Photo by Tyler Lamb / MT Athletics Communications
The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (23-30, 9-19) took home game one of their series with Louisiana Tech (35-17, 16-12), winning 6-3.
While the Bulldogs took an early 2-0 lead, a strong performance by starting pitcher Carson Lester allowed the Blue Raiders’ offense to take the lead, ultimately earning a win.
Career day for Lester despite rough start
Starting off the game by hitting a batter and giving up a two-run home run to the next batter is usually not a good sign; Lester, however, made the best of the situation striking out the next batter and holding the Bulldog offense in check for the rest of the game.
Lester stayed on the mound for six more innings, only allowing three hits in that time frame. This performance was good enough to set a new career-high in strikeouts (7) and innings pitched (7).
MTSU offense strikes early and often
After giving up two runs in the first inning, MTSU answered back with a run of their own in the form of a Ryan Kemp-RBI that scored senior shortstop Riley Delgado.
The Blue Raiders took the lead in the second on a two-run home run by Blake Benefield. Kemp drove in his second run of the game later in the inning, scoring Riley Delgado again for a 4-2 Blue Raider lead.
Aaron Aucker-double scored MTSU’s last two runs of the game in the fourth inning, making the score 6-2 in favor of the Blue Raiders. The lead proved to be too much for Louisiana Tech, who didn’t tack on another run until the ninth inning and the Blue Raiders opened their final series of the year with a 6-3 victory.
What’s next?
The Blue Raiders will look to finish their season strong against Louisiana Tech this weekend. Game time on Friday is set for 6 p.m., while Saturday’s contest will start at 1 p.m.
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