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Baseball: ‘We have to learn how to win these kinds of games,’ Mainieri says after 4-3 loss to UL inGlenn Guilbeau, USA TODAY Network, March 8, 2018 LAFAYETTE — It was a Cajun storybook finish. Jonathan Windham’s single in the bottom of the 10th inning with two outs and the bases loaded gave Louisiana-Lafayette a 4-3 win over No. 13 LSU and climaxed a dramatic comeback in front of 5,499 — the third largest crowd in M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field history — Wednesday night. The Cajuns, trailing 1-0 from the first inning through the seventh, scored three runs with three consecutive bunts and a single in the eighth to take a 3-1 lead only to watch the Tigers tie it up, 3-3, in the ninth. The Tigers (9-5) took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a ground rule double by Lafayette native Antoine Duplantis and a RBI single by Beau Jordan off UL senior left-handed starter Colten Schmidt. But Schmidt did not allow another run amid five hits through eight innings with five strikeouts and no walks in a no-decision. "We have to learn how to win these kinds of games," said LSU coach Paul Mainieri, whose team dropped a 5-4 game at Southeastern Louisiana last week. "We’re going to play a lot of close games in a lot of tough environments like this, and we’ve got to find a way to win them." UL did. Leadoff hitter Gavin Bourgeois started the pivotal UL eighth off LSU’s fourth pitcher — left-hander Nick Bush — with a single. Daniel Lahare then reached on a bunt single. Kennon Fontenot sacrifice bunted for the first out of the inning, moving runners to second and third. Then Hunter Kasuls suicide squeeze bunted to score Bourgeois from third to tie the game, 1-1. On a play UL coach Tony Robichaux has used often this season, Lahare ran from second full go on the Kasuls bunt with the idea of rounding third and scoring in case the pitcher’s attention strays. Bush fielded Kasuls bunt and did not notice Lahare as he pulled back on a throw to first, where Kasuls would have been safe easily had Bush thrown. With Bush’s back to home plate after his near throw, Lahare scored easily from second for a 2-1 lead. "We do it a lot," Robichaux said. "Because we haven’t been scoring runs." Or hitting. The Cajuns came into the game hitting .177 for 294th out of 297 Division I college baseball teams. "So, you’ve got to get good at something," Robichaux said. "That’s the weapon we have right there." After Bush struck out Monroe Mall, UL (5-7) scored the more conventional way — with a RBI single by Hayden Cantrelle for a 3-1 lead. The Tigers tied it 3-3 in the top of the ninth after two outs. With UL a strike away from a win, Hunter Feduccia walked off reliever Logan Stoelke, who then hit Bryce Jordan. Austin Bain pinch-hit for Nick Webre and came through with a two-run double to right-center field to tie it 3-3. But Brandt Broussard grounded out to end the inning. Then Bain came on to pitch the bottom of the ninth for LSU and retired the Cajuns in order to send the game into extra innings. "For most of the game, our pitchers were awesome. Their kid (Schmidt) was, too," said Mainieri, who used five pitchers. Starter A.J. Labas allowed four hits in three innings but no runs with three strikeouts and no walks. Devin Fontenot struck out five with no walks in two innings. Taylor Peterson fanned four in one inning plus with one hit allowed before Bush allowed three runs on four hits in two innings with three strike outs and no walks. Bain (1-1) took the loss after allowing two hits and the losing run in an inning and two-thirds with three strikeouts and LSU’s only two walks of the game. "It just wasn’t a night conducive to offense," Mainieri said. Until the very late innings, that is. Lahare started UL’s 10th inning rally with a single off Bain and reached second on Zach LaFleur’s sacrifice bunt. Bain intentionally walked Kasuls before striking out Mall for the second out. Cantrelle forced a walk out of Bain, who was visited by LSU pitching coach Alan Dunn. Then Windham stepped up and hit the walk-off single to center field, scoring Lahare for the win. Stoelke (1-0) picked up the victory in relief of Schmidt. The Cajuns struck Labas for two hits in the bottom of the first by Bourgeois and Fontenot, but they were left stranded when Moll flew out to right field to end the inning. Labas and three LSU relievers combined to strike out 10. UL loaded the bases off Labas in the second inning with a singles by Cantrell and Kole McKinnon around a throwing error by Hal Hughes at shortstop that let Windham reach. But Labas struck out former Tiger O’Neal Lochridge, Gavin Bourgeois and Daniel Lahare to end the inning. Lochridge made his fourth straight start at first base after starting three at third base and two at designated hitter. The former Tiger was profiled in Wednesday’s Advertiser here. That marked the first time all season UL did not score after loading the bases. Of the seven previous times the Cajuns scored in those situations, they did it without a hit. LSU returned the favor in the fourth inning by putting runners on the corners with one out, but failed to score. After one out, Feduccia doubled and reached third on a single by Bryce Jordan. Webre of Teurlings Catholic High in Lafayette tapped back to the pitcher, however, and Schmidt threw Feduccia out at the plate. Then Brandt Broussard flew out to right to end the inning. "We didn’t play our best defensive game," Mainieri said. "There were a lot of little things that put stress on our pitching staff, and there were missed opportunities on offense." The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for the Tigers and five straight wins over UL going back to 2014. LSU hosts Hawaii in a three-game series Friday through Sunday at Alex Box Stadium. UL hosts South Alabama this weekend. "We’re getting better as a team," Mainieri said. "But we’ve still got a long way to go." Athletic Network Footnote by Dr. Ed Dugas.
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