Todd Ryals

Wildcats Split Opener with Blazers

4/6/2018 4:47:00 PM

By: LC Sports Information - Brad Welborn

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

The Louisiana College baseball team returned to American Southwest Conference play on Friday afternoon with a series opening doubleheader against Belhaven University. The Wildcats and Blazers split their two conference games at Billy Allgood Field with LC taking the slim 2-0 win in game one but the Blazers answering with a 7-0 victory in game two. The teams will finish their series on Saturday afternoon with a single game scheduled for a 1 p.m. first pitch.

Game 1

In a low scoring, pitching dual it would be the work of Deauton Delgado on the mound and the timely hits from Duncan Cornfoot and Sully Martin that would give the Wildcats the slim 2-0 victory in game one of the day. Delgado got the start on the mound and was great for the entire seven-inning contest. He did not allow a hit until a leadoff double in the top of the fifth inning, and then only one more in the seventh, but did not allow either hit to hurt him in the run column.

While Delgado was dominant on the mound for the Wildcats, the LC offense had their own struggles at the plate against Belhaven's Hunter Sanford. The sophomore, Louisiana native held the Wildcats hitless through the first three innings until Steven Pizano broke through with a base hit to right. After moving to second on a passed ball, the Wildcats got on the board with a clutch 2-out single from Duncan Cornfoot to give them the slim lead.

The Wildcats got the one insurance run they needed in the bottom of the next inning with another key 2-out hit, this time from Sully Martin. The senior delivered a run scoring double to right on a 2-0 count to bring in the runner from third easily for all the cushion the Wildcats would need.

Martin, Cornfoot, and Pizano would earn the only three hits of the game for the Wildcats, with Martin and Cornfoot providing the RBIs. Deauton Delgado (2-2) tossed his first complete game of the season going 7.0 shutout innings allowing just two hits with 12 strikeouts.

Game 2

In the second game of the day the Wildcats would not have the same luck carry over on the mound or at the plate. Belhaven took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first on a sacrifice fly and did not look back from there as Blazers pitcher David Hall held the Wildcat bats in check through 7.0 solid innings of work.

Down by one after the first, the Wildcats saw the deficit grow in the top of the second after an RBI single to the left side brought in the runner from third. Two batters later, two more runs would score on an errant throw from behind the plate on a dropped third strike, making the score 4-0 in Belhaven's favor. The Blazers added a fourth run in the inning on an RBI single up the middle later to take the 5-0 lead into the bottom of the second.

A 2-run home run in the top of the fourth provided the final runs of the day for Belhaven, as the Wildcat offense continued to struggle to put a meaningful rally together. LC had their best chances to score in the bottom of the fourth and sixth innings, getting runners to third base each time, but were unable to come up with the needed hits to plate the runners.

Christian Vandergrift was the only Wildcats with more than one hit in the game, going 2-for-2 at the plate. Six other players had hits in the game, but all coming as singles with no RBI. Phillip Vidrine (1-1) took the loss for the Wildcats, pitching 4.0 innings allowing seven runs, only four of them earned, on nine hits with five strikeouts. Andrew Robinson threw the final 5.0 innings allowing four hits and no runs with two strikeouts.

The Wildcats and Blazers will close their three game series on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. at Billy Allgood Field. Stay connected to Louisiana College baseball by following @LC_bsb on Twitter. For general athletics news follow @LC_Wildcats on Twitter or like Louisiana College Wildcats on Facebook.

Print Friendly Version