LAKE CHARLES, La. – The HCU offense went off, scoring 12 runs on 16 hits as the Huskies won their Southland Conference series against the McNeese Cowboys at Joe Miller Ballpark on Saturday, 12-4.
The Cowboys (8-8, 3-3 SLC) got on the board first thanks to a Matt Stancliff leadoff home run in the bottom of the first inning for a 1-0 lead. That was a catalyst for the HCU (8-8, 4-2 SLC) bats though, with
Levi Castilleja leading off the second with a single followed by a double from
Preston Curtis to put two runners in scoring position. Two batters later,
Tyree Jackson laced a triple to deep center to bring both runners home. Jackson then scored on a
Jeremy Rader groundout to make it a three-run inning.
Rhett Hendricks singled to lead off the third, setting up Castilleja to lift a 2-1 pitch down the left field line and over the wall for his first home run of the season, putting the Huskies up 5-1. Castilleja's homer prompted a pitching change and the next hitter, Curtis, welcomed reliever Jake Blackwell with a home run well over the wall to left center, putting HCU ahead by five.
In the fourth, the Huskies added another three runs to push it to 9-1. Rader reached on a leadoff walk followed by
Anthony Avalos getting hit by a pitch. Two hitters later, Hendricks doubled to left to bring Rader home and put runners on second and third again. Later in the inning, with two outs, Castilleja came up big again with a single to left to drive in two more runs.
McNeese got one back in the fourth but Jackson responded in the top of the fifth with a solo home run to left. Seth Fontenot then added a solo shot of his own in the bottom half of the inning, bringing the score to 10-3 through five.
HCU tacked on two more in the eighth inning with a pair of hits and a Cowboys error. McNeese got one more solo home run in the eighth to finish off the scoring.
Castilleja went 4-for-5 with five RBI and two runs scored, reaching base in all five of his plate appearances. In the first game of the series on Friday, the junior catcher went 4-for-4 at the plate. He's now batting .548 this season.
Jackson, meanwhile, finished the day 3-for-5 with a triple and a home run, driving in three and scoring twice. Hendricks also had a three-hit game, scoring three times and driving in one.
Ben Smith improved to 2-1 on the mound, earning the win after allowing three earned runs across six innings while striking out five and walking just one.
The Huskies will not have a midweek game this week before heading to Stephenville, Texas for their last non-conference series of the season against the Tarleton State Texans next Friday through Sunday, Mar. 13-15.
