BEAUMONT, Texas – BYU baseball held Lamar to eight-straight scoreless innings, but a three-run first was all the Cardinals needed to defeat the Cougars 3-1 on Friday.
“We played a solid game tonight, but just couldn’t put anything together offensively,” BYU head coach Mike Littlewood said. “We had (Lamar pitcher Jason) Blanchard on the ropes early, but he settled in and did a nice job keeping us off balance all night.”
Game Summary
- A single and two home runs in the first inning accounted for the three Lamar runs
- BYU allowed only one Cardinal runner to reach as far as third base the remainder of the game
- The Cougars scored their lone run after Noah Hill doubled and Carson Matthews hit an RBI single in the second inning
Player Highlights
- Carson Matthews: 2-4, RBI, SB
- Noah Hill: 1-4, 2B, R
- Riley Gates: 2.0 IP, 0 ER, H, BB
Junior Jarod Lessar (1-1) gave up a single and a pair of home runs in the bottom of the first inning as Lamar (5-5) went up 3-0 early. But the right-hander soon found a groove, striking out three and allowing just one more hit over the next three innings for BYU (6-3).
With two outs in the second inning, senior Noah Hill hit a double down the left field line, then advanced to third on a passed ball. Freshman Carson Matthews then knocked him home on an infield single.
Sophomore Mitch McIntyre saw his first time on the mound in the fifth, pitching 0.2 innings with one hit and no runs. Sophomore Easton Walker and senior Riley Gates finished the final 3.1 innings for BYU, allowing only two hits combined. In all, the BYU bullpen extended its streak without an earned run to 20 innings.
BYU and Lamar will finish the series with a third game on Saturday, March 2, at 11 a.m. MT. The game can again be seen on the Lamar Athletics Facebook page or heard on BYU Radio and ESPN 960.