UPDATE: Saturday's game has been changed to a 4 p.m. start.

BEAUMONT, Texas – Kelly Meeuwsen's walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh inning lifted the Lamar University Cardinals to an 8-7 win over McNeese in the first game of a Southland Conference doubleheader on Friday. McNeese came back to claim a 5-1 win in the nightcap in front of a standing-room-only crowd of 588 fans, the largest attendance figure ever at the LU Softball Complex.
 
Meeuwsen rapped a two-run shot up the middle to cap an amazing comeback for the Cardinals (31-17 overall, 17-6 Southland), who scored five runs in the bottom of the seventh as LU rallied from a 5-0 deficit after the top of the first.
 
LU scored two in the bottom of the first and one in the second to cut the McNeese lead to 5-3. McNeese added one in the fourth and one in the top of the seventh to make it 7-3 before the Cards rallied for their first win over McNeese since softball returned to LU in 2013.
 
Brynn Baca opened the seventh with a single before Jenna Holland and Sable Hankins walked to load the bases. Ashley McDowell cleared the bases with a double to make it 7-6. The Cards loaded the bases again with   no outs. Reliever Jamie Allred struck out Maddy Myers before surrendering the game-winning hit to Meeuwsen.
 
Laura Napoli (7-7) picked up the win in relief for the Cardinals, allowing two hits and one run over three innings. The win was the 26^th of Napoli's career, pushing her past Shannon Millman for the all-time LU record.
 
McDowell had three hits and three RBIs for LU. Meeuwsen and Holland had two RBIs apiece.
 
Allred, the third McNeese pitcher used, took the loss, allowing two hits and two runs in 1/3 of an inning.
 
Allred (13-3) gained some redemption on the second game, tossing a three-hitter while walking four and striking out seven.
 
Sable Hankins hit her fifth home run of the season, a solo shot, to account for LU's only run.
 
McNeese (34-12, 19-4) scored three in the second and one run in the third and seventh inning.
 
Ciara Luna (15-5), who started both games for LU, took the loss in the nightcap, allowing eight hits and four runs in three innings. Napoli allowed three hits and one run over four innings.
 
Taylor Goree had two RBIs for McNeese.
 
The series concludes with a single game at 4 p.m. Saturday.