No. 5 Central Arkansas Outlasts No. 4 Lamar
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SUGAR LAND, Texas – No. 5 Central Arkansas defeated No. 4 Lamar 3-0 in the final game of the first day of the 2016 Southland Conference Tournament at Constellation Field.
Bears’ freshman right-hander Cody Davenport improves to 6-2 on the season while sophomore right-hander Tyler Gray earned his first save this year.
Central Arkansas scored three runs in the top of the seventh inning to put the first runs on the board for either team.
Freshman first baseman Hunter Strong singled to score senior second baseman Matt Anderson for the first run of the ball game. Strong would score on a groundout and sophomore catcher Justin McCarty scored on a single to right center from senior center fielder Tyler Langley.
McCarty went 3-for-4 with one run to lead the Bear’s offense.
Central Arkansas will face No. 1 Sam Houston State Thursday at 7 p.m. while Lamar will take on No. 8 Stephen F. Austin Thursday at noon.
Central Arkansas Head Coach Allen Gum
On freshman right-hander Cody Davenport
“He’s a horse and he’s been that way most the year. You go back to last weekend and hit pitched in the rain. He’s a mudder. He’s a Friday night guys. He’s tough. It was just great pitching. Both guys were good and we were hoping to stay with the process. Hunter Strong, another freshman came up big with a hit up the middle that started everything.”
On seventh inning
“Let’s get somebody on and let’s bunt him over. Then we got a base hit up the middle, then another base hit up the middle. Ty Tice did a great job with that safety squeeze, just simple stuff. That’s what we’ve been working on, getting singles up the middle with runners in scoring position and it paid off tonight.
Central Arkansas Freshman Right-Hander Cody Davenport
On outing
“I feel great. I had a great team behind me, making some big plays. I was able to go out there and do my thing. I knew if I kept plugging we’d score. We scored three in the seventh and it felt great.”