BEAUMONT – Trey Silvers put the Cardinals up 5-1 on a home run in the fourth inning, but Southeastern Louisiana responded with an eight-spot in the fifth and separated itself when the Lions downed the Lamar University baseball team 14-6 in Southland Conference action Friday night at Vincent-Beck Stadium.
 
Already up 2-1, Silvers crushed a three-run shot over the left center field wall that scored Bryndan Arredondo and Jacoby Middleton and extended the Lamar (31-13, 16-5 Southland Conference) lead, but Southeastern Louisiana (33-13, 19-3) used an odd start to the fifth inning to grab the lead and add some.
 
With the top of the order up, LU starter Will Hibbs (9-2) walked both Brennan Breaud and Daniel Midyett to open the frame. The nation's leading hitter in Jameson Fisher ripped a pitch at shortstop Stijn van der Meer that looked like a double play ball, but had the umpire dancing in front of him to get out of the way and shielded the Cardinal from the ball.  It ended up rolling into centerfield where Brendan Satran mishandled it. That play scored both runs.
 
Hibbs struck out the next batter, which could have ended the inning. Drew Avans kept the inning going with a single up the middle before Ryan Byers answered with his own three-run shot to put the Lions up 6-5. Sam Roberson was hit by a pitch with the bases now empty, and he took third on Jacob Seward's through the right side. At that point, SLU hadn't had a base hit that did not touch the infield turf at some point.
 
Derrick Mount drew a walk, from new pitcher Jimmy Johnson, to load the bases before Breaud rolled over a fielder's choice for the second out. Midyett stepped into the box and popped one out to central, but Satran misread the ball and was left charging for it and could not get it. Two scored on that play. Fisher back in the box again, doubled to right center to score Breaud and make it a 9-5 contest.
 
Big Red tried to respond in the following frame, but the Lions were able to halt it. Reid Russell, who accounted for two of LU's 15 hits, drew a one-out walk, and scored after back-to-back singles from Arredondo and Middleton.
 
The Cardinal offense was retried in order only once in the game, the eighth inning, and it picked up a base knock in every inning but the final two.
 
Russell was 2-of-4 in the game with a run scored and RBI; his RBI scored van der Meer on a single through the left side in the third inning to put the Cards up 2-1. Cutter McDowell and van der Meer were both 2-for-5 and Arredondo was 2-of-4. Silvers led the way with three hits in four at-bats, and recorded three RBI and one run- all on the long ball.
 
The Cardinals worked through seven pitchers in the contest. Hibbs lasted 4 1/3 innings with six earned runs on eight hits and four walks, all were the highest he's given up all year. Johnson only worked the fifth, and was relieved by Galen Andrews to start the sixth. Andrews pitched 2/3 of an inning and gave up two runs on two hits and a walk.
 
Brett Brown was a shining moment on the hill for LU. He took over for Andrews in the sixth and pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings. He gave up only one hit and walked two. Matt White pitched 2/3 of an inning, recorded both outs in two batters faced.
 
Connor Thomas left without retiring a Lion, and gave up two runs on two walks, and Brent Janak pitched 1/3 of an inning with a run allowed.
 
Kyle Cedotal (5-4) claimed the win in five innings of work. He gave up five earned runs with eight hits and two walks. Josh Green earned the first save of his season on four scoreless innings of relief.
 
Lamar will try and even the series at 2 p.m. Saturday. Right-handers Billy Love (5-2, 2.48 earned run average) and Mac Sceroler (8-2, 2.00) will toe the rubber.