Tulane Baseball Blows Lead, Suffers Mid-Week Loss to In-State Rival
The Tulane Green Wave baseball team had won four straight games, but the Southeastern Louisiana Lions didn’t seem to care.
The Lions defeated the Green Wave, 7-3, on Tuesday at Greer Field at Turchin Stadium. The Green Wave had a 3-0 lead after two innings but gave up seven runs the rest of the way to see that losing streak snapped at four games.
The Green Wave (21-13, 5-4 in AAC) scored two runs in the first inning. Connor Rasmussen was on second base and Matthias Haas was on third base when Lions (26-7) starter Chase Ambrose was called for a balk. Haas scored.
Hugh Pinkney, who was named American Athletic Conference honorable mention on Monday, brought Rasmussen home on a single to make it 2-0.
In the second inning, Gavin Schulz connected on an Ambrose delivery but reached first on an error. That scored Brock Slaton.
That was all the Green Wave could muster offensively. Tulane finished with eight hits for the game but were unable to capitalize on remaining baserunners, as the Green Wave stranded eight in the game. The Lions stranded 12 runners but tied the game with a three-run third inning and then took the lead with two more in the fifth.
Tulane threw nine different pitchers at the Lions, as right-hander John-Paul Sauer started the game. The freshman was not the pitcher of record, as he only went two innings, giving up two hits, two runs, two walks while striking out three.
He pitched into the third inning, but he gave up back-to-back singles before he was relieved by Wes Burton (0-2). He was not only unable to keep the inherited runs from scoring, but he allowed three runs on two hits with a walk and four strikeouts in 2.2 innings.
Schulz was the only Green Wave hitter with more than one hit, as he went 2-for-5 out of the leadoff spot. Pinkney had the only RBI of the game.
Southeastern Louisiana, playing in the Southland Conference, is part of an impressive group of teams at the top of that league’s standings. Houston Christian, UTRGV and McNeese are all potential NCAA Tournament contenders.
With the loss, the Green Fell to 82-42 in the all-time series which dates back to 1947. Tulane won the meeting earlier this season.
The Green Wave return to conference play with a three-game series against the UAB Blazers at home. Friday’s game is set for 6:30 p.m. Saturday’s game will also be at 6:30 p.m. and Sunday’s finale will be at 1 p.m.
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Matthew Postins is an award-winning sports journalist who covers Major League Baseball for OnSI. He also covers the Big 12 Conference for Heartland College Sports.