JOURNAL SPORTS
LSU Shreveport opened Senior Weekend hitting milestones in a Friday doubleheader sweep of nationally-ranked University of Houston-Victoria at Pilot Field, capturing its fourth consecutive Red River Athletic Conference regular season championship and securing the longest win streak in NAIA baseball history.
Then things got tense Saturday in the series finale, but the No. 1-ranked Pilots (44-0, 26-0 RRAC) extended their winning streak to 44 games with a 2-0 triumph.
Friday’s first game allowed LSUA to top Point Park University’s previous NAIA win streak record of 41 and was the first of dominant 11-1 and 11-3 victories over the 15th-ranked Jaguars (34-13, 19-8). The sweep secured the RRAC crown.
In the opener, Isaac Rohde (11-0) remained perfect on the mound, tossing 6.2 innings while scattering five hits and allowing just one run.
The LSUS offense exploded behind home runs from Austin Gomm and Jackson Syring. Gomm drove in five runs, Syring added three RBIs, and Ian Montz chipped in with two. Josh Gibson doubled twice and added a stolen base.
Game 2 saw more of the same from the Pilots, who used another offensive surge to seal the sweep. Angel Rodriguez launched a home run and drove in four runs to lead the way.
The story of Saturday was pitching. The only scoring came in the bottom of the third inning. Ryan Davenport drove in the Pilots’ first run with a line drive up the middle, then Vantrel Reed grounded one through the middle to drive in the second run.
Cobe Reeves earned the win, improving to 9-0 as he tossed nearly seven shutout innings giving up just three hits while striking out four and walking three. UHV’s Julian Garcia went eight innings, giving up two earned runs on four hits and racking up 10 strikeouts, walking one.
The Pilots wrap up their regular season on the road next weekend at Jarvis Christian.