JOURNAL STAFF

LEWISTON, Idaho – Trevor Burkhardt hit a dramatic ninth-inning home run to lift LSU-Shreveport to a 3-2 win over Faulkner (Ala.) in the elimination bracket of the Avista NAIA World Series Tuesday night at Harris Field.

Burkhardt hit a towering two-out solo home run to left field after entering the game as a pinch hitter in the sixth inning. He stayed in the game to play second base.

LSUS (53-7) got solid pitching as starter Kevin Miranda went five innings, allowing three hits and two runs as he walked one and struck out 10. Josh Fortenberry got the win by pitching one inning and allowing just one hit as Pilot pitchers allowed just six hits and struck out 13.

Allbry Major came in from centerfield in the ninth to get the save by striking out two, the last with a runner on third base.

It was the bottom of the Pilots’ batting order that came up big. All three RBI came from the No. 8 and 9 slots in the order. Designated hitter Nathan Beyer, hitting eighth, was 2-for-3 and drove in the two runs that Burkhardt didn’t.

Beyer’s RBI single in the fourth inning drove in pinch-runner Cameron Lewis to give LSUS a 1-0 lead.

Faulkner (39-17) got its two runs in the fifth to take a 2-1 edge as Evan Gilliam tripled in Justice Lewis and scored on a Tommy Reyes-Cruz pinch-hit single.

LSUS tied the game 2-2 in the sixth inning when Beyer hit a sacrifice fly to score Carlos Pineyro.

The Pilots now play today Lewis-Clark State at 5 p.m.  (CDT)  in the semifinals with only the top four seeds left In the tournament.

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LSUS wins World Series opener, takes on No. 1 seed today

Pilots have come a long way, hoping for a short path forward