EUNICE, La. – LSU Eunice will begin its postseason journey on Monday as the Bengals open up the Region 23 Tournament against Hinds Community College.  The noon contest will be the first game of the tournament, hosted by Pearl River Community College.
 
The Bengals and Eagles are joined by host Pearl River, East Mississippi, Jones and Northwest Mississippi in the six-team double elimination tournament.  The winner of the weeklong event will receive the Gulf District bid into the NJCAA National Tournament in Enid, Oklahoma.
 
"This is always an exciting time of the year and I know our young men are ready to get to postseason play," LSU Eunice baseball head coach Jeff Willis said.  "There is a tremendous amount of talent in this year's field and we will get to witness a high level of competition."
 
LSU Eunice, the defending NJCAA National Champions and seven-time World Series winner, seeks its 11th Region Tournament championship.
 
Other day one action includes Pearl River facing off with Northwest Mississippi at 3:30PM followed by the night cap of East Mississippi and Jones at 7:00PM.  All games can be seen live on prccmedia.com.
 
LSU Eunice enters the postseason with a 38-15 overall record and the number four team in the most recent NJCAA Division II rankings.  The Bengals lead the country in stolen bases with 202, paced by Kole Myers (Jennings, LA, Jennings HS) and his 55 swipes.  Peyton LeJeune (Church Point, LA, Teurlings Catholic HS) leads the LSUE attack with 60 RBIs, tied for 15th best nationally, as well as a Bengal-best six home runs.
 
Patrick Vienne (Natchitoches, LA, St. Mary's HS) has established himself as the top LSUE starter in the rotation.  The freshman has a 10-1 record and 2.88 earned run average.  He also leads the team with 75 strikeouts on the season.
 
Hinds comes into the postseason with a 28-16 record under first year head coach Dan Rives.  The 19th-ranked Eagles defeated Mississippi Gulf Coast CC in two games in their MACCC play-in series a week, including a thrilling walk-off winner in Game Two. 
 
The Eagles are one of the better power hitting teams in the nation, ranking 15th in NJCAA in long balls with 55.  Josh Rodriguez and Justin Williams lead Hinds in the power department with 12 home runs each.  Vantrel Reed is the top hitter of the squad, posting a .416 batting average to go along with a team-best 50 RBIs.
 
Holland Townes is the Hinds ace, sporting an 8-3 record with a 3.25 earned run average.  The righty has 89 strikeouts on the year, ranking 15th nationally.
 
This will be the sixth time LSUE and Hinds have met in the Region 23 Tournament since 2012.  The Bengals won the most recent matchup, a 10-0 decision to open the 2018 Region 23 Tournament.