Courtesy: Grambling Athletics
BATON ROUGE, La. | Trevor Hatton served as the offensive catalyst for Grambling State on Saturday afternoon, driving in five runs as the Tigers cruised to an 11-5 victory over rival Southern University, at Lee-Hines Stadium.
Hatton went 2-for 5 with a three-run home run and a two-RBI triple in back-to-back at-bats. John Garcia, who’s currently second on team in batting average (.371), also had a big day, going 2-for-3 with two-run homer in the seventh inning.
GSU starting pitcher Jacorey Boudreaux (2-2) notched his second consecutive win, working 6.0 innings, allowing three runs on four hits, with six walks and one strikeout.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- In the top of the second inning, Julian Murphy hit a two-out standup triple to left centerfield. David Valoy Jr. hit a ground ball to second base that looked to be a routine out, however, the SU first baseman couldn’t handle the throw, allowing Murphy to score and put Grambling State (8-15 overall, 3-2 SWAC) up 1-0.
- After Southern (5-17, 2-3) tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the second, Trevor Hatton responded in the top of the third, smoking a three-run shot over the left field wall, giving GSU a 4-1 advantage.
- The Jaguars loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning, but Boudreaux and the Grambling State defense limited them to just one run.
- With GSU lead 4-2 in the top of the fifth, Hatton drove in two more runs a stand up triple to left centerfield. Murphy scored Hatton from third on a grounder to first base, extending the Tigers’ lead to 7-2.
- The Jaguars plated a run in the bottom of the sixth to trim the lead to 7-3.
- John Garcia showcased his power in the top of the seventh, smashing a two-run homer to left centerfield, stretching GSU’s lead to 9-3.
- In the eighth inning, Cameron Bufford flied out to cf, but a throwing error by Southern allowed two runs to cross home plate, growing the Grambling State lead to 11-4.
- The Jaguars assed one more run in the ninth inning.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- Both teams registered seven hits
- Southern committed three errors
- Grambling State made two errors
- GSU stole three bases
- This was the sixth multi-home run game of the season for the Tigers. GSU leads the SWAC in homers (21)
- Roy Peguero made a relief appearance for GSU, working 3.0 innings, allow two runs on three hits to go along with three Ks and one walk
- SU’s Anthony Fidanza (2-3) was saddled with loss, going 5.0 innings, surrendering seven runs on four hits.
UP NEXT
Grambling State wraps up its series with Southern on Sunday afternoon. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.