Andrew Bell
Staff Reporter | agb022@latech.edu
The Louisiana Tech baseball team aims to bounce back against Charlotte Friday, March 24 after a three-game skid against Southern Miss.
The Diamond ’Dogs struggled against the 16-4 Golden Eagles this past weekend, losing three straight games in their opening week of conference play. The losses drop the Bulldog’s overall record to 15-5. They will go into their second weekend of conference play ranked 10th in C-USA.
Despite the setback, Tech players and coaches remain optimistic about the season.
Senior pitcher Cameron Linck expressed his feelings about the weekend.
“Obviously we’re disappointed about this weekend, but we’re excited to get back out there and play,” Linck said. “We took some steps backward, but we took a lot of steps forward as well.”
Linck addressed the increased fan support in the past couple weeks, implying its importance to the team’s success.
“The support we’ve received even after taking a couple of losses this weekend is encouraging,” Linck said. “Stick with us because we know it’s frustrating to come out and lose three straight in the opening week of conference play, but we’re looking to rebound against a good Charlotte team and hopefully get a couple of good wins under our belt.”
Head coach Lane Burroughs had the Bulldogs off to a red-hot 13-1 start, including a big win over Arkansas and a three game sweep of Wichita State, before going 2-4 in the ’Dogs last six games.
He would go on to say that the team’s recent struggles could be attributed to the possible downplaying of their opponent (Southern Miss) after a huge win against previously ninth-ranked University of Louisiana-Lafayette.
“Nobody’s more disappointed than our coaching staff and players,” Burroughs said. “Southern Miss has got a good ball club and we probably underestimated how good they were. I hope Southern Miss is as good as they played this weekend, because if our league’s that good, it’s going to be a tough go.”
Burroughs said the game against UL-Lafayette could have had a lingering effect on the players.
“That (UL-Lafayette game) was very emotional,” Burroughs said. “We had a lot on the line. I don’t like to make excuses but it probably did take a little steam out of us. It was a cold and emotional game. We probably had a little hangover that Friday.”
The UL-Lafayette game came down to the wire, resulting in a walk-off RBI single by Chase Lunceford to put the Bulldogs on top for good, resulting in a 6-5 win over the Ragin’ Cajuns.
Burroughs said senior pitcher Nate Harris will be a key component in righting the wrongs of last weekend.
“If we have a chance to win on Friday or Saturday, Nate’s going to come in and close it out,” Burroughs said. “If we have a chance to win on Friday and not Saturday, then he’ll start on Sunday.”