BEAUMONT – The Lamar University baseball team's ability to take advantage of mistakes along with its work with two outs at the plate led the Cardinals to a dominating 19-5 performance over Central Arkansas in a lightning-delayed Southland Conference game at Vincent-Beck Stadium Friday night.
 
Big Red (11-7, 2-2 Southland Conference) accounted for nine unearned runs taking advantage of three UCA (9-8, 3-1) errors. LU was also 10-of-16 with two outs on the night and 9-of-18 with runners in scoring position, and nine runner crossed the plate with two outs on the board. Lamar scored in every inning from the fourth on.
 
The Cardinals' 19 runs was the most scored in a game since they downed Sam Houston State 19-8  on April 12, 2014, and the 18 hits were the most all season and 11^th time they've hit double figures in the category.
 
"We really swung the bats good tonight," said head coach Jim Gilligan. "We finally started to put together at-bats when we needed it. I'm pleased with the adjustment we made on their starter."
 
LU already had a 3-2 leading at the outset of the sixth inning after Reid Russell crushed a pitch over the right center field wall in the fourth and back-to-back RBI singles in the fifth from Russell and Robin Adames in the sixth. It used two errors in the sixth inning to gain control of the contest and add insurance.
 
Back in the lineup for the first time since the North Dakota State series, Brendan Satran led off the sixth with a single to right and took second when Stijn van der Meer was hit by a pitch. Nash doubled home Satran on a ball laced to left center and McDowell reached on the first error of the frame, putting runners on first and with no outs.
 
Two batters later Robin Adames drew four balls and loaded the bags when Reid Russell hit a chopper to short that was underthrown to allow Nash to score. The bases still loaded, Jacoby Middleton was hit by a pitch and Chaneng Varela lined one that fell in right field.
 
Satran, back on the plate, laced one that rolled down the left field line and scored Russell and Middleton.  The final score of the frame was on a sacrifice fly to center that scored Varela but caught Satran trying to take an extra bag.
 
Bryndan Arredondo's double in the seventh scored Nash, reached on a single, and McDowell, walk, and Arredondo was later scored on a sacrifice fly from Russell. For the second-straight game, Russell notched a multi-RBI game with four and tied Adames, who popped a three-run shot over the left center wall his first career homer in the five-run eighth.
 
To open the scoring in the eighth frame, McDowell smoked an infield single that scored Stijn van der Meer, who reached on his second single of the day, and Nash scored when Logan Clark uncorked a wild pitch.
 
Will Hibbs (3-1) started the game shaky, but made an adjustment after the third inning and ended up sitting down seven-straight and 12 of 13. He worked seven inning and gave up two runs on six hits and three walks. The senior right-hander also struck out eight.
 
"Hibbs was underneath the baseball and pushing it to start the game," said Gilligan. "I told him to get his elbow up a little bit and he really had good stuff after that. He could've gone another inning, but there was no sense in doing it when I had guys who needed work.
 
"He made an adjustment in the middle of the ballgame that really made a difference," he said. "I was proud of that and he did a good job. He's one of the best in the conference."
 
Galen Andrews took over in the eighth and worked into the ninth, but was pulled for Josh Crain, who ended the game with two strikeouts and one fly out.
 
Every Cardinal in the starting lineup accounted for at least one hit, one run and one RBI in the 18-hit contest for LU. Adames and Russell each had multi-run, hit and RBI games; both had identical line of two runs, two hits and four RBI. Adames also drew a walk.
 
Matt Anderson scored for UCA in the second inning when a walk issued came back to get Hibbs. He walked Anderson and singles from Justin McCarty and Butch Rea send him across the plate. Logan Preston sent a sacrifice fly to right field in the third that scored Tyler Langley, who reached on a single, in the third.
 
The top three hitters in the Bear lineup, Langley, Chris Townsend and Brandon Montalvo, all had two hits apiece in the contest. Rea also chipped in two hits, and joined Preston with the team-lead of two runs driven in.
 
Connor Gilmore suffered the loss with three runs (one earned) given up with seven hits in 4.2 innings of work. He struck out seven, four-straight at one point, and walked five.
 
"They starter gave us fits in the first part of the game.  He had a good fastball, good slider, and tricky curveball," said Gilligan. "He gave us fits for a while but finally we started to figure it out.
 
The second game of the series is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon, and rally towels courtesy of AT&T will be handed out, while supplies last. Chartwells will also be sponsoring a $1 hot dog day, also while supplies last.