#9 LSUS Gets Best of Centenary in Cross-Town Rivalry

The nationally ranked LSUS Pilots Baseball team wasn't playing around in Tuesday's Cross-Town rivalry with Centenary, winning 16-0 with a season high 20 hits.

LSUS SID News Release/Mark Cantrell

SHREVEPORT, La. – The 9th-ranked LSU Shreveport Pilots smashed a season high 20 hits on their way to a 16-0 dominating win over their cross-town rival Centenary Gents at Shehee Stadium on Tuesday evening in non-conference action. This was the first time in the series’ history that LSUS has shutout Centenary. The 16-runs scored by the Pilots was also a season high in rout to their 9th straight victory giving the Pilots a win in 13 of their last 14 games. LSUS improves to 22-5 on the season and 12-10 all-time versus the Gents while Centenary falls to 8-10.

The scoring started for the Pilots in the 2nd inning with three runs as the first run came home on a RBI-triple from James Sloan that scored James Jean who led off the inning with a hit-by-pitch. Grady Caldwell got his first of two hits as he ripped a single to left to score Sloan. Jamal Martin later singled and scored on Kym Barthel’s RBI-single as Barthel finished the game 2-for-2 and later got some much needed rest.

The Pilots erupted for eight runs in the top of the 3rd inning behind a pair of three-run homers. The first was by Caldwell on a two-one pitch that he drove over the left-center field wall at the 385 ft. sign for the Pilots first home run of the game. Four batters later following a Centenary pitching change Reed Lavallee crushed the first pitch thrown by the new reliever over the right field walk to bring in three more runs as LSUS lead after two and a half 11-0.

The newest Centenary reliever Michael Francis settled in only allowing the Pilots one run over the next three innings that came in the 5th as Martin scored as Centenary turned a double play. The Pilots got to Francis in the 7th inning as they scored three more runs but all three were unearned as Oliver Christensen reached with two outs on an error by their centerfielder. Blair Landry followed with a single and then Brady McCoy drove in O.C. with a double to left field. Brandon Bufton followed with a two-run single as LSUS extended its lead to 15-0 after seven innings.

Daniel Rushing got the 8th inning rally started with a single to right field and he scored the only run of the inning thanks to an error by the Centenary short stop.

Five Pilots pitchers combined to throw the 7th shutout of the season as Michael Wilson (1-0) was the winning pitcher for the Pilots after four innings of work as he allowed just three hits, none that made it out of the infield, with one walk and three strikeouts. Jacob Rodrigue allowed just one hit and walked one with two strike outs in his two innings of work while Jonathan Lycan, Cam Challand and George Bliss each threw an inning without allowing a hit the rest of the game.

During the Pilots season high 20-hit performance, 13 different player collected at least one hit while Montero, Landry, Sloan, Bufton, Caldwell, Martin, and Barthel all had two hits apiece.

The Pilots will get some much needed rest over the next two days and fine tune a few things as they prepare for the weekend series at Pilots Field against the Jarvis Christian Bulldogs. Friday’s double header will begin at 4 p.m. while the twin bill on Saturday is set for a 1 p.m. start.

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