McNeese stun LSU, 7-0

BATON ROUGE – It could not have been a better night at Alex Box Stadium for the McNeese baseball team who limited one of the top teams in collegiate baseball to just two hits and no runs as the Cowboys blanked No. 9 LSU, 7-0, Tuesday night for their first win over a top-10 opponent since 2000.

Behind the arm of starting pitcher Austin Sanders (3-2), who notched his third win of the season against a ranked opponent, McNeese (19-11) became the first Southland Conference team in history to shutout LSU (21-11) and the first in-state team since Tulane back in 2004 to blank the Tigers. It was also the first time that the Bayou Bengals had been shut out at home by a non-conference foe since the 2012 season when they lost to Appalachian State, 1-0.

The victory over the Tigers was the first time since 2000 a McNeese squad had defeated a top-10 team. LSU happened to be that last team as the Pokes took them down twice that season. The Tigers were ranked No. 3 and No. 10 in both meetings.

It was a special night for McNeese head coach Justin Hill, a member of the 2001 and 2002 LSU Tiger baseball teams, as he collected his first win against his alma mater since becoming the skipper for the Pokes.

“I thought we played good defense all night,” said Hill. “We had competitive bats the entire night and there were a couple of times that we could stretch and get some big innings. We were one swing away from having broken it open early but it did not work out. Austin Sanders was really good for us. He had five walks but two were late. He ran out of gas and was kind of up and down but I thought he was very good tonight.”

Sanders worked 6.0 innings and limited the Tigers to just one hit and no runs despite five walks. Relievers Trent Fontenot and Collin Kober came in to preserve the shutout as they combined for the final three innings and allowed one hit.

McNeese never used a big inning but rather a couple of small efforts along the way plating one run in seven out of the minimum nine frames. The game was highlighted by Connor Crane’s sixth home run of the season as he launched a solo shot over the left field wall in the top of the first inning to spark the offensive attack. The Cowboys are now 15-5 when scoring first against its opponents and 10-2 when scoring in the first inning.

"Our team was hooked in and ready to go tonight," said Hill. Our team has played here and has played some big teams this year. We have also beaten some good teams. That is a testament to the Southland Conference. We face good arms all year long so regionally people know about our league but now national people are starting to take notice."

Senior Lewis Guilbeau led the hitting effort for McNeese with a 3-for-4 night along with two runs and an RBI. Guilbeau, Crane and junior Will Fox were responsible for five of the team’s seven RBI. Sophomore Joe Provenzano used a hit to stretch his reached-game streak to 20 contests, the best on the squad. The Cowboys pounded out 13 hits on the night while nine batters had at least one hit in the game.

For the first time in McNeese history, the Cowboys have defeated three ranked teams in one season. The Pokes have also beaten five teams who competed in last year’s NCAA Tournament (Bradley, Houston Baptist, LSU, Houston and UL-Lafayette).

The Cowboys will be back home on Wednesday night for their second game of the mid-week against Louisiana Tech. First pitch is set for a 6 o’clock start as all McNeese students are welcome to join and enjoy a free crawfish boil.