NATCHITOCHES – One big swing put the Northwestern State baseball team in position to extend its home winning streak Friday night.
 
The problem was it came too early, and visiting McNeese saved an even bigger swing for the ninth inning.
 
Nate Fisbeck's one-out grand slam in the top of the ninth erased a one-run deficit for the Cowboys and lifted McNeese to a 7-4 win in the Southland Conference series opener at Brown-Stroud Field, snapping NSU's eight-game home win streak.
 
"We didn't take advantage of any opportunities," third-year head coach Bobby Barbier said. "If you win 4-3, it covers some of that up. They've got a really good team, a really good lineup. When you give them free bases there in the ninth inning, they put some really good swings together. We've got to have more pressure early in the game."
 
The Demons took a 1-0 lead in the first without a hit as Sam Taylor was hit by the first pitch of the game, took second on a Caleb Ricca sacrifice bunt and third on a Rhett Deaton balk before scoring on a Deaton wild pitch.
 
Two innings later, Jeffrey Elkins sparked a two-out rally with a double before Tyler Smith drew a four-pitch walk and Hilton Brown connected on his first career home run, a three-run shot to left-center field that put the Demons (21-15, 10-9) ahead 4-0.
 
Brown's home run was the third hit in the first 2 2-3 innings off Deaton, who remained effectively wild through his five-inning sting.
 
Deaton issued five walks, including three straight one-out free passes in the fifth inning. The Demons, however, were unable to capitalize and left the bases loaded without scoring run, leaving them with a two-run advantage.
 
Meanwhile, the Cowboys (20-18, 7-9) forced Demons starter Ridge Heisler to throw 116 pitches in seven innings. Heisler scattered nine hits and left with a 4-3 lead, an advantage that stood until Fisbeck's swing on a 2-2 pitch from Austin Reich in the ninth.
 
"I thought he competed hard tonight, and he deserved better than that," Barbier said of Heisler.
 
After Heisler left with a one-run lead after seven innings, Jose Vasquez (2-1) worked around a two-out single in the eighth, striking out three batters. Vasquez hit Carson Maxwell to lead off the ninth inning and issued a walk to Payton Harden, who drew all four walks from NSU pitching.
 
Reich inherited the two-on, no-out situation and gave up a first-pitch single to Shane Selman to load the bases before striking out Clayton Rasbeary, setting up Fisbeck's go-ahead home run.
 
The blast made a winner of Will Dion (4-0), who worked two perfect innings, striking out four. He combined with Peyton McLemore for four perfect innings of relief work.
 
Northwestern State managed just three hits – Elkins' double, Brown's homer and Austin Stegall's leadoff double in the second. NSU did not have a hit after Brown's homer with two outs in the third inning.
 
"You're up, and they got us with the two spot (in the fourth)," Barbier said. "Then, two innings later, they walk us three times to give us bases loaded and one out with a chance to put the game away, and we didn't. We've got to learn and mature. We've got to come out (Saturday) ready to play."
 
The series concludes with a 1 p.m. doubleheader Saturday. Senior right-handers Nathan Jones (4-2, 3.00) and Cullen McDonald (4-0, 2.01) will take the mound for the Demons. McNeese will counter with left-hander Jonathan Ellison (2-2, 2.48) in the opener. The Cowboys have not named a starter for the series finale.
 
McNeese 7, Northwestern State 4
McNeese            000 201 004 – 7 12 0
NSU       103 000 000 – 4 3 1
W – Will Dion (4-0). L – Jose Vasquez (2-1). 2B – McN, Nate Fisbeck. NSU, Jeffrey Elkins, Austin Stegall. 3B – McN, Jake Dickerson. HR – McN, Fisbeck (9). NSU, Hilton Brown (1). Highlights: McN, Clayton Rasbeary 3-5. Fisbeck 2-5, 2B, HR, 5 RBIs; Dustin Duhon 2-3, RBI.
Records: McNeese 20-18, 7-9; Northwestern State 21-15, 10-9