NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State baseball team's run of tough luck against New Orleans continued Friday night.
The Demon offense could not solve Privateer right-hander William Andrade for much of his seven-plus innings as he made an early three-run lead stand up in a 3-2 New Orleans win in the opener of a three-game Southland Conference series at Brown-Stroud Field.
"The bottom line is we just really never were able to generate anything offensively that got momentum on our side of the field," third-year head coach
Chris Bertrand said. "It was a self-inflicted run in the top half of the first inning, and then a credit to their hitters in the way they were able to get two runs on four hits in the third inning. Then, we were able to put up seven zeroes after that's, so I thought we held the game within striking distance. We competed in the right way, but we have to string together quality at-bats in a manner that suggests we're trying to grab momentum and pull it toward our side of the field."
The Demons (13-9, 6-4) found themselves down 3-0 as Dylan Biddick drove in three runs in the first three innings with a two-out RBI double in the first and a two-run home run in the third.
Biddick's RBI double came after a passed ball on a strikeout that would have ended the first inning for freshman left-hander
Brody Trosclair (3-1).
After allowing six hits in the first three innings, Trosclair started a run of six straight scoreless innings with three scoreless frames. In his second series-opening start, Trosclair worked six innings, allowing three runs (two earned) with a career-high 12 strikeouts.
Trosclair's strikeout total was the highest for a Demon pitcher since Cal Carver fanned 13 Alabama A&M hitters on March 10, 2023.
"Credit to Brody to make a quality start and get us into a deeper part of the ballgame," Bertrand said. "Kevin (Robinson) threw the ball well out of the bullpen. We put up a zero in the error column, and we did show some competitiveness at the end of the game."
The Demons broke through against Andrade (1-1), a freshman who scattered three hits and allowed two runs (one earned) across 7 1-3 innings with 10 strikeouts, in the fourth inning when
Thomas Marsala III led off with his team-leading sixth home run of the season.
Northwestern seemed to have Andrade nearing the ropes when
Ethan Menard walked and
Noah McNeil was hit by a pitch with one out. Andrade responded by getting a double play to end the inning.
After Andrade struck out five straight Demons from the sixth through eighth innings, Northwestern finally forced him from the game after a one-out
Brooks Leonard walk in the eighth. A two-base error put runners on second and third to set up a Marsala sacrifice fly.
In the ninth, Northwestern had the tying run on third with one out when
Bryce Johnson's grounder to shortstop Kareh Valentin turned into a close play at the plate where it was ruled catcher Jayden Adcox tagged pinch runner
Lane Lusk. The play withstood a review before Lane Alack, who tossed 1 2-3 innings of shutout relief, got a grounder to end the game.
It was the Privateers' third straight win against the Demons – all by one run.
"(The fourth inning) is where you need to gain momentum and hold it, because the home run definitely gives you a little bit of a spark, but then when you look at the at-bats that followed there wasn't necessarily an effort to grab and hold," Bertrand said. "It's a ball game in which we feel like, maybe, we gave a little bit away because of our lack of anything offensively."
The series continues at 2 p.m. Saturday. Northwestern will send right-hander
Dylan Marionneaux (1-2, 4.88) against New Orleans left-hander Bryson Goff (3-1, 9.87).
New Orleans 3, Northwestern State 2
UNO 102 000 000 – 3 9 2
NSU 000 100 010 – 2 3 0
W – William Andrade (1-1). L –
Brody Trosclair (3-1). S – Lane Alack (2). 2B – UNO, Dylan Biddick. HR – UNO, Biddick (3). NSU,
Thomas Marsala III (6). Highlights: UNO, Biddick 2-4, 2B, HR, 3 RBIs; Evan Rogers 2-4.
Records: New Orleans 10-14, 4-6; Northwestern State 13-9, 6-4.
