Eight-run fifth, strong bullpen lifts Demons over Lamar in series opener

NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State baseball team has won its share of traditional Friday night games with strong pitching and timely hitting.

The latter showed up for the Demons in a much more offensive-minded Southland Conference series opener against Lamar at Brown-Stroud Field. NSU used a blend of patience and power in a pivotal eight-run fifth inning as it rolled passed the Cardinals, 13-5, on a chilly night.

“That started with Bo Willis in a 1-2 count against a really good arm, fighting for a walk,” seventh-year head coach Bobby Barbier said. “Those walks, sometimes they’re given to you and sometimes they’re earned. We talk about having to earn those walks, and tonight he did.”

Before Willis battled back from that 1-2 count to draw the leadoff walk, Lamar left-hander Jacob Ellis (2-1) had flummoxed most of the Demon lineup for four innings, striking out eight and bouncing back from a two-run Willis home run in the second inning.

Willis’ battle unlocked a much more patient and effective Demon offense in the fifth.

A Jacob Farrell bunt single, a Jeffrey Elkins fielder’s choice and a Michael Dattalo single loaded the bases with one out before Ellis lost control of the strike zone. Having issued 11 walks in 38 innings entering Friday’s game, Ellis surrendered consecutive bases-loaded walks to Daunte Stuart and Gray Rowlett before being pulled from the game.

Reliever Patrick Hail entered and walked Broch Holmes to tie the game before falling behind Jake Haze 3-1. After running the count full, Haze dumped a two-run single into right-center field to give the Demons (17-12, 3-1) the lead for good.

“He was spraying it around a little bit,” said Haze, who added a leadoff triple in the seventh inning and drove in the Demons’ final run with a two-out single in the eighth. “I knew he was coming with the fastball later in the at-bat, and I just tried to put a good swing on one.”

One batter later, Gabe Colaianni capped the eight-run uprising with his fourth home run of the season, a three-run blast inside the right-field foul pole.

While the Demons extended the lead against the Lamar bullpen, the NSU relief corps blanked the Cardinals (17-12, 3-4) across the final 4 2-3 innings.

Right-hander Dawson Flowers (1-2) relieved NSU starter Cal Carver with two on and one out in the fifth and the Demons down three. A junior from Brookhaven, Mississippi, Flowers struck out the next two Lamar hitters to give NSU the momentum for its fifth-inning rally.

Flowers worked 2 2-3 scoreless innings, striking out a career-high five batters before turning things over to Ethan Francis, who spun two shutout innings with three strikeouts.

“Cal wasn’t as sharp as he usually is, and he’ll tell you that, but he stayed in there and battled for us,” Barbier said. “Dawson Flowers was just electric out of the bullpen. When you can get that kind of outing when it’s 5-2 in the fifth inning, and we take the lead and he stays in there was a fantastic job by him. When you play 27 innings in about 24 hours, it makes it hard on that bullpen. It was good to see those guys come in and be effective.”

Flowers’ first career win highlighted a midseason turnaround. After allowing four runs in his first five appearances, Flowers has surrendered only one run in his past six outings – a span of 12 2-3 innings.

“Staying within myself, using my emotions to help me instead of hurt me,” Flowers said of what has keyed his surge. “That’s been my thing – it either helps me or hurts me. Being able to contain those and executing pitch to pitch and not being caught up in the results of what happened before.”

Dattalo (3-for-5), Haze (3-for-4, 3 RBIs), Colaianni (2-for-5, 3 RBIs) and Willis (2-for-3, 3 RBIs) combined for 10 of the Demons’ 11 hits and nine of the 12 RBIs.

Ethan Ruiz (3-for-4, RBI), River Orsak (2-for-3, HR, 3 RBIs), and Josh Blankenship (2-for-3) all had multi-hit games for Lamar, which lost for the fifth time in its past six games.

The series concludes with a 2 p.m. Saturday doubleheader. Northwestern State will send right-handers Alex Makarewich (2-2, 5.46) and Drayton Brown (2-4, 5.26) to the mound while Lamar will start left-hander Hunter Hesseltine (1-1, 5.87) and right-hander Brooks Caple (2-0, 2.19).

Northwestern State 13, Lamar 5
LU 020 210 000 – 5 10 2
NSU 020 080 21x – 13 11 0
W – Dawson Flowers (1-2). L – Jacob Ellis (2-1). 2B – LU, Kevin Bermudez, Easton Culp, Josh Blankenship, Ethan Ruiz, River Orsak. NSU, Michael Dattalo. 3B—NSU, Jake Haze. HR – LU, Orsak (2). NSU, Gabe Colaianni (4), Bo Willis (2). Highlights: LU, Blankenship 2-3, 2B; Ruiz 3-4, 2B, RBI; Orsak 2-3, 2B, HR, 3 RBIs. NSU, Dattalo 3-5, 2B; Haze 3-4, 3B, 3 RBIs; Colaianni 2-5, HR, 3 RBIs; Willis 2-3, HR, 3 RBIs.
Records: Lamar 17-12, 3-4; Northwestern State 17-12, 3-1.