Baseball Set To Face TLU In Conference Opener At Home

Shreveport – The Centenary baseball team opens Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play on Friday evening as the Diamond Gents face the Texas Lutheran University Bulldogs at 6 p.m. at Shehee Stadium.

Live stats and live video are available for the game at the links below:

Stats: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/bsb/2022-23/boxscores/20230317_eoca.xml

Video: https://collegetvticket.com/event/centenary-college-vs-texas-lutheran-university-4/

The series concludes on Saturday with a doubleheader scheduled for 1 and 4 p.m. The Diamond Gents (7-4) split a pair of non-conference games in Tennessee on Sunday as they edged 3-2 by the Westfield State University Owls and rebounded with an 11-0 victory over the University of Chicago Maroons. The Bulldogs enter Friday's play at 7-9 and are 2-3 on the road this season.

TLU was picked to finish second in the conference this season in the preseason coaches' poll while Centenary was picked third. The Bulldogs lead the all-time series with the Diamond Gents 19-11 and 15-9 in SCAC games but Centenary has won the last two games in the series, including a 2-1 win in the opening game of the 2022 SCAC Championship last May in Cleburne, Texas. The Bulldogs won two of three games in Seguin during the regular season as the teams split the season series, 2-2. The teams have split the previous 12 games played in Shreveport.

Centenary played Westfield last Sunday at Stauffer Field - Irwin Lainoff Stadium on the campus of Rhodes College in Memphis and played the University of Chicago at the USA Baseball Stadium in Millington, Tenn. The Maroon and White opened the event on March 10 with a dominating 11-0 run-rule victory in seven innings over nationally-ranked LaGrange College to finish the weekend at 2-1. 

The Diamond Gents, 4-3 at home this season, are back on their home field for the first time since March 4 when they defeated Alma College 11-2. Centenary is an impressive 37-11 at home since the beginning of the 2021 season.

Centenary enters the weekend batting .302 as a team with a .399 on-base percentage and is slugging .392. The Diamond Gents are averaging 7.8 runs per game and have scored double-digit runs in a game five times this season. Centenary has scored 11 runs in a game four times and a season-high 14 in a 14-3 rout of Ozarks on Feb. 11 at home. The Maroon and White have been hot on offense lately as they have scored 11 runs in in three of their last five games. The Diamond Gents have collected 10+ hits in a game five times this season with their season high being 13, accomplished on three different occasions. Centenary enters the weekend ranked second in batting average in the conference while TLU is fifth with a .277 team BA.

The Diamond Gents have collected 22 extra-base hits, 135 total bases, walked 43 times, been hit by a pitch 16 times, and have stolen 26 bases in 35 attempts. Centenary's pitching staff sports an impressive 2.12 team ERA with a pair of shutouts. The Diamond Gents ranks seventh in the country in ERA and lead the conference while the Bulldogs have struggled so far this season, entering Friday's play with a 5.55 team ERA. Centenary and TLU are third and fourth respectively in the conference in team fielding.

Freshman RF Carson Livesay (Lafayette, La.) is off to a stellar start to his rookie season as he is currently second in the conference in hitting and is the team leader with a gaudy .425 average. He also leads the team in runs scored (15), hits (17), walks (8), doubles (3), triples (2), stolen bases (5), is tied for the team lead in home runs (1), and second in RBI (9).

Livesay hit a scorching .529 (9-17) this past week in four games – last Tuesday at LeTourneau and three games in Tennessee. He finished with three multi-hit games including a pair of three-hit performances, totaled three extra-base hits including his first-career home run, had four RBI, scored eight runs, stole four bases, and drew two walks. In the shutout win over LaGrange on Friday, Livesay had three hits as he finished with a triple, an RBI, a walk, and three runs scored.

Junior C/UT Austyn Benoit (Welsh, La.) highlighted Centenary's win over LaGrange as he belted a grand slam, his first-career home run, and finished 2-4 with a run scored and career-high four RBI. In four games last week he hit .437 (7-16) with seven RBI, two runs scored, and a stolen base. He is hitting .344 this season (.389 OBP/.563 Slugging) with a team-leading 12 RBI, 11 hits, eight runs scored, two doubles, a triple, and a homer.

All-American sophomore LHP Tyler Herrera (Spring, Texas) went the distance in the LaGrange win as he improved to 2-1 on the season. He allowed just four hits and a walk with seven strikeouts and faced 26 batters and threw 88 pitches (56) for strikes in his seven innings of work. It marked his third-career complete game as he now has a pair of complete games and a 1.77 ERA. In 20.1 innings pitched he has 24 K's and just five walks while allowing only 11 hits and four earned runs.

Senior RHP Parker Primeaux (Lake Charles, La.) enters the weekend with a miniscule 0.57 ERA as he has allowed just one earned run in 15.2 IP. He is 1-0 and has 12 strikeouts and only four hits on 15 hits allowed. He is the current conference ERA leader. Senior RHP Christian Diaz (Houston, Texas) is 1-0 and has a 0.00 ERA through nine innings of work. He has allowed just seven hits with a walk and seven K's.

Freshman RHP Jacob Broussard (Houston, Texas) is 0-1 but has yet to allow an earned run as he, like Diaz, has an ERA of 0.00. He has allowed just one unearned run and five hits with four walks and five K's in eight IP. Freshman RHP Aidan Reichek (Bellaire, Texas) has a 2.45 ERA in 7.1 IP as he has allowed only two earned runs on seven hits with three BB and 7 K.

Freshman RHP Cade Josting (Bossier City, La.) is 1-0 with a 3.68 ERA and has allowed four runs (three earned) on 12 hits with five K's and no walks in 7.1 IP. Freshman LHP Cody Myers (Friendswood, Texas) is third on the team in IP (11.2) and is 1-1 with a 5.40 ERA. He has allowed seven runs (all earned) on 13 hits with five walks and 14 K's.

Junior 2B Jobee Boone (Opelousas, La.) is hitting .378 (.468 OBP/.432 SLG.) with 14 hits, 11 runs scored, six RBI, five BB, four stolen bases, and two doubles. Sophomore OF/DH Cade LaBruyere (Iowa, La.) is off to a good start following an impressive rookie season as he is hitting .324 (.419 OBP/.351 SLG) with 13 runs scored, 12 hits, seven RBI, and a team-high seven stolen bases. He also has six BB and a double.

Freshman LF Lenny Forth (Flower Mound, Texas) is batting .325 with a .400 OBP and is slugging .375. he has 13 hits, 10 runs scored, eight RBI, four BB, two doubles, and a stolen base. Senior CF Gary Hewitt (Cedar Park, Texas) is hitting .279 (.319 OBP/.326 SLG) with 12 hits, seven RBI, nine runs scored, two walks, two stolen bases, and a triple.

Friday is the first of seven-straight home games for Centenary. The Maroon and White welcome the University of Dallas to town next weekend for a three-game conference series and then wrap up the homestand on Tuesday, March 28 versus LeTourneau.

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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