1 vs. Jefferson College – W, 17-3
LSU Eunice rattled off 15 unanswered runs to turn a tight game into a 17-3 mercy rule win over Jefferson College. The game marked the first meeting between the two teams with a combined 13 NJCAA World Series appearances.
The Bengals found themselves in a 3-2 hole in the third inning after Jordan Duncan cleared the bases with a three-run double. The Bengal pitching staff would only allow four hits after that.
The high-powered LSUE offense came to life with back-to-back four-run innings. After
Thomas Stevens (Crowley, LA, Notre Dame HS) tied the game with a RBI single,
Brady Hebert (Baton Rouge, LA, Catholic-Baton Rouge HS) gave LSUE the lead for good in the fourth inning with a two-run triple. Carter Quinn pushed the Bengals' advantage to 10-3 in the fifth, capping that frame with a RBI double.
Quinn and Stevens joined
Jack Merrifield (Prairieville, LA, Dutchtown HS) with multi-hit games.
LSUE would then blow the game wide open in the sixth inning. The Bengals capitalized on three walks, three hit by pitch and three hits to cross seven runs in the inning.
Kole Myers' (Jennings, LA, Jennings HS) two-run single was the only base hit to produce runs in the inning.
Ayden Makarus (Okotoks, Alberta, Canada, Foothills Composite HS) began the scoring in the game with a towering two-run home run in the second inning.
The offensive output cast a shadow on another impressive outing by
Jerry Couch (Bossier City, LA, Airline HS). The sophomore struck out a career-best 10 batters, giving up three earned runs off six hits and three walks in five innings.
Brendan Moody (Iowa, LA, Iowa HS) and
Jackson Rodriguez (Kingwood, TX) gave up one hit in two combined relief innings.
Game 2 vs. Highland CC – W, 6-4
Peyton LeJeune (Church Point, LA, Teurlings Catholic HS) came off the bench for the first time this season and delivered with a pair of clutch at bats to help LSUE rally past Highland CC, 6-4. The game was a shortened seven-inning affair.
It was a classic pitching duel between
Drew Lasseigne (Greenwell Springs, LA, Central HS) and Highland's Joan Gonzalez. Gonzalez topped 94 miles per hour with his fastball and stymied the LSUE bats to just one hit through the first three innings.
With LSUE trailing 2-0 in the fourth, Jack Merrifield led off the inning with double to jump start the Bengals' offense. A few batters later, Peyton LeJeune would produce a pinch hit two-out looper to left field that would tie the game at 2-2. The Scotties would answer an inning later to regain their two-run lead, 4-2.
Connor Quinn would inch LSUE closer by working the base paths. Quinn induce a walk; steal second and third, forcing an overthrow to third base and scoring on the error to the Bengals back within one run.
That set the stage again for LeJeune. The Teurlings Catholic HS product maneuvered a difficult inside pitch and laid down a safety squeeze to score
Scott Jones (Sulphur, LA, Sulphur HS), tying the game 4-4. After Ayden Makarus scored on a passed ball, LeJeune would trot home as well on an errant pitch.
That gave way for
Noah Beason (Lufkin, TX, Huntington HS) to pick up his first save of the season. Beason worked around two walks while striking out two batters to squash Highland's hopes of a comeback.
Jacob Hammond (Monroe, LA, Ouachita HS) was credited with the win after throwing 1.2 innings of relief, giving up one earned run off two hits and a walk. The sophomore struck out four batters.
Lasseigne received a tough luck no decision. The right-hander struck out nine batters, while yielding three earned runs off four hits and two walks. The LSUE pitching staff struck out 15 of the 21 outs in the ball game.
