LAKE CHARLES, La. --Though they had plenty of opportunities, Prairie View A&M struggled to cash them in, leaving 11 Panthers on base in a 5-4 defeat at the hands of the McNeese Cowboys on Sunday.
Senior Victor Mendoza (0-2) took the loss on the mound for Prairie View A&M (6-5). Freshman Preston Allen started the ballgame and went 6.1 innings, surrendering three runs, earned, on five hits, walking three and striking out four.
Junior Jayden Williams led the way offensively for the Panthers, going 2-for-4 in the ballgame with a walk and three RBI. Senior Marshal Jonas furnished a standout performance as well, going 1-for-2 with a double, two walks and an RBI. Junior Garrison Weiss also contributed, going 2-for-5 for Prairie View A&M.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Panthers got the scoring started early, putting one run on the board in the top of the first inning. Prairie View A&M got an RBI single from Williams, scoring sophomore Michael Burroughs from second base.
The Panthers lost the lead they built in the first, but got back on the board in the seventh trailing 2-1. Prairie View A&M plated two runs off of McNeese pitching, punctuated by a run-scoring double off the bat of Jonas, which brought the Panthers lead to 3-2.
Prairie View A&M's lead had evaporated by the time the ninth inning came around and turned into a 5-3 McNeese advantage, when the Panthers cut that deficit to 5-4. The Panthers scored once on an RBI single off the bat of Williams. The ballgame ended with that ninth inning rally falling short.
GAME NOTES
» Prairie View A&M's highest scoring inning was the seventh, when it pushed two runs across.
» Prairie View A&M left 11 runners stranded on base in the loss.
» The Panthers out-hit the Cowboys at a 7-6 clip.
» Prairie View A&M pitchers limited McNeese to just 1-for-9 (.111) with runners in scoring position.
» Prairie View A&M pitchers faced 35 McNeese hitters in the game, allowing seven ground balls and 11 fly balls while striking out six.
» The Panthers drew six walks from McNeese pitching.
» Williams led the Panthers at the plate, going 2-for-4 with three RBI.
» McNeese was led offensively by junior Connor Westenburg, who went 2-for-4 with two home runs and two RBI.
