No. 14 Baseball drops series opener against No. 15 Carey Friday

WESTWEGO – The 14th-ranked Loyola University New Orleans baseball team is hosting a Top 15 matchup at Segnette Field this weekend, as the 15th-ranked William Carey Crusaders took Game 1 of the three-game series, 4-3, Friday night. 

Loyola (29-11, 13-6) and William Carey (28-13, 13-6) now both sit tied atop the Southern States Athletic Conference standings. The two teams will play a doubleheader starting at 2 p.m. on Saturday to close out the series. 
 

Before first pitch at 1:30 p.m., the 2025 SSAC tournament champions and NAIA World Series participants will receive their rings. 
 

Loyola played from behind from the start. The Crusaders struck first with a two-run first inning, then they added another in the third to take a 3-0 lead. The Pack got their first run in the bottom of the third, and it started when Reed Duthu was hit by a pitch with one out. Duthu eventually got to third two batters later, and a hard hit ball to the William Carey shortstop got the run home, 3-1. 
 

After WCU got that run back in the top of the fourth, 4-1, Loyola scored twice in the bottom half of the fifth to cut it to a one-run ballgame. John Lewis and Duthu got that rally started with back-to-back singles to start the frame, and that was followed up by a single from Jed Cambre to plate the first run, 4-2. Jaxon Buratt then laid down a sacrifice fly bunt that led to an error, bringing home another run, 4-3. The Wolf Pack, however, left the bases loaded to keep the Crusaders in the lead. 
 

After Loyola starter Brady Bowen gave up those three early runs, he settled down to pitch seven strong innings with seven strikeouts. He only gave up one hit after the third inning, as William Carey's fourth in the fourth scored thanks to an error. Cole Bordes had a strong two-inning outing, as he got the six outs on just 24 pitches without allowing a WCU batter to reach base. 
 

The Wolf Pack had a good opportunity to tie the game in the ninth inning, getting Garcia and Cambre on base with two outs. The Crusaders' starter was finally lifted after 126 pitches, but the WCU closer needed just four pitches to get the final out. 
 

Pack Facts

• Brady Bowen threw a career-high 112 pitches while allowing just three earned runs, striking out a season-high seven batters.

• With 244 career strikeouts, Bowen is now second in strikeouts in Loyola history, trailing only former teammate Stephen Still. 

• Jed Cambre led the game with three hits, going 3-for-5 at the plate with an RBI. 

• Reed Duthu went 2-for-3 with two runs scored.