NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State baseball team's second Southland Conference game played out much like its first.
The Demons fell behind early Saturday as Southeastern Louisiana delivered its second consecutive big second inning, setting the tone as the Lions defeated the Demons, 5-1, at Brown-Stroud Field.
"I wish I had a magical answer for as to why the slow starts, the crooked numbers and the self-infliction continues to rear its head," third-year head coach
Chris Bertrand said. "I'm not exactly sure why that continues to be our Achilles heel, but we're going to get to work in trying to figure out and see how we can correct some of those things."
For the second straight game, the Demons (5-6, 0-2) found themselves down 4-0 after the top of the second.
Whereas Friday night's big inning was assisted by walks and hit by pitches, the Lions (4-6, 2-0) put the first two runners on Saturday on singles off right-hander
Dylan Marionneaux (0-2).
A two-base error on
Colin Rains allowed the first run to score before Blaise Priester singled on an 0-2 count to bring home the second run. Priester's single was the second on an 0-2 count in the inning.
"At the end of the day, it's a matter of trying to get back to finding complementary baseball when those big innings happen – and they happened because of errors and free bases and poorly executed pitcheds – then no one is complementing each other," Bertrand said.
The Demons answered the four-run SLU second with an unearned run of their own in the second as JT Simonelli drove in Rains, who reached on a three-base error by right fielder Peyton Woods, with a sacrifice fly.
From there, Southeastern right-hander Lakin Polk (2-1) took control.
Polk worked eight strong innings, scattering seven hits and allowing only the one unearned run. Polk seemingly got stronger as the game went on.
After allowing a leadoff single to
Hudson Brignac in the eighth inning – the lone leadoff man to reach against Polk – the right-hander responded with consecutive strikeouts and a groundout to keep the Demons at bay.
Marionneaux and freshman left-hander
Brody Trosclair, who tossed 3 1-3 shutout innings of relief, kept the game close, but despite putting runners aboard in every inning except the first, the Demons could not find a key hit – finishing 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
"We have to find some type of offensive rhythm," Bertrand said. "We're battling, and we're fighting, but for whatever reason, we can't seem to be able to string things together. There seem to be flashes in the pan of things and not a continuous stringing together of quality at-bats. So, we have to continue to put the work in and grind away at it."
The series concludes at 1 p.m. Sunday with a matchup of right-handers. Northwestern will send
Trent Hillen (1-1, 8.64) to the mound against Southeastern's Blake Lobell (0-0, 5.00).
Southeastern Louisiana 5, Northwestern State 1
SLU 040 010 000 – 5 5 1
NSU 010 000 000 – 1 7 2
W – Lakin Polk (2-1). L –
Dylan Marionneaux (0-2). 2B – SLU, Brooks Wright. NSU,
Joe Siervo. Highlights: NSU, Siervo 2-4, 2B;
Michael McAloose 2-4.
Records: Southeastern Louisiana 4-6, 2-0; Northwestern State 5-6, 0-2.
