Shreveport – The Centenary baseball team opened Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play with an 8-4 comeback victory Texas Lutheran University Bulldogs in the league opener for both teams on Friday evening at Shehee Stadium.
The series between the Diamond Gents (8-4, 1-0 SCAC) and Bulldogs (7-10, 0-1 SCAC) concludes on Saturday with a doubleheader scheduled for 1 and 4 p.m.
The Diamond Gents, 5-3 at home this season, are an impressive 38-11 at home since the beginning of the 2021 season. Friday was a battle between two of the conference's top teams on an annual basis as TLU was picked to finish second in the conference this season in the preseason coaches' poll while Centenary was picked third.
The Bulldogs scored twice in the top of the first and added one more in the second to lead 3-0, but the Diamond Gents erupted for six runs in the bottom of the second to take a 6-3 lead. The Maroon and White added two more in the third to extend their lead to 8-3. The Bulldogs scored a run in the seventh but left nine men on base for the game and struck out eight times as the Diamond Gents secured the win.
All-American sophomore LHP Tyler Herrera (Spring, Texas) started on the mound for Centenary and received a no-decision. Herrera struggled with his control, hitting four batters, but settled down over his final few innings as he allowed four runs, three earned, on six hits in 7.1 IP with a walk and six strikeouts. Senior RHP Parker Primeaux (Lake Charles, La.) pitched the final 1.2 innings and picked up his first save of the season as he allowed just one hit with two strikeouts.
Joe Burch (1-3) started for the Bulldogs and suffered the loss as he allowed eight runs (seven earned) on nine hits with no walks and two K's and hit one batter. JT Taylor relieved Burch and was solid as he pitched 5.2 innings and did not allow a run on four hits with a walk and three K's.
RF Blake Cappadona led off the game with a single to left and moved to second when C Holden Philippus reached on an error by senior SS Noah Koehmstedt (San Diego, Calif.). 2B Aric Vasquez flew out to right field and both runners moved up on an error by sophomore RF Cade LaBruyere (Iowa, La.). 1B Tyler Post then ripped a two-run double down the RF line for an early 2-0 lead. Herrera escaped further trouble with a groundout and a strikeout.
The Bulldogs scored a run on a fielder's choice in the top of the second, taking advantage of a hit batter to start the inning but Herrera settled in and retired the next 10 in a row as the Centenary offense came to life with eight runs over two innings.
Freshman LF Lenny Forth (Flower Mound, Texas) singled to start the Centenary rally in the second. Junior C Austyn Benoit (Welsh, La.) singled and freshman 3B Clay Menard (Berwick, La.) laid down a bunt and reached base when Post committed an error, allowing Forth to score and Benoit moved to third. Freshman 1B Collin Pitts (Lufkin, Texas) then delivered a sacrifice fly to score Benoit and make it a 3-2 game.
Koehmstedt was hit by a pitch and freshman LF Carson Livesay (Lafayette, La.) lined an RBI double down the left field line to score Menard. Senior CF Gary Hewitt (Cedar Park, Texas) kept the hit parade going with a two-run single to score Livesay and Koehmstedt to make it 5-3. Hewitt then stole second and third base and junior 2B Jobee Boone (Opelousas, La.) brought him home with an RBI single up the middle to cap the Diamond Gents' six-run inning.
Koehmstedt reached on an RBI fielder's choice in the third and Livesay's RBI single scored Menard to extend the Centenary lead to 8-3. Herrera then ran into trouble in the sixth as he hit three of the first five TLU batters to load the bases, but CF Payton Dahl grounded out to Boone who raced to second base and stepped on the bag for an inning-ending force out. 2B Aric Vasquez had an RBI groundout in the seventh for the Bulldogs' final run. Herrera struck out SS Randy Huerta to start the eighth inning and allowed a single to DH Alec Sanchez and was replaced by Primeaux.
Centenary finished with 13 hits, two extra-base hits, and six stolen bases. Hewitt stole four bases – tied for the third-most in a single game in program history in the division III era (2012-present). TLU had seven hits and stole a pair of bases but only drew one walk, left nine on base, and struck out eight times. The Diamond Gents left eight on base, also walked once and struck out five times. Centenary committed three errors while TLU made two.
Livesay and Hewitt were deadly at the top of the lineup, finishing a combined 6-10 with four RBI and two runs scored. Boone was 1-5 with an RBI and a stolen base, and Forth went 2-4 with a run scored. Benoit finished 2-3 with a walk and two runs scored and Menard went 1-4 with two runs scored. Koehmstedt was 1-3 with an RBI and a run scored. Cappadona finished 3-5 with an RBI and two runs scored to lead the Bulldogs, and Philippus, Post, Dahl, and Sanchez each had one hit.
See the complete Gents' season schedule here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/bsb/2022-23/schedule
Admission is FREE to all Centenary home athletic contests. Live stats and live video stream are available for all Centenary home contests. Please note that all dates and times are subject to change.
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