ALEXANDRIA, La. – The #19 Louisiana Christian University baseball team had the offense going to even up the series with LSU Alexandria, taking game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader 11-6 but ultimately dropped the series as the Generals run-ruled the Wildcats in the rubber game of it, 13-3 in seven innings, at Generals Field.
 
Game 1 - #19 Louisiana Christian 11, LSU Alexandria 6
 
#19 Louisiana Christian (32-9, 17-7 RRAC) faced the early adversity in the day's opener as LSU Alexandria (30-12, 18-6 RRAC) scored three runs in the bottom of the first inning to take a 3-0 lead after one.
 
Gavin Vordick immediately got one of those runs back as he took the first pitch of the second inning and smashed it over the wall down the left field line for a home run, cutting the deficit down to 3-1. Harrison Waxley followed him with a double, but would be left stranded at third base.
 
The Wildcats then found their big inning in the top of the third. With one out in the inning, Braden McLin reached safely thanks to a LSUA error and Braden Trull drew a base on balls. That's when the big bats came up and made it hurt as Chris Kelley and Vordick went back-to-back with home runs, both over the left field wall, to turn a 3-1 deficit into a 5-3 lead.
 
But that wasn't all for LCU in the frame as Waxley followed Vordick with a base hit to right and Brady Huffman drew a walk. With two outs now, a wild pitch allowed both runners to move up 90 feet and a ground ball to shortstop was mishandled, allowing Waxley to score and put LCU up 6-3 when the inning ended.
 
LSUA pulled two runs back in the fourth, but the Wildcats got those back in the fifth. Kelley, Vordick, and Waxley all drew walks in order to load the bases with no outs. Huffman lifted the ball to center which was deep enough to let Kelley tag up and score. After Drake Aldridge got a base hit to reload the bases with one out. Logan Lobell also did a job, hitting a fly ball in left field foul territory which was caught, allowing Vordick to tag and score, making it 8-5 Wildcats. The Generals got one of those back in the bottom of the inning as the lead-off batter was hit by a pitch and the next batter hit a RBI triple. LCU was able to escape any further damage as a base running blunder allowed the Wildcats to get the runner at third out and limit the damage to just one run, keeping the 8-6 lead after five.
 
The Wildcats got three big insurance runs in the top of the sixth. McLin was able to reach base to lead off the inning as strike three got away from the LSUA catcher and he beat the throw to first base. Trull was hit by a pitch to move McLin up and Kelley came through with a base hit through the left side of the infield, scoring McLin.
 
Vordick then laid down a bunt and a bobble by the LSUA pitcher allowed him to beat the play, loading the bases with still no outs. Waxley then had the big hit, dropping a base hit into center field for a single which scored both Trull and Kelley for the 11-6 lead, which held to game's end.
 
Four different Wildcats had multiple hits in game one. Waxley led the charge, going 3-for-3 with a double, a walk, knocked in a couple runs, and scored once.
 
Caleb Brown went 2-for-5.
 
Kelley was 2-for-3 with a pair of walks. His three-run home run in the third inning was his 10^th long ball of the season as he knocked in a total of four runs and scored three times.
 
Vordick was 2-for-3 with a walk while both of his hits went over the wall for home runs, his second and third dingers of the season. His two solo home runs accounted for both of his RBI in the contest while scoring three times in the game.
 
McLin didn't get a base hit but still found a way to score twice.
 
Kade Linn (8-1) picked up the win on the mound as he threw four innings and gave up nine hits and six runs, all earned, with five strikeouts and one walk.
 
Thomas Collins threw an inning and didn't give up either a hit or a run while striking out one with one walk.
 
Colton Williams came on in the sixth inning and got all six LSUA batters he faced out, three via the strikeout, to close out the contest.
 
Game 2 – LSU Alexandria 13, #19 Louisiana Christian 3 (7 innings)
 
Looking to win the series over their rivals across the Red River, the Wildcats got the start they wanted in the rubber game as Huffman doubled to right with one out and Trull came up behind him and singled to right to put two LCU runners in scoring position. They both came in as Vordick went to the left-center gap for a double and a 2-0 LCU lead.
 
LSUA got one of those runs back in the bottom of the fourth, though LCU didn't take long to reestablish the two-run lead. In the top of the fifth, Brown drew a walk to lead off the inning. Huffman sacrificed himself to get Brown into scoring position. Kelley then came through with a big, two-out hit as he ripped a base hit down the third base line, allowing Brown to come home for a 3-1 Wildcat lead.
 
But that's where the tide of the game went against LCU quickly and harshly as LSUA scored five runs in the bottom of the fifth to take a 6-3 lead. After the Wildcats went quietly in the top of the sixth, the Generals doubled their run production with a six-spot in the bottom of the inning to extend the lead to 12-3. LCU again failed to respond in the top of the seventh, and all it took was one batter in the bottom of the inning to bring the game to an early end as a lead-off home run invoked the run-rule for the final score.
 
Vordick led the offense in the nightcap, going 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI.
 
Kelley was also 2-for-3 with a RBI.
 
Huffman went 1-for-2 with his one hit being a double and he scored a run.
 
Trull went 1-for-4 with a run scored.
 
Brown drew a walk and scored a run.
 
Alan Mason (1-2) took the loss as he threw 0.2 innings and allowed one hit and two runs, both earned, with one walk and no strikeouts.
 
Owen Simoneaux got the start and threw 2.1 innings, allowing one hit and no runs with two strikeouts and four walks.
 
Seth Whitney came on after Simoneaux and threw 1.2 innings, allowing a hit and two runs, both earned, with three strikeouts and one walk.
 
Following Mason, four pitchers threw the final 1.1 innings, allowing eight hits, nine runs, eight earned, with one walk and one strikeout between them.
 
The Wildcats return home for the final four games of the regular season, starting next weekend as #4 LSU Shreveport, the defending NAIA national champions, come to Pineville for senior weekend and the final Red River Athletic Conference series of the season. The series against the #4 Pilots (34-9, 19-5 RRAC) starts Friday night with first pitch of the single game set for 6 p.m. at Billy Allgood Field.