GRAMBLING, La. | Ian Bailey came off the bench and belted a grand slam homer, while
Jahmoi Percival blasted a three-run shot to highlight a seven-run fifth inning as the Grambling State University baseball team extended its winning streak to eight games with a 21-16 victory over rival Southern in a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) game on Saturday afternoon at Wilbert Ellis Field at R.W.E. Jones Park.
Grambling State (23-19 overall, 16-7 SWAC), which has scored 90 runs over the last six games, scored in all but one inning (seventh) in earning its second straight victory over its rivals. The Jaguars (24-19, 14-5) scored 11 runs between the sixth and eighth innings to make it a close game.
How It Happened
Grambling State struck for four runs in the bottom of the first to grab an early lead.
Isaiah Torres led off the frame with a walk and
Drexler Macaay was hit by a pitch.
Richard Ortiz reached on a fielder's choice as Macaay was out at second. With two down,
Kevin Whitaker, Jr. belted a pitch off the left center fence to plate Torres and Ortiz.
Jahmoi Percival continued the inning with a base hit to right center to score Whitaker.
Garrett Smith walked and
Warren Laster followed with a base hit up the middle to plate Percival and give the Tigers a 4-0 advantage.
Southern took advance of three walks and a hit batter in the top of the second to close the gap to 4-3.
Grambling State answered in the bottom of the frame with three runs.
Torres opened with a walk and moved to second on a single to left by Macaay. With one out,
Rafael Ramirez, III singled to center to load the bases. Whitaker drew a walk to bring in Torres and Percival singled to center to plate Macaay and Ramirez to give the Tigers a 7-3 lead.
The Jaguars continued to climb back and scored a pair of runs to cut the deficit to 7-5 in the third inning.
Back came Grambling State in the bottom of the frame with one run as
Nick Wheeler, who led off the inning with a base hit, scored on a Ramirez sacrifice fly to extend the Tiger advantage to 8-5.
The Tigers added another run in the fourth inning as Percival, Smith and Laster walked to load the bases to begin the frame. After a pitching change,
Nick Wheeler reached on an error as Laster was out at second as Percival came across to score to stretch the Grambling State lead to 9-5.
The Tigers put the game away in the fifth inning with seven runs on five hits and was highlighted by a three-run home run by Percival and a grand slam by
Ian Bailey.
Ramirez opened the frame with a double down the left field line and moved to third on a single up the middle by Whitaker. Percival blasted a 2-2 pitch deep over the right field wall for the three-run homer. With one down, Laster walked and stole second. Torres and Macaay drew walks to load the bases. On a 3-2 pitch, Bailey, who was pinch hitting for Ortiz, belted a shot deep over the left field wall for the grand slam to give GSU a commanding 16-5 lead.
The Jaguars plated three runs in the top of the sixth to close the gap to 16-8.
Grambling State continued to score and plated three runs in the bottom of the frame to push the margin to 19-8.
Southern picked up two runs in the seventh and six more in the eighth to trim the deficit to 19-16.
The Tigers sealed the victory in the bottom of the eighth as Laster drew a walk to begin the inning and scored on a Torres triple. An error on the play allowed Torres to score as Grambling State extended the advantage to 21-16.
Inside the Numbers
> Grambling State finished with 21 runs on 19 hits, committed four errors and stranded 12 on base
>
Jahmoi Percival paced the Tiger offense by going 4-for-5, with six RBIs and four runs scored
>
Rafael Ramirez, III went 3-for-4, with two runs scored and one RBI
>
Drexler Macaay,
Kevin Whitaker, Jr.,
Warren Laster and
Nick Wheeler each collected two hits
>
Jason Alvarez started on the mound and surrendered three runs, walked four and struck out two in one inning of work
>
Kerry Boykins, Jr., (4-2)
Kaelin Woodard,
Ryan Evans (sixth save) worked in relief
> Southern finished with 16 runs on 15 hits, committed two errors
> Bobby Johnson, Hampton Hudson and Javeyan Williams each recorded three hits
> Justin Freeman started and lasted 0.2 of an inning as he was tagged for four runs on three hits, walked two and struck out one
> Markaylon Boyd, Larry Barabino, Rhett Hebert, Christian Dixon and Cole Jenkins pitched in relief
Up Next
Grambling State concludes its three-game SWAC series on Sunday against Southern. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Wilbert Ellis Field at R.W.E. Jones Park. The Tigers will hold Senior Day festivities, beginning at 12:40 p.m.
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