Box Score

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Little Rock scored seven unanswered runs over the final 4 1/2 innings to defeat the University of South Alabama baseball team 7-3 in Friday's series opener at Gary Hogan Field.

USA (16-11, 5-2 SBC) held a 3-0 lead after plating a pair of runs in the top of the fifth inning, but Little Rock (13-13, 4-3 SBC) scored one in the fifth, four in the sixth and added two runs in the seventh inning. 

NEXT UP
South Alabama will return to action Saturday when it continues the series at Little Rock with a 6 p.m. first pitch from Gary Hogan Field.

GAME FACTS
- South Alabama took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth when Michael Sandle lifted a 2-2 pitch from Trojan right-hander Hayden Arnold over the left center field wall, which marked his third home run of the season.
- Hunter Stokes drew a one-out walk in the top of the fifth, and Santi Montiel followed with a double down the left field line. Carter Sanford later delivered a two-out, two-run double to center field to score Stokes and Montiel for a 3-0 Jaguar lead.
- Little Rock answered with a two-out RBI double down the right field line by Kobe Barnum to cut the USA lead to 3-1.
- The Trojans loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the sixth on a single by Nathan Lyons, a walk by Jorden Hussein and a single by Tyler Williams. John Michael Russ followed with a three-run triple to right field for a 4-3 lead. A throwing error on Stokes attempting to put out Russ at third sailed high of the bag and out of play to allow Russ to score for a 5-3 Trojan advantage.
- Little Rock loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the seventh on consecutive hit by pitches from Jag right-hander Miles Smith to Eldrige Figueroa and Lyons, and a one-out intentional walk to Williams. Russ then delivered a two-run single through the left side of the infield to score the final runs of the game.

NOTES
- Montiel extended his on-base streak to 10 games with a one-out double down the left field line in the top of the fifth inning. It also extended his hitting streak in Sun Belt games to five.
- Stokes extended his on-base streak to seven games with a one-out walk in the top of the fifth inning.
- Lee held Little Rock hitless until a two-out single in the bottom of the fifth by Miguel Soto.
- Sanford finished 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs, marking his second multiple-hit game this season.
- The Jaguars' error snapped a four-game errorless streak. It marked just the second South Alabama error in Sun Belt games this season.

QUOTES    
Head Coach Mark Calvi 
- On the loss: 
"Jeremy's first five innings were good. We did not pitch well enough in the leverage innings, guys who have done really well for us this year. Jeremy (Lee) and Miles (Smith) have been phenomenal for us; they've been really good. We didn't do enough with the bats early on. We didn't do a good enough job offensively tonight against (Hayden) Arnold, but I give him credit. He pitched well. We just didn't win the leverage innings. We were up, but had four free passes in the last couple of innings and then the ball hit to (Caleb) Balgaard and he slipped. There's not a lot you can do on that, that's just bad luck. We just did not play a complete game tonight. Little Rock played a complete game tonight and we did not. We have plenty to win this series, and it starts tomorrow."

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with USAJaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at Twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the Dugout Club - the baseball-specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. Members enjoy all games from inside the Stadium Club with climate control, private restrooms, private concessions and access to listen to the radio broadcast. All donations to the Dugout Club go directly to support the South Alabama baseball program. For more information on how you can join visit JaguarAthleticFund.com.