Box Score BATON ROUGE, La. -- The Southern University Jaguars had a chance to bury the Grambling State University Tigers, but GSU fought back, winning 10-8 in ten innings.
When the Tigers were down, they responded, scoring once in the fifth, and adding three runs in the sixth to cut a 7-3 Jaguars lead then tie the game at 8-8. Extra innings lifted GSU (14-13,10-4 SWAC) past Southern to go up 2-0 in the three game weekend series.
In the tenth, left fielder Nicholas Wheeler walked, pinch hitter Allen Mays laid down a bunt to get on base and shortstop Wesley Drain followed with a bunt of his own. With the game on the line and bases loaded, centerfielder Angel Peguero popped up a sacrifice fly, Wheeler scored and Mays stole home.
"When you look at the scoreboard, the defense and pitching staff was able to put up zeros from the fifth all the way to the tenth inning," GSU coach James Cooper said after the game. "That's what got us back into the game. The defense allowed us to keep the score close. We were able to chip away at the lead each inning. That's why we got a complete team win today."
Marlon Pruitt (1-1) closed the game, picking up the win. He pitched 2.1 innings, he earned one strikeout, allowed zero hits and zero runs. A Pruitt strikeout came when GSU needed it most. In the eighth inning, and with bases loaded, Pruitt entered the game facing one batter and sat him down.
Dion Holbrook clutched, getting GSU out of a seventh inning bases loaded jam. Holbrook also earned one strikeout, allowed zero hits and zero runs through 1.2 innings. Starting pitcher Devin Washington earned two strikeouts and Jordan White earned three strikeouts. Both pitched three complete innings.
"We need Holbrook to get back to the form we had him last year," added Cooper. "Marlon has been a guy that the moment has not been too big for him. His next outing going to be bigger than his one today."
Early in the game at Lee Hinds Field it was Southern (8-20, 3-10 SWAC) getting a quick start. The Jaguars sprinted out to an early 4-0 lead, then a 7-3 lead. DH Dondrayes Harris had a RBI triple, and a GSU throwing error advanced Harris, giving the Jaguars 2-0 lead after only one inning. In the second, Southern tacked on two more runs. First baseman Mason Diaz scored on a bunt, shortstop Malik Blaise scored, and Javeayn Williams and Troy Lewis gained the RBI's.
Trailing 4-3 in the fourth, White entered the game with one runner on base. Williams hit a hard ball to right field, scoring Blaise. Second baseman Robinson Mateo hit a single but scored on a three base error, and Southern was in control 7-3.
Drain crossed home plate in the fifth when DH Andres Castillo was hit by a pitch. In the sixth, with bases loaded again, Peguero walked and Wheeler scored. Third baseman Daniel Barnett went 3-for-5 two RBI's, rocking a pitch down the right side, scoring Chris Perez and Drain. Drain is second in the Southwestern Athletic Conference in walks with 22. Pinch hitter Robert Lopez batted home Barnett and GSU's moxie tied the game 8-8 in the sixth.
Grambling State goes for a weekend sweep Sunday (April 10) at 1 p.m.
