Dion’s mound effort, loud bats power No. 7 McNeese past No. 2 UNO at Southland Tournament

First three hitters hit .500 with seven RBI and six runs

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HAMMOND, La. – Every McNeese batter recorded at least one hit as the squad exploded for 12 runs on 13 hits in a run-rule upset of No. 2 New Orleans on Wednesday evening in the 2021 Southland Conference Baseball Tournament, presented by GeoSurfaces.

The top three batters in the Cowboys’ lineup went 6-for-12 (.500) with seven RBI, six runs and a pair of home runs, both courtesy of senior right fielder Clayton Rasbeary.

Brett Whelton bangs one off the foul pole for yet another McNeese home run to push the lead to 1⃣2⃣❗️ #SouthlandStrong #GeauxPokes

🖥️ – https://t.co/eA1KEB9IqB pic.twitter.com/RhmMSOAYL2

— Southland Conference (@SouthlandSports) May 26, 2021

Sophomore center fielder Payton Harden recorded a pair of RBI singles and went 3-for-5 on the day, and Nate Fisbeck opened the scoring with a two-run triple in the opening frame.

The Cowboys got off to a strong start with a Harden single, a Rasbeary walk and a bases-clearing triple by Fisbeck, the Southland Conference leader in RBI (57), to put McNeese on the board. The Pokes tacked on a third thanks to a sac fly from Tre Obregon III.

The fourth inning started similarly to the first frame with three of the first four Cowboys hitters reaching base, scoring one on a wild pitch and another on a RBI single off the bat of Harden. McNeese piled on in the sixth as Harden picked up another run-scoring base knock, followed by a two-run blast to dead center by Rasbeary in the ensuing at-bat.

The Pokes put up another three-spot in the top of the eighth from home runs off the bats of Rasbeary and Brett Whelton.

While the offense was on full display, McNeese also got a dominant performance on the mound from starting pitcher Will Dion (9-4), who kept the Privateers hitless for five innings and finished with seven punchouts and just one hit over seven innings to earnt he win.

In case you had any doubts about why Will Dion was named all-defensive, here you go❗️ #SouthlandStrong #GeauxPokes

🖥️ – https://t.co/eA1KEB9IqB pic.twitter.com/shttqkv7GO

— Southland Conference (@SouthlandSports) May 26, 2021

Chris Turpin (9-3) was tagged with the loss after surrendering five runs on seven hits in four innings.

As a result of the late game Wednesday, McNeese will face No. 3 Southeastern Louisiana at 7 p.m. CT Thursday, while New Orleans will get No. 6 Northwestern State in an elimination game at noon.

2021 Southland Conference Baseball Tournament Presented by GeoSurfaces

Wednesday, May 26
Game 1 – No. 4 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 4, No. 5 Sam Houston 3
Game 2 – No. 1 Abilene Christian 7. No. 8 Lamar 1
Game 3 – No. 7 McNeese 12, No. 2 New Orleans 0 (8 innings)
Game 4 – No. 3 Southeastern Louisiana 2, No. 6 Northwestern State 1

Thursday, May 27
Game 5 – Sam Houston vs. Lamar, 9 a.m.
Game 6 – New Orleans vs. Northwestern State, 12 p.m.
Game 7 – Texas A&M-Corpus Christi vs. Abilene Christian, 4 p.m.
Game 8 – McNeese vs. Southeastern Louisiana, 7 p.m.

Friday, May 28
Game 9 – Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 7, 9 a.m.
Game 10 – Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 8, 12 p.m.
Game 11 – Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 9, 4 p.m.
Game 12 – Winner Game 8 vs. Winner 10, 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 29
Game 13 – Winner Game 11 vs. Loser Game 11 (Only necessary if Game 9 winner wins Game 11)
Game 14 – Winner Game 12 vs. Loser Game 12 (Only necessary if Game 10 winner wins Game 12)
Game 15 – Winner Game 13 vs. Winner Game 14, 6 p.m.
If only one of the two early games is necessary on Saturday, it will be played at 1 p.m.

TOURNAMENT TICKET INFORMATION
General Admission booklets, allowing admission to every game of the tournament, are $100 for adults and $50 for youths ages 3-12. Students presenting a valid ID from a current Southland Conference institution, and children under the age of three, will be admitted free of charge.

For each day of the baseball tournament, any remaining tickets will be sold for the morning session (first two games) or afternoon session (last two games). The ballpark will be cleared between sessions and re-entry is not allowed.

Session ticket prices are: $21 (box seats, as available), $17 (chairback seats, as available), $13 (general admission adults) and $9 (general admission youth – ages 3-12).

Tickets can be purchased online here or by contacting the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466. Office hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Fridays. The ticket booth at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field opens exactly one hour prior to the scheduled first pitch.

MOBILE TICKETING
Southeastern implemented mobile ticketing as the primary method for securing tickets during the 2020-21 school year. Tickets will be available via text message or email in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.

GAMEDAY PARKING
Single-day parking during the 2021 Southland Conference Baseball Tournament, presented by GeoSurfaces, is $5 for most vehicles. An All-Tournament parking pass is available for $20 for standard vehicles and $50 for RVs.