Photo by Kevin Snyder/Maryland Terrapins. Photo courtesy of Maryland Athletics.
In Maryland baseball’s Friday matchup, one big inning hurt the Terps.
Saturday’s matchup was no different as Maryland surrendered five fourth-inning runs in a 9-1 loss to Louisiana at Russo Park in Lafayette, La. The loss is Maryland’s second of the weekend series.
Nic Morlang started on the mound for the Terps (3-3) on Saturday and pitched well through the first three innings. The freshman did most of his damage by inducing weak contact, striking out just one hitter but issuing only two hits.
But the fourth inning provided trouble for Morlang. The right-hander immediately struggled, issuing two runs on a pair of hits and a walk. Head coach Matt Swope called a mound meeting in response, but it did not work as Morlang surrendered two more hits and did not record an out.
Morlang was relieved by junior Andrew Koshy, who produced three outs and limited the damage to five runs. While Koshy surrendered just a run through 1.1 innings, the rest of Maryland’s bullpen did not fare much better.
The Terps’ bullpen was problematic in the series opener, yielding a four-run ninth inning allow Louisiana (4-2) to take Friday’s game. Saturday’s performance was a slight improvement as it issued four runs over six innings.
Maryland’s pitchers particularly struggled with the bottom of Louisiana’s lineup. The bottom four hitters in the Ragin’ Cajuns’ order accounted for five of their eight runs.
Maryland was unsuccessful in keeping seven-hitter Lee Amedee off the basepath. The senior notched him two hits and a walk on three at-bats, and produced three RBIs. Rigoberto Hernandez — batting eighth — contributed to the Terps’ struggles with a two-run home run in the seventh inning, giving Louisiana an 8-1 lead.
Offensively, the Terps struggled against Andrew Herrmann’s pitching. The right-hander held the Terps to just one hit through six innings before finally giving up a solo home run to Rylen Stockton in the seventh. Stockton’s home run was Maryland’s only run of the game.
Herrmann showcased excellent command, throwing 72 of his 116 pitches for strikes and recording 7 strikeouts over 6.1 innings. When Herrmann was relieved, Louisiana’s bullpen was equally successful.
Sawyer Pruitt was the lone relief pitcher for the Ragin’ Cajuns, throwing 2.2 shutout innings. The freshman’s stout performance, combined with continued run support in the seventh and eighth innings, quickly prevented any chance of a Maryland comeback.
Maryland will look to avoid being swept as it plays the final game of its weekend series on Sunday at 2 p.m.
