The Sam Houston Bearkats completed their weekend series sweep over the McNeese State University Cowboys after taking a victory in all four games. With the wins, Sam Houston has now moved up to second place in the Southland conference tied with the University of New Orleans Privateers.
The Bearkats currently have a 15-9 conference record after starting conference 1-6.
Game one
The Bearkats took game one of the series 6-2. The game was won by nice pitching from junior starting pitcher Tyler Davis, who went seven innings only allowing two earned runs while striking out eight.
Junior left fielder Jack Rogers led the team in runs batted in with two that both came off of a fifth-inning double that made the score 3-0. The Bearkats would score three more by the end of the sixth inning.
The only runs the Cowboys scored were a seventh-inning double that resulted in two runs for McNeese.
Game two
The second game of the series resulted in a much more exciting and long finish as the Bearkats would pull off the 6-5 victory in a 14th-inning marathon.
Both teams scored a single run in the first inning that would even the game up early. The Bearkats would open the scoring up to lead 4-1 by the end of the seventh inning. The Cowboys, however, did not go away. McNeese scored three runs coming into the eighth inning, to even the game at four, which would send it to extra innings.
The Cowboys took the lead in the eleventh inning with a solo shot to push the score 5-4. The Bearkats were not ready to lose as sophomore center fielder Colton Cowser hit a single up the middle that would even the game at five.
At the bottom of the fourteenth, freshman infielder Mason Schulz would finally end the game with an RBI single to give the Bearkats the win.
Game three
The Bearkats won the third game of the series 5-4 in a seven-inning game due to the doubleheader schedule. The Bearkats would score all five of their runs in their first three innings of the game.
The Cowboys continued to fight back during the game as they would make it a one-run match.
With the bases loaded, the Cowboys made a brutal mistake with the runner trying to advance home before a pitch. Sophomore pitcher Steven Beard had the heads-up play to throw a pitch-out to the catcher and tag out the runner at third to give the Bearkats the official series win.
Game Four
The Bearkats would complete their series sweep over the Cowboys with a 6-4 victory Sunday evening.
Sam Houston had their hitting all around as six different batters recorded a hit having a total of 14 on the day. Junior left fielder Jack Rogers opened up the scoring for the Bearkats with a single in the third. The Bearkats would never trail following that.
Senior pitcher Kyle Backhus carried the load for the team, going six strong innings only allowing three hits and one run. He would pick up his second win for the season moving to 2-0.
The game would end with a two-inning save from sophomore pitcher Alex Havlicek who would end the game on a double-play in the ninth.
The Bearkats will continue their season as they will travel to Beaumont, Texas, to take on the Lamar University Cardinals starting Friday, April 23 at 6:30 p.m.
