EUNICE, La. – LSU Eunice Softball caught fire offensively to take a pair of run-rule decisions over Baton Rouge CC on Wednesday at Lady Bengal Field. LSUE (32-13) took its doubleheader in mercy rule fashion for the fifth time this season.
The Bengals played their first games in 12 games and shook off rust early against the Bears, plating 12 unanswered late for a 15-7 win in six innings to open the day, and continued its offensive surge with a 10-1 win in five innings to close out the twinbill.
Makinzey Elisar (Prairieville, LA, St. Amant HS) was the leading offensive performer for the day, connecting for four hits and four RBIs.
LSU Eunice's schedule games in Texas this weekend are canceled due to predicted severe weather throughout east Texas. The Bengals will head to Baton Rouge for a return trip on Tuesday, April 21.
Game 1 vs. Baton Rouge – W, 15-7
LSU Eunice stormed back from a big early hole to take a 15-7 win over Baton Rouge in six innings. The Bengals plated 12 unanswered runs to secure the victory.
LSUE found itself in a 6-1 hole entering the bottom of the second inning after the Bears connected on a second inning grand slam. The Bengals chipped away, scoring on passed balls in the second and fourth innings. BRCC used an LSUE error in the fifth inning to hold a 7-3 lead before the Bengals took control of the game.
Payton Prince (Sulphur, LA, Sulphur HS) started the rally with a solo home run to left field. LSUE would load the bases with two outs for
Zoey Smith (Choudrant, LA, Choudrant HS) who came through in the clutch with a pinch-hit double that cleared the bases and tied the game 7-7.
The Bengals loaded the bases again in the sixth, this time with no outs.
Makinley Harris (Denham Springs, LA, Denham Springs HS) worked a walk to score the go ahead run, followed by Makinzey Elisar who came home off a wild pitch.
Jordan Stanley (Houston, TX, Clear Lake HS) provided the back breaker, fouling off several pitches before launching a three-run home run to put LSUE ahead 12-7.
LSUE would induce the mercy rule after
Kobi Lam (Lafayette, LA, Southside HS) scored on a wild pitch and Elisar produced a two-run single to end the game. Elisar had a 2-for-4 game with 3 RBIs and was joined by
Kadyn Schenk (Kentwood, LA, Jewel Sumner HS) with multi-hit games.
Ava Kordish (Bayou Chicot, LA, Pine Prairie HS) picked up the win with 4.1 innings of strong relief. The sophomore gave up one unearned run off four hits and two walks while striking out a pair of batters.
Game 2 vs. Baton Rouge – W, 10-1
The Bengals picked up where they left off in the opening game, using a six-run inning to secure a 10-1 run-rule of BRCC in five innings to conclude the day's action. The win helped LSUE move to 23-3 on the season at Lady Bengal Field.
The Bengals put up the first run of the game in the opening inning, using one of two BRCC errors. The Bears scored their lone run of the game in the second, only to be answered by three runs in the bottom half by the Bengals.
Mya Lanoux (Gonzales, LA, East Ascension HS) and Payton Prince connected on RBI doubles while
Mylie Elsensohn (Pearl River, LA, Pearl River HS) connected on an RBI single.
LSUE pushed across six runs in the fourth inning as the first seven batters would reach base safely. Payton Prince came home on a passed ball, followed by back-to-back RBI doubles from Jordan Stanley and
Ciara Orgeron (Stonewall, LA, North Desoto HS). Orgeron later scored on a wild pitch to make it 8-1 LSUE. Kobi Lam and Makinzey Elisar plated the final two runs of the frame with RBI base hits.
Elisar, Prince, Lam, and
Mia Smith (Scott, LA, Teurlings Catholic HS) each had two hits a piece as part of LSUE's 13-hit attack.
Anna-Cate Miller (West Monroe, LA, Claiborne Christian HS) put together a strong performance in the circle to improve to 4-2 on the season. Miller gave up seven hits and three walks. She worked in traffic throughout, using her defense to minimize the damage. Mia Smith engineered two momentum building double plays, one to squash a bases loaded opportunity for the Bears.
