NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State baseball team bounced back with aplomb Tuesday night.
 
For a night, the Demons found the complementary pieces they have searched for and responded to three-game Southland Conference sweep with an 18-1, seven-inning victory against visiting LeTourneau at Brown-Stroud Field.
 
"What I'm most proud of our guys for is, we've talked for a while about playing against the game, not necessarily playing the opponent or not playing the scoreboard, just playing against the game," second-year head coach Chris Bertrand said. "I thought we did that, especially in the early part of the ball game. We'd like to clean up some things at the end and finish it a little bit differently, but nonetheless, we threw strikes tonight. We moved runners. We got hits with two outs. We got hits with runners in scoring position."
 
The hits came early and often for the Demons (5-7), who scored in double figures for the fifth straight home game.
 
A seven-run first inning was aided by a two-out error that Northwestern turned into four unearned runs.
 
Ahead of the LeTourneau (4-4) miscue, six of the first eight Demon hitters reached base against Yellowjacket starter Lane Holman (1-1).
 
Three of those were via walks while Clay Jung delivered the biggest swing of the opening frame, a two-run double down the right field line.
 
That started a breakout game for Jung, who tied a school single-game record with three doubles and matched his RBI total for the season with four.
 
"A lot of struggles early on," Jung said. "Just staying the course and staying level-headed. It helps when we come out to the yard every day and do the same thing. We talk about routines and getting after our business the same way every day. Even though things weren't going my way early on, I had a sense of comfort because I had my routine and my boys had my back. It's good to finally see the results."
 
Jung and three-hole hitter Rocco Gump (2-for-3, home run, 2 RBIs) had plenty of RBI opportunities Tuesday night as leadoff hitter Reese Lipoma went 4-for-4 with a walk and Samuel Stephenson, the No. 2 hitter, was aboard twice as well.
 
That pair has combined to score 37 runs in the Demons' first 12 games. Following that lead, the Demons have averaged 13.8 runs per game in their five-game home win streak.
 
"It's unbelievable," Jung said. "Our offense is on track to fire on all cylinders. We had a couple of rough patches here and there, but now everyone's in attack mode, and it's good to see when everything comes together."
 
Armed with an early lead, a parade of six Demon pitchers limited LeTourneau to five hits while striking out 11 in seven innings.
 
Kevin Robinson (2-0) worked two scoreless innings in a designated short start before Brandon Carter, Aidan Newton, Kaden McCoy and Jacob LeBlanc all tossed a scoreless inning.
 
Isaac Price's leadoff home run in the fifth was the only run LeTourneau mustered.
 
"The things that we needed to address as a team, the mission I laid out before them, we accomplished each one of those things tonight," Bertrand said. "I'm proud of our team for playing against the game and getting back to the brand of baseball we know we can play."
 
 
The Demons return to action Friday when they face Incarnate Word in their Southland Conference home opener. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. at Brown-Stroud Field.
 
Northwestern State 18, LeTourneau 1, 7 innings
LETU    000 010 0 – 1 5 4
NSU     727 200 x – 18 14 2
W – Kevin Robinson (2-0). L – Lane Holman (1-1). 2B – NSU, Clay Jung 3. HR – LETU, Isaac Price (1). NSU, Rocco Gump (2). Highlights: LETU, Austin Wiederhold 2-3. NSU, Reese Lipoma 4-4, 3 RBIs; Gump 2-3, HR, 2 RBIs; Jung 3-4, 3 2Bs, 4 RBIs.
Records: LeTourneau 4-4, Northwestern State 5-7.