WACO, Texas – A pitchers' duel through and through, small mistakes led to all three combined runs between Lamar University and Baylor University Tuesday at Baylor Ballpark. The Cards (6-23) held a 1-0 lead through five innings before the Bears (14-13) scored two in the sixth to escape with a 2-1 win.
"Our pitching was phenomenal tonight," said head coach
Will Davis. "We threw a great game, and Jace deserved to get a win. There were just a couple of things that we didn't execute, and in such a close game that gets magnified. No one play wins or loses the game but there are a couple of things that we wish we could've come through on. We also did several things well. We faced two pitchers that have been their Friday night starters in Big XII play, so it wasn't like it was an easy challenge."
Scoreless through three innings, Big Red came up with some clutch hitting in the fourth to take a 1-0 lead. With two outs
Logan LeJeune singled up the middle, then advanced to second on a single from
Cole Secrest. A single from
Cole Girouard on the first pitch he saw scored LeJeune and placed Secrest on third, and a flyout with runners on the corners ended the top of the inning with Lamar leading 1-0.
Jace Campbell sat down the Bears in order in the bottom of the inning to keep Lamar ahead.
"It was great to see some clutch hits from Phil, Logan, and Girouard tonight, all young guys that contributed to our first run," said Davis. "We just couldn't add on and unfortunately we weren't able to hold them. Girouard is one of the best base runners on the team and one of the best defenders in the outfield, and he's starting to put it together at the plate. He's got a long way to go, but he has a lot of talent. He'll continue to grow the more he plays."
Campbell was masterful through six innings, striking out four while allowing just five hits and one walk. The senior transfer from Alvin, Texas, was close to keeping Baylor scoreless through six innings, but a dropped strikeout on what should have been his final batter and an error allowed the Bear to reach. Baylor capitalized by singling up the middle on the next pitch, drawing a walk that put runners on first and second, and doubling down the right field line to score two. Baylor led 2-1.
Ingram and Girouard both went 2-for-4 on the night to try to get Lamar back in the game but the Cardinals couldn't complete the comeback. They'll return to Beaumont on Friday to face New Orleans in a three-game Southland Conference series at Vincent-Beck Stadium. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 6 p.m.
"There's no moral victories in this game," said Davis. "We should've won this game, and we know we were capable of winning. We're going to try to turn the page on Friday against one of the best starters in the conference."
