PINEVILLE, La. – LeTourneau's baseball team dropped a doubleheader at Louisiana College Thursday, 11-3 and 9-3.
The YellowJackets (9-13, 7-7 American Southwest Conference) will try to salvage the final game of the series at noon Friday.
In the opener, the Jackets scored the game's first run when
Noah Arellano scored, following a single to left by
Weston McKinley. Louisiana College (18-4, 14-0) plated two runs in the second and two more in the fourth to take a 4-1 lead. LETU bounced back with two of its own in the fifth on
Dane Jones' RBI double to left, and Arellano's run-scoring single to left to cut it to 4-3.
But the Wildcats scored seven runs in the sixth to put the game away.
Jones had two doubles, and drove in a run.
Bryce Brueggemeyer was 2-for-3.
Austin Smith was 1-for-2 with a walk. Arellano was 1-for-4 with an RBI. McKinley was 1-for-3.
Josh White had a pinch hit single. Louisiana College's Keelyn Johnson was 4-for-4 with a double. Alex Ashby, Christian Vandergrif, Ju'Juan Franklin and Beau Freeman all homered for the Wildcats, who collected 15 hits.
LC starter Brooks Southall (5-1) went the distance, allowing three runs, two earned, on eight hits and a walk with four strikeouts. LETU starter
Kolbey Sharpe (2-3) suffered the loss, allowing four runs, one earned, on eight hits and a walk with three strikeouts.
In the second game, the Wildcats jumped out to an 8-0 lead through three innings. McKinley had a two-run single up the middle in the fourth to put the Jackets on the scoreboard.
David Pugh's RBI single through the right side pulled LETU within 8-3 in the sixth. But LC scored again in the seventh, and the Jackets went quietly in their last two at-bats.
Pugh was 2-for-3 with an RBI. McKinley was 1-for-4 with two RBI. Smith, Jones, Arellano, Brueggemeyer and
Kyle Maysonave each were 1-for-4. Brueggemeyer had his eighth double of the season. Ashby was 4-for-4 with a double, RBI and two stolen bases for the Wildcats. Dane Pedersen, Jacob Fowler and Franklin each had two hits, the two latter producing a double apiece.
Wildcats starter Colten Newsom (4-0) got the win, giving up three runs on six hits and three strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings.
Jared Schurig (2-3) took the loss after surrendering nine runs, eight earned, 14 hits and a walk with a career-high 10 strikeouts.
Calvin Lopez worked the final inning and a third, yielding just a walk, while fanning four.