NEW ORLEANS ? The University of New Orleans baseball team hit five home runs in the first four innings, but the Privateer bullpen couldn't hold the lead as Louisiana-Monroe rallied for an 11-9 win on Friday at Maestri Field.
Matt Collins hit two home runs, including a crucial grand slam in the seventh inning, as the Warhawks (10-4, 3-1 Sun Belt Conference) won their fourth straight.
ULM's A.J. Siggers went 3-for-5, drove in two and scored three runs, while Matt Laird added three hits and an RBI. Siggers was a double shy of the cycle.
Jeff Lanning went 4-for-4 and hit two home runs to pace the Privateers (8-5, 1-2). T.J. Baxter broke out of a recent slump with two hits ? including a two-run home run.
The two teams combined for 33 hits, with ULM notching 17.
The Privateers were in control early and led 8-2 going into the sixth inning. But ULM got two runs off UNO starter Justin Garcia in the sixth and finally chased the senior, who went 5 1/3 innings in his season debut.
ULM continued the rally in the seventh with six runs, including a grand slam shot by Collins off UNO freshman Tyler Sanders (0-2) that tied the game at 8-8.
UNO head coach Tom Walter went to closer Ryan O'Shea two batters later, but the junior fared no better. After a wild pitch advanced ULM's Nick Wade to second, Matt Laird put the Warhawks up for good with an RBI single up the middle.
ULM added another run on Ben Soignier's RBI single and put up an insurance run in the ninth to make it 11-8. The Privateers got an RBI single from Josh Vander Hey in the bottom of the frame and had the potential tying run on first.
But Warhawk closer Derek Ward finished up three solid innings of relief by getting Baxter to ground into a fielder's choice. It was Ward's third save of the year.
Scott Stephen (1-0) worked 3 2/3 innings in relief to get the win. The right-hander gave up four hits and walked three but allowed just one run.
“We did a nice job early on but then they brought a reliever in that we should have handled and he basically shut us down,” Walter said. “With that said, the bullpen has to do a better job of getting out of innings. They simply have to throw better pitches.”
The two teams will continue the three-game set at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
