Southern Miss Grand Slam was Enough to Take Down the Cajuns

The Cajuns traveled to Hattiesburg Mississippi for a crucial three-game series against the Golden Eagles of Southern Miss. The Eagles came into the matchup with a 20-7 conference record and sitting in second place while the Cajuns came into the series with a 17-10 conference record and sitting in third place. The Cajuns desperately need the sweep to secure a bye in the first round of the conference tournament. With the stage set for this Sun Belt showdown, let’s take a look at how the game went.

On the mound for the Cajuns was Jackson Nezuh who went for 6 1/3 innings. He recorded 5 strikeouts, 2 walks, 6 hits, and 4 runs given up.

Tanner Hall would get the start for the Golden Eagles as he would pitch for 8 complete innings. He recorded 12 strikeouts, 0 walks, three hits and 0 runs allowed.

The game was flying by as we entered the fifth with just an hour of game time being played. This was thanks to the pitching duel that was going on between Jackson Nezuh and Tanner Hall. The Eagles were doing it through the masterful pitching of Hall who recorded nine strikeouts through just 5 innings. Nezuh only recorded 2 strikeouts through five innings but he didn’t have to do much more than that as his defense was playing big behind him.

The game completely changed in the bottom of the fifth when and a couple of base hits and a walk loaded the bases for the Eagles with just one out. Nezuh allowed his defense to play big behind up to this point but Etzel took it out of the defense’s hand with a grand slam. The monster shot made it a 4-0 Southern Miss lead.The Cajuns would have their chances to score with runners in position in the 8^th but Tanner Hall closed the door once again.

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Nezuh and Hall continued to battle going into the seventh inning. Hall retired 15 batters in a row with 10 strikeouts as Nezuh bounced back after the grand slam as he went into the seventh with 5 strikeouts and a goose egg in the sixth. The Cajuns would have their chances to score with runners in position in the 8^th but Tanner Hall closed the door once again.

The grand slam was all the Eagles needed to take down the Cajuns. The Cajuns fall to 35-18 on the season and 17-11 in conference play. The Eagles improve to 36-15 and 21-7 in conference play. The two teams will meet again tomorrow with the first pitch set for 6 PM.