Cabrera and Duplantis hit two HRs in LSU’s 12-7 win over ULM
Both Daniel Cabrera and Antoine Duplantis hit a pair of home runs as LSU rallied from two three-run deficits to beat Louisiana-Monroe 12-7 in the season-opener for both teams at The Box on Friday night.
HOW THEY SCORED
ULM first inning – Ryan Humeniuk walked and stole second. Humeniuk scored on a double by Trent Tingelstad. Chad Bell hit a two-run homer over the left field bleachers. ULM 3, LSU 0
LSU first inning – Josh Smith reached third base on a dropped fly ball by centerfielder Jake Kaufman. Brandt Broussard was hit by a pitch. Broussard advanced to second when Duplantis grounded out to the first baseman. Smith and Broussard scored on a single by Cabrera. ULM 3, LSU 2
ULM third inning – With one out, Tingelstad hit a home run over the rightfield fence. After Bell struck out, Cameron Horton singled. Braedon Barrett reached on a dropped pop up by the shortstop Smith. Horton scored on a single by Andrew Beesley. ULM 5, LSU 2
LSU third inning – With one out, Broussard singled. After Duplantis flied out to the leftfielder, Cabrera hit a two-run homer over the rightfield fence. ULM 5, LSU 4
LSU sixth inning – Cabrera hit a leadoff home run over the leftfield fence. ULM 5, LSU 5
LSU seventh inning – Smith singled and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Broussard. Duplantis hit a two-run homer over the rightfield fence. LSU 7, ULM 5
ULM eighth inning – Carson Klepzig reached on an error by first baseman Drew Bianco. After Kaufman struck out, Nathan Miranda singled. Klepzig went to third and Miranda advanced to second on a wild pitch by Devin Fontenot. Klepzig and Miranda scored on a single by Humeniuk. ULM 7, LSU 7
LSU eighth inning – With two out, Brock Mathis reached on an error by the shortstop Miranda. Mathis moved to second on a wild pitch by Cole Gray. Hal Hughes walked and Mathis went to third on a wild pitch by Gray. Smith walked to load the bases. Mathis scored when the third baseman Bell misplayed Broussard’s ground ball. Duplantis hit a grand slam homer over the right field fence. LSU 12, ULM 7
LSU PLAYER OF THE GAME
Cabrera was responsible for getting the Tigers back in the game during the first six innings. Trailing 3-0, LSU cut its deficit to one run in the bottom of the first when Cabrera delivered a two-run single. After the Tigers fell behind 5-2 in the top of the third, Cabrera answered with a two-run homer in the bottom half of the inning. Cabrera then tied the score at 5-5 with a solo home run to lead off the sixth. Cabrera’s two home runs and five runs batted in were career-highs. Cabrera also made two excellent catches in leftfield. He caught a ball off the top of the wall off the bat of Horton in the seventh. One inning later, Cabrera made a diving catch on a line drive hit by Tingelstad. Cabrera then doubled Humeniuk off first base to end the inning.
KEY TEAM STATISTICS
Hits: ULM 10, LSU 10
Errors: LSU 2, ULM 3
Left on base: ULM 10, LSU 5
Runners in scoring position: LSU 3-for-7, ULM 3-for-8
Double plays: ULM 3, LSU 1
Stolen bases: ULM 1, LSU 1
Walks issued: ULM 2, LSU 4
Strikeouts recorded: LSU 9, ULM 7
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
LSU
Daniel Cabrera: 3-for-4, 2 runs scored, 5 RBIs, 2 HRs
Josh Smith: 2-for-4, 3 runs scored
Antoine Duplantis: 2-for-5, 2 runs scored, 6 RBIs, 2 HRs
Brandt Broussard: 1-for-3, 3 runs scored
Zack Hess: 3.2 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
Eric Walker: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K
ULM
Trent Tingelstad: 2-for-4, 2 runs scored, 2 RBIs, 1 2B, 1 HR
Ryan Humeniuk: 2-for-4, 1 run scored, 2 RBIs
Cameron Horton: 2-for-4, 1 run scored
Chad Bell: 1-for-5, 1 run scored, 2 RBIs, 1 HR
Jacob Barton: 5 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 3 K
NOTES
LSU’s starting batting order was Smith, SS; Broussard, 2B; Duplantis, RF; Cabrera, LF; Zach Watson, CF; Saul Garza, DH; Bianco, 1B; Mathis, C; Hughes, 3B. . .Three of the Tigers’ first four innings ended with double plays. Garza grounded into a 5-3 double play with runners on first and second in the first. Hughes grounded into a 5-4-3 double play to end the second. Mathis grounded into a 5-4-3 double play to end the fourth. . .Duplantis hit two home runs in a game for the first time in his career. Duplantis had hit two homers in each of his first three seasons with the Tigers. . .Duplantis and Cabrera drove in 11 of LSU’s 12 runs. The other run scored on an error. . .Bianco and Smith made the Tigers’ two errors. . .Hess struggled against the first four batters in the ULM lineup. Those four hitters reached base seven times in ten plate appearances. Tingelstad had a RBI double and a solo home run. Bell hit a two-run homer. Humeniuk drew a walk and singled. Horton had a single. . .Trent Vietmeier replaced Hess with two runners on base and two out in the fourth inning. Bell hit a line drive which was caught by Bianco. . .It was a solid outing for Walker in his first appearance since the 2017 season. He allowed just two of the nine batters he faced to reach base. With two runners on base in the fifth, Walker got Klepzig to ground out and Kaufman to strike out. Walker retired the last six batters he faced. . .In his LSU debut, Cole Henry retired two of the three batters he faced. . .Devin Fontenot was able to protect a two-run lead in the eighth. Bianco’s error set up the two-run inning. Fontenot threw a wild pitch which put the tying runs in scoring position and then allowed a two-run single by Humeniuk. Fontenot got credit for the victory when LSU scored five runs in the bottom of the eighth. . .Matthew Beck pitched the ninth. ULM loaded the bases on two walks and a hit batter. Beck struck out pinch-hitter Blake Buckman to end the game. . .The Tigers won their 18th straight season-opener. LSU’s last defeat in the first game of the season came against Kansas State in 2001. . .The paid attendance was 12,404 – the fourth largest in school history. The actual crowd was about 9,600.
UP NEXT
LSU will play Army at The Box on Saturday. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. Central. The Cadets (1-0) defeated Air Force 17-2 at The Box on Friday afternoon. Landon Marceaux will be the starting pitcher for the Tigers. The LSU-Army game will be available on the SEC Digital Network.