LAFAYETTE, La. | It was a rough night for the Grambling State University baseball team, as the Tigers suffered a 13-1 defeat to the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns in seven innings on Tuesday night at Russo Park.
GSU (6-14) struggled to hit the ball, scattering two hits on the evening. Louisiana (15-6) registered nine hits, but was effective at moving runners into scoring position, racking up 10 steals.
Cameron Bufford and Jose Vargas accounted for the GSU hits. Bufford went 1-for-3 with a double, while Vargas went 1-for-2 with a single and a walk. Trevor Hatton drove in the lone run for the Tigers.
Grambling State opened the game on a promising note, with both of its leadoff batters reach base via a walk and hit by pitch. Hatton hit a deep fly ball scoring Tiger Boron from third and moving Nasir Fredrick up to third with one out. Fredrick ended up getting thrown out after a wild pitch careened off of the backstop to the catcher.
Louisiana tied the game a 1-1 in the bottom of the second when John Taylor stole home with two outs. A fielding error at second base allowed the Ragin' Cajuns to take a 2-1 advantage. UL stretched that lead to 3-1 in the third with a deep sac fly to left field.
The Tigers got its first hit of the night in the fourth, when Bufford stroked a two out stand up double off of the right field wall. GSU loaded the bases after Keylon Mack was hit by a pitch and Vargas walked. Julian Murphy nearly cleared the bases with a hard hit ball to centerfield that was snagged by UL's Carson Roccaforte to end the frame.
Louisiana tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the fourth, opening up a four-run cushion on over the Tigers. Julian Brock hit a lead off homer in the bottom of the fifth, widening the gap to five runs, 6-1. That marked the start of a eight-run fifth for UL.
GSU wasn't able to get back on track
Jeremiah Newman (0-3) started the game for the Tigers, but struggled with command, allowing two runs on four walks and a hit in 1.2 innings tossed.
UP NEXT
Grambling State returns home for three-game weekend series versus Alcorn State beginning on Friday, March 24. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at Wilbert Ellis Field at R.W.E Jones Park.
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