HAMMOND, La. – The No. 1-seeded Southeastern Louisiana University baseball team defeated No. 5-seeded McNeese, 7-4, Friday at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field in second-day action at the 2025 Southland Conference Baseball Championships Hammond Bracket presented by GeoSurfaces.
 
Southeastern (38-15) wiped out a three-run deficit in the seventh before scoring four runs in the ninth on its way to eliminating the Cowboys (32-17) from the tournament.
 
McNeese came out swinging the bats, stringing together five consecutive hits to open up the bottom of the first inning on the way to taking a 3-0 lead.
 
Cowboy left-hander proceeded to keep Southeastern at bay throughout his six-inning stint of shutout baseball, stranding 11 runners on base. Meanwhile, Truitt Webb logged a career-high 4.1 innings of one-hit, shutout relief to calm down the McNeese bats.
 
SLU got to reliever Jake Blackwell quickly in the seventh as he walked Conner O'Neal to open up the frame before surrendering a single to center field off the bat of Logan Walters. Giovanni Licciardi dropped down a sacrifice bunt and Blackwell fired the ball past the first baseman, allowing O'Neal to score.
 
Two outs later, Peyton Woods delivered a two-run, game-tying single to right.
 
Southeastern got to Blackwell once again in the ninth. With two outs, Blackwell hit Woods with a pitch and the Lions sent in Jude Hall as a pinch runner. Parker Coley followed with a single behind third base. The throw to first allowed Hall to take third and, as the first baseman tagged Coley claiming he was in fair territory, Hall broke for the plate to score the go-ahead run.
 
The Lions kept the pressure on as Dane Watts drew a walk before TJ Salvaggio delivered a two-run double to right-center. After McNeese intentionally walked O'Neal, Walters delivered an RBI double down the left-field line.
 
A leadoff homer by Cowboy left fielder Larry Edwards Jr. capped the scoring as SLU reliever Brady St. Pierre (2-1) closed out the game with a double play, earning the win. The freshman from LaPlace, Louisiana allowed one run in a career-high 3.2 innings pitched.
 
Blackwell (3-3) suffered the loss, allowing six runs – four earned – in 2.2 innings pitched.
 
Walters (4-for-6), Coley (4-for-5) and Salvaggio (2-for-6) turned in multi-hit performances for the Lions.
 
UP NEXT
Southeastern faces No. 4-seeded Northwestern State (34-20) at 1 p.m. Saturday in an elimination game at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field in third-day action at the 2025 Southland Conference Baseball Championships Hammond Bracket presented by GeoSurfaces.
 
If the Lions win the first game of the day, they will turn around and play No. 8-seeded New Orleans (27-24) again at 6 p.m.
 
All games in the Hammond Bracket, which runs through Sunday, will air on ESPN+. The winner of the Hammond bracket meets the winner of the Edinburg bracket in the best-of-three championship series, May 22-24, at the highest remaining seed.
 
Fans can listen to SLU game broadcasts in the Hammond area on KSLU 90.9 The Lion. In addition, an audio stream is available online at www.LionSports.net/ListenLive and via the Lions Gameday Experience and MyTuner Radio apps. The MyTuner app is compatible with the Apple CarPlay software available in most late-model automobiles.
 
DIAMOND CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the baseball program are encouraged to join the Diamond Club. Lion baseball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Diamond Club and the S Club (baseball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern baseball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or by visiting www.LionUp.com.
  
SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow the Southeastern Baseball social media accounts (@LionUpBaseball) on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to stay engaged with the program.
 
The latest updates are also available at www.LionSports.net and the Lions Gameday Experience app. Available for both Android and iOS devices, the Gameday app can be downloaded from the App Store and Google Play.