By Jason Pugh, Northwestern State Associate Athletic Director for External Relations; featured photo by Chris Reich, NSU Photographic Services
NATCHITOCHES – Three batters into its game against LSU-Alexandria, a shutout did not appear to be in the cards for the Northwestern State baseball team.
The first three Generals had reached base before sophomore right-hander Kevin Robinson recorded an out, and it appeared the veteran LSUA lineup was headed for a multi-run inning.
Two called third strikes and a fielder’s choice later, Robinson and the Demon pitching staff were off and running toward their fourth shutout of the season – a 3-0 victory at Brown-Stroud Field.
“The story of the ballgame is, any time you hang nine zeroes, your pitching staff does an unbelievable job,” second-year head coach Chris Bertrand said. “Kevin did a really good job of battling and wiggling out of some early trouble and then settling in and giving us (5 1-3) strong innings. The bullpen was absolutely fantastic in the way those guys not only threw strikes and collected outs but also in the way they attacked. That’s a mind-set I know (pitching coach) Dan (Hlad) has been working with those guys on.”
Robinson (6-1) not only survived the first inning, he thrived afterward, working a career-long 5 1-3 innings of shutout ball, striking out a career-high seven.
Starting with the three straight outs to end the first inning, Robinson retired 12 of the next 14 hitters – a span in which the only two Generals who reached did so on errors.
“I just had to settle in and do what I do, which is throw strikes and fill it up and let them beat themselves,” Robinson said. “I wasn’t filling it up at first, so I had to settle in and be myself. It was trusting in myself and trusting in the guys behind to make plays. It was big for me to settle back into the strike zone, be me and let them put the ball in play.”
Robinson scattered three hits in his 5 1-3 innings and did not allow a walk after issuing one to the second batter of the game.
While Robinson was keeping the Generals at bay, Northwestern’s offense took some time to solve LSUA pitcher Blaise Foote, who kept the Demons hitless for the first three innings.
Foote’s no-hit and shutout bid came to a halt on the fifth pitch of the fourth inning when Clay Jung drilled a 3-1 pitch out to left field for a tiebreaking solo home run.
Jung’s shot set the tone for the only scoring inning of the game.
“I saw it well the previous weekend, found some success and I’m trying to ride the wave,” said Jung, who homered for the second time in four games. “The first at-bat didn’t go my way, so I knew I needed to alter my plan of attack. It came through.”
After Jung homered, Foote hit JD DiPrima two batters later before the Demons fashioned a two-run, two-out rally that culminated with Balin Valentine’s two-run single to left.
Like Jung, Valentine had not fared well against Foote in his first two at-bats before driving the right-hander from the game.
“They’re stringing good at-bats together,” Bertrand said. “Adjustment-oriented is what we’re proud of in that case. His first two at-bats, he was way out in front. That’s a timing adjustment. That is a rhythm and tempo adjustment. Proud of that at-bat, when the team needs you the most, you put ego aside and you put 0-for-2 aside, and you’re able to make an adjustment and the adjustment delivers for the ball club.”
Once Robinson gave up a one-out single in the sixth, the Demons turned the ball over to right-hander Adam Alexis, who retired the only two batters he faced.
Austin Anderson, Jacob LeBlanc and Bryce Leonard – two sophomores and a freshman – each turned in a scoreless inning with Leonard inducing a double play to erase a leadoff infield single en route to his second save of the season.
“They were exceptional tonight,” Jung said of the pitching staff. “When you don’t have your best stuff as an offense and your pitchers pick you up like that, it’s incredible. It gives the whole lineup, the whole ball club, a sense of confidence.”
The Demons return to action Thursday when they host Lamar in the opener of a three-game series. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. at Brown-Stroud Field.
Northwestern State 3, LSU-Alexandria 0
LSUA 000 000 000 – 0 5 1
NSU 000 300 00x – 3 4 2
W – Kevin Robinson (6-1). L – Blaise Foote. S – Bryce Leonard (2). 2B – LSUA, Julien Kliebert. HR – NSU, Clay Jung (5).
Records: LSU-Alexandria 22-21; Northwestern State 22-16.
Note: LSU-Alexandria played the game as an exhibition.