EUNICE, La., February 10, 2024 – The third game of this weekend's series between the Monroe College Mustangs baseball team and NJCAA Div. II No. 2 LSU-Eunice was a tight one on Saturday, but the host Bengals ultimately came out on top, 6-3, at Bengal Stadium.
 
An early miscue put the Mustangs in an early hole on Saturday. Tyson LeBlanc reached with one out on an error by the shortstop that put him on second base. Weston Fulk took advantage with an RBI double into left-center field to quickly put the Bengals up, 1-0. Collin Husser then drew a walk, and a passed ball with two outs put bother runners in scoring position. Bennett Clement then laid down a bunt single toward third that brought Fulk home for a 2-0 lead. Evan Joubert added an RBI single into left to leave the home team ahead, 3-0, after one.
 
After a couple quiet frames, the Mustangs battled back in the top of the fourth. Jeremy De La Mota led off with a walk, and then Ronald Almanzar doubled down the right-field line to put both runners in scoring position. De La Mota came home on a groundout to first by Eli Gries-Smith, cutting the deficit to two. Keldrin Rodriguez drew a two-out walk, and then Omar Antonio Burgos singled to center to plate Almanzar and get Monroe within a run. Justin Peguero followed with an RBI single into left, scoring Rodriguez to tie the game at 3-3.
 
That score held until the bottom of the fifth. LeBlanc and Fulk opened the inning with back-to-back walks. Husser then sacrificed both into scoring position. A wild pitch brought LeBlanc home to put the Bengals back on top. With runners on second and third, Clement hit a grounder to third that went home to get Fulk at the plate for the second out of the inning. Another wild pitch then allowed the pinch-running Alex Stevens to score, leaving LSU-Eunice up, 5-3.
 
Neither team was able to muster up a run until the Bengals got one more in the home half of the eighth. Reuben Williams hit a one-out single to left, and then proceeded to steal both second and third. Dawson Willis then brought him home on a sacrifice fly to left, reaching the eventual final score of 6-3.
 
Parker Webb picked up his third win of the year for LSU-Eunice on Saturday, going six innings and allowing three runs. Daniel DiEdwards made his first start for Monroe, and after a shaky first inning that saw him allow three unearned runs, he settled in to finish with four frames without an earned run allowed on three hits and two strikeouts. Wander De Jesus shouldered the loss for Monroe to fall to 0-1. Nick Gisclair came on in the ninth to protect the Bengals' three-run lead to earn his first save of the season.
 
Burgos finished 2-for-4 with an RBI for the Mustangs in the third game of their series at LSU-Eunice. Peguero hit 1-for-3 with an RBI. Almanzar went 1-for-4 with a double and a run scored. Gilbert Gomez turned in a 1-for-3 effort.
 
The Mustangs and Bengals were able to beat the weather the last couple days, but the forecast for Sunday in Eunice does not fare well for the final game of the series. Tomorrow's matchup is currently slated for a 3 p.m. ET first pitch. Follow the Monroe Mustangs social media channels and come back to MonroeCollegeMustangs.com for the most up to the minute schedule updates.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs). Read Full Article