BEAUMONT – Home runs powered the Lamar University offense and Jayson McKinley and Enrique Oquendo combined for 15 strikeouts when the Cardinals downed Central Arkansas 9-2 and locked up the sweep Sunday afternoon in Southland Conference baseball action at Vincent-Beck Stadium.
Eight of the nine runs scored by the Cardinals (13-7, 4-2 Southland Conference) were driven in on home runs. Both Jake Nash and Stijn van der Meer had three-run shots and Reid Russell dropped a two-run bomb, giving the Cardinals their fifth multi-homer game this season and most since LU hit four against Arizona.
Russell was first in the second inning and turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead when he cleared the center fielder batters eye with a crush job on a 1-2 pitch that scored van der Meer, who reached on a leadoff single. It was Russell’s eighth homer, which is the most LU has season in a season since Anthony Moore had 10 in 2010. It was also the junior’s fifth-straight game with a homer.
He finished his four-game week 6-of-13 (.462) with 11 runs batted in and five runs scored.
Already up 3-2 in the sixth, Nash launched a 2-0 pitch over both walls in left field and scored van der Meer and Brendan Satran. Satran got aboard with a two-out infield single and van der Meer followed him with a walk.
A one-out base on balls started the eighth inning rally that was capped by van der Meer’s homer. Chaneng Varela drew four wide ones and his pinch runner Gavin Tristan stole second before Satran reached on another infield single. Van der Meer punched a 2-2 pitch that he the wall above the yellow line in right field.
“This may be the first year I’ve pulled for the wind to blow out,” said Gilligan. “With the sluggers we have in the lineup, we’re not fancy. My job is to keep my hands in my pockets and not make many signals. I tell you what, when the wind is blowing out I’d hate to face us.”
For both van der Meer and Nash, their homers were the second of their careers in a LU uniform. Van der Meer finished 2-for-3 with three RBI and three runs scored. Nash was 1-of-5 with a run and three RBI while Russell was 1-of-3 with two driven in.
The 19 homers the Cardinals have as a team is the most they’ve popped since the 2013 season totaled 23.
McKinley (1-0) started the contest for the Cardinals and pitched seven innings and struck out 10 Bears (9-10, 3-3). He gave up two runs on six hits and two walks. Oquendo took over for him in the eighth and only Brandon Montalvo was able to put a ball in play against him with a fly out to right field. The final five batters who faced him stuck out, four swinging and one looking.
“I thought Mac pitched a spectacular ball game today. He threw more pitches with good stuff than he ever has,” said Gilligan. “He’s a perfect guy when the wind is blowing out. When he is good he puts pitches on the knees and has a great change of pace. It slows bats down.
“Enrique was up to 94 today and was just out-matching people,” he said. “That was a good sign, and we’re just a couple of pieces from being a really good staff.”
McKinley struck out the side twice, once in order, and at one point punched out four straight.
Bryndan Arredondo scored the lone run not sent across on a dinger. The junior lined a two-out double to left field that hit the base of the wall. UCA elected to intentionally walk Russell and could not get Cutter McDowell to chase and walked him too. Eventually, Tyler Gray uncorked a wild pitch that bounced towards the third base dugout and gave Arredondo the chance to score.
UCA’s leadoff hitter Tyler Langley put the first run on the board when he sent the third pitch of the game over the left field wall. He also pushed across the second Bear run when he doubled home Michael Haun, who tripled to left center one batter earlier.
Gray (1-1) suffered the first loss of his season on two innings of work. He gave up four runs on three hits and walked three. Hunter Neal started the game and had four innings pitched. He gave up two runs on four hits and two walks. The final three runs were charged to Jacob Murray, who wore Saturday’s loss.
Satran joined van der Meer with two hits in the contest and top six hitters of the LU order accounted for seven of the nine LU hits. Nash, Arredondo, Russell, McDowell, and Robin Adames accounted for one hit each.
“I’m encouraged by this week. We still have a lot of work to do,” said Gilligan. “We still have some holes in the swings, but they’re getting better. Happy for the boys.”
The Cardinals will return to action on Thursday when they welcome New Orleans to The Beck for a three-game Southland Conference tilt. The opener is slated to start at 6 p.m.
