SOUTHLAND
CENTRAL ARKANSAS 3, SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 2
Central Arkansas (28-25, 16-14 Southland) swept Southeastern Louisiana (36-18, 22-8) for the first time since joining the conference in 2007 and jumped up to the fifth seed in this week’s conference tournament with Saturday’s victory at Bear Stadium in Conway.
At a glance
SOUTHLAND TOURNAMENT
at Constellation Field
Sugar Land, Texas
WEDNESDAY’S GAMES All times Central
(3) Nicholls State vs. (6) McNeese State, 9 a.m.
(2) SE Louisiana vs. (7) New Orleans, noon
(1) Sam Houston State vs. (8) Stephen F. Austin, 4 p.m.
(4) Lamar vs. (5) Cent. Arkansas, 7 p.m.
The Lions took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning, but the Bears responded with single runs in the second, third and fourth innings. Brandon Montalvo, who led off the second inning with a single, scored on Justin McCarty’s base hit to tie the game at 1-1. Matt Anderson hit an RBI single to left field in the third to score Chris Townsend as the Bears led 2-1. Logan Preston led off the fourth inning with a double to right-center field and scored on William Hancock’s ground ball up the middle for a 3-1 advantage.
The Lions closed the gap to 3-2 in the seventh inning on a two-out RBI double from Jameson Fisher.
Connor McClain, who earned his first save of the season and sixth of his career, set the Lions down in order in the eighth and ninth innings to hand SLU its first conference sweep since April 2014. Southeastern Louisiana has lost five of its past six games heading into next week’s conference tournament.
Starter Tyler Gray (6-1) allowed 1 run and had 8 strikeouts over 5 innings for UCA, which has won four consecutive games and 10 of their past 12 to close the regular season.
DIVISION II REGIONAL
ARKANSAS-MONTICELLO 2, SW OKLAHOMA STATE 1
ST. CLOUD, Minn. — Southwestern Oklahoma State and Arkansas-Monticello finished first and second respectively in this year’s Great American Conference standings, yet the two teams didn’t meet until Saturday.
A regular-season series scheduled to be played in Monticello was rained out in March, and Southwestern Oklahoma was beaten early in the GAC Tournament as UAM went on to win it.
The teams were finally on the same field Saturday in an elimination game at the NCAA Division II Central Regional, where Travis Steinke’s sacrifice fly in the 10th inning allowed the Boll Weevils to advance to another elimination game at noon today.
Tied 1-1, Evan Courneau was hit by a pitch in the 10th, moved to second on Kevin Fitzpatrick’s single and to third when Corey Wood was walked. Steinke’s sacrifice fly then scored Courneau to win it for the Boll Weevils (38-15).
Chad Bradford earned the victory UAM after pitching 5 2/3 innings in relief. He held the Bulldogs (34-17) to 2 hits while striking out 2 and walking 4. Starter Grant Black went 4 1/3 innings, allowing 1 run on 4 hits and striking out 4 with 5 walks. The Bulldogs took a 1-0 lead in the second when Tanner Dearman singled to right field to score C.J. Fraddis, who had walked.
UAM tied it in the sixth when Wood singled, moved to third on a Steinke single and scored on a fielder’s choice. UAM didn’t get another hit until Fitzpatrick’s single in the 10th.