Daley Drives in Three to Help 'Jacks Defeat Southeastern Louisiana for First Time Since 2013

Sunday, March 31

Nacogdoches, Texas

1:00 p.m.

Stephen F. Austin

14-15, 0

Southeastern Louisiana

14-13, 0

Southeastern La.

Stephen F. Austin

Photo by: SFA Athletics

Daley Drives in Three to Help 'Jacks Defeat Southeastern Louisiana for First Time Since 2013

3/31/2019 5:20:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

SFA ends five-game skid and snaps Lions' eight-game winning streak

By: Charlie Hurley | Director of Athletic Media Relations

NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Faced with the task of slowing down the Southland's hottest squad in order to get back in the win column, the SFA baseball team proved it was up to that challenge Sunday afternoon in order to stay in the race for the program's first league title.

Nick Daley's two-run single in the fourth put the 'Jacks on top for good and the senior outfielder wound up driving in three total runs to help his squad put the brakes on a five-game losing skid with a 4-2 Southland Conference triumph over Southeastern Louisiana Sunday afternoon at Jaycees Field.

Entering Sunday's series finale on an eight-game winning streak overall and against SFA, the Lions were hard-pressed to get anything going against a strong group of SFA pitchers and the defense behind them. The 'Jacks turned a pair of double plays and stranded 11 Southeastern Louisiana runners on the base paths in order to pick up their first victory over the Lions since 2013.

SCORING SUMMARY
T3 | Southeastern Louisiana secured its only lead of the game in the top of the third. SFA starter Jacob Stobart drilled Preston Faulkner with a pitch to start the frame before Kyle Schmipf delivered a single and Nick Ray took a one-out walk to load the bases. Faulkner came around to score the Lions' first run on a wild pitch by Stobart before the junior recovered and ended the frame with consecutive fly ball outs.

B4 | After leaving five men on base through the first three innings, the 'Jacks were finally able to capitalize in the fourth to take the lead for good. Jake Georgiades started things by getting hit by the first pitch he saw from Southeastern Louisiana starter Will Warren with one out. That hit-by-pitch preceded a single by Jarrod Huber and a perfect bunt single by Carson Clowers to load the bags. Daley did the rest from there, sending a two-run single to the gap in left-center to put the 'Jacks ahead 2-1.

B6 | Consecutive singles by Sean Moore and Georgiades started SFA's sixth before Clowers took a pitch off the helmet from Warren to load the bases once again. Though an out was recorded on a ground ball by Daley to shortstop, Moore was able to come home and make matters 3-1 while Clowers broke up and chance of a double play with a great slide into second. Freshman Brandon Uhse capped SFA's four-run afternoon with a hard grounder to third that went down as an RBI single and pushed the 'Jacks' lead to 4-1.

T7 | The Lions cut the 'Jacks' lead to two with just one swing of Schimpf's bat. The first baseman launched a two-out solo homer to right-center to make matters 4-2. It was his second home run in as many games.

AT THE DISH
• While Daley wound up driving in 75-percent of the 'Jacks' runs, the bottom of SFA's order had a great deal of success at the dish as well. Clowers and Huber each went 2-for-3 at the plate with the former scoring one of SFA's four runs. Uhse also enjoyed a two-hit afternoon and drove in one.
• Each of the two times Georgiades reached base, the senior scored. He went 1-for-3 with a strikeout while playing a part in both of the double plays the 'Jacks turned on the day.
• The only offense the Lions mustered came from the first three hitters in their lineup. Brennan Breaud, Faulkner and Ray each had two hits for Southeastern Louisiana and finished a combined 6-for-13 at the plate.
• Aside from that trio, however, the Lions could get nothing else going against the 'Jacks' pitching. Southeastern Louisiana's four through nine hitters went 0-for-21 while drawing four of the team's five walks.
• SFA out-hit the Lions 9-6 and none of the three errors the 'Jacks committed came back to hurt them.

ON THE HILL
• Stobart (4-1) secured his team-leading fourth victory of the season by tossing five frames of four-hit, one-run baseball. The junior lefty did walk four, but also issued the 'Jacks' only three strikeouts of the afternoon.
• Jeremy Rodriguez kept the Lions bats at bay for the most part, tossing two frames in which the only damage done was Schimpf's long ball in the seventh.
• Jesus Gamez worked a scoreless eighth before running into trouble in the ninth by letting up a single and a walk with two outs. Senior lefty Tyler Starks came on and put the clamps on the Lions' comeback bid by getting pinch-hitter Cody Grosse to fly out to left.
• With that fly ball out, Starks received credit for his fourth save of the season, moving into a tie with Gamez and Rodriguez for the team lead. The save was Starks' 17th of his career, putting him two away from tying Jason West for the second-most in program history.
• Warren (2-3) allowed all four of the 'Jacks' runs through his 5 2/3-inning outing. He gave up eight of SFA's nine hits and also issued a pair of walks while striking out seven.

ON DECK
• The 'Jacks' put the finishing touches on their five-game home stand Wednesday evening at 6:30 p.m. when they step out of Southland Conference play to host Arkansas-Pine Bluff. SFA's showdown with the Golden Lions represents the start of a five-game stretch against non-conference foes for the 'Jacks.

CARDENAS COMMENTS
On Stobart's start that set the tone | "He did a good job of pitching in the zone, mixing up his pitches and controlling the running game. Southeastern Louisiana's the kind of team where if you give them extra opportunities and don't get that leadoff guy then they can put up some good numbers. More than anything, he gave us an opportunity for our defense to make plays behind him and that's something we haven't had in the last couple of games. For him to step up like that was huge for us.
On Daley's two-day stretch at the plate and his return to the top of the order | "Our offense is so much better with Nick at the top of the order. If he's good, we're going to be good. If he's on base wreaking havoc then that just gives our entire offense a spark. There will be holes all over the place in the infield because of his speed. He lets our batters see a lot of fastballs when he gets on base so as he goes, so does our offense.
On the bottom of SFA's order coming up at the plate and on defense | "You have to make sure you limit Southeastern Louisiana's opportunities whenever you play them. The double play we turned in the eighth with Jesus Gamez on the mound was the big turning point for us. At that point we felt like we could win the game.
On the stretch of five-straight non-conference games coming up | "The plan is to treat this stretch like a conference stretch and keep guys sharp. In spurts we'll put some guys in who we need to develop and get going in the right direction, too.

-SFA-