HOUSTON – HBU dropped the opener to New Orleans, 8-1, but struck back behind a complete-game by senior lefthander
Matthew McCollough for a 5-2 victory to split Friday's Southland Conference doubleheader Friday at Husky Field.
McCollough (7-2) threw 127 pitches, allowing two runs on eight hits with 11 strikeouts and one walk for the Huskies (22-25, 14-9 SLC). He hurled his third complete game of the season, seventh of his career and moved up to a tie for fourth on HBU's all-time strikeout list by recording double-figure punchouts for the fourth time this season.
Junior centerfielder
Jonathan Ducoff went 2-for-4 with a home run, drove in two and scored, while junior designated hitter
Grant Buck went 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI and scored for HBU. Senior shortstop
Tyler Depreta-Johnson went 2-for-3, drove in a run and scored and senior rightfielder
Matt Heck went 2-for-4 and scored.
Kyle Arjona (2-4) took the loss, allowing five runs, four earned, on nine hits with five strikeouts in 5.1 innings.
Orynn Veillon went 1-for-4 with a home run, two RBIs and scored, while Collin Morrill went 2-for-4 with a double and scored for the Privateers (20-28, 9-14). Pearce Howard went 2-for-4 and Beau Bratton tripled.
The Huskies got on the board when Depreta-Johnson singled and Ducoff blasted a two-run home run to left, his seventh of the season, for a 2-0 lead.
The Privateers tied the game on Veillon's two-run shot to left in the top of the sixth.
HBU answered with three runs in the bottom of the inning when Heck singled to lead off the frame, then Buck ripped an RBI double to rightcenter to put the Huskies ahead for good. Senior second baseman
Jack Fitzgerald delivered an RBI single and Depreta-Johnson delivered a sacrifice fly to extend HBU's lead to 5-2.
In the first game, Depreta-Johnson doubled and scored for the Huskies and Ducoff had his 12-game hitting streak snapped.
Junior righthander
Zach Carter (3-4) took the loss, giving up six runs, five earned, on nine hits with four strikeouts and two walks in 6.1 innings.
Morrill went 2-for-5 with a triple, drove in a run and scored twice, while Jay Robinson went 2-for-4 with a triple, an RBI and scored twice for UNO. Owen Magee went 2-for-5 and drove in a run and Bratton doubled, drove in a pair and scored.
Brayson Smith (2-3) picked up the win for the Privateers, allowing one run on five hits, striking out eight and walking one in 6.1 innings. John Barr held the Huskies scoreless over the final 2.2 innings.
Depreta-Johnson led off the bottom of the first with a double to straightaway center and scored when senior leftfielder
Spencer Halloran grounded into a double play.
In the third, Morrill smacked an RBI triple to rightcenter and scored on a groundout by Magee to put UNO ahead, 2-1.
The Privateers added a run in the sixth on Morrill's RBI single, then scored five more in the seventh. Veillon had an RBI single, Bratton had a two-run double, then Robinson had an RBI triple to center. Scott Crabtree added a sacrifice fly to cap the rally.
The series concludes with a 1 p.m. first pitch Saturday, but rain is expected, so please check HBUHuskies.com for any changes to the schedule. The YouTube video broadcast with
Russ Reneau begins with the pregame show 10 minutes prior to the first pitch and is available on HBUHuskies.com.
