Bucs Fall to LSU Eunice; Sets Up Winner Take All Game Saturday

TUSCALOOSA - LSU Eunice left hander Xavier Woods pitched into the eighth inning, leading the Bengals to a 4-2 win over Shelton State in game two of the NJCAA South District Championship on Friday night

LSU Eunice (54-4) forces a winner-take-all game three on Saturday at 1 p.m., with a trip to the NJCAA World Series on the line.

Woods allowed two runs in the first three innings before retiring the next eight Bucs hitters.

He cleared his biggest obstacle in the six inning with the Bengals clinging to a 3-2 lead.

Shelton State freshman Jackson Henderson led off the sixth inning with a single to left and freshman second baseman James Graphos followed with a double down the right field to put runners a second and third with no outs.

Sophomore catcher Lawson Neel took a strike on a bunt attempt and Henderson was picked off third first out. 

Woods (11-0) regrouped and struck Neel and sophomore right fielder Mason Steele to end threat. 

LSU Eunice pushed the lead to 4-2 in the eighth when Will Mabry tripled and scored on Tyson LeBlanc's sac fly. 

Shelton State (47-12) took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a sacrifice fly by freshman second baseman James Graphos.

LSU Eunice answered in the bottom of the first when Aiden Mouton reached on an error and scored on Ashton Fuselier's two-out double. 

The Bucs regained the lead 2-1 in the third inning on back-to-back singles by sophomore CF Pierce Dutton and freshman DH Jackson Henderson and another sac fly by Graphos. 

The Bengals tied the game 2-2 in the bottom of the inning with another unearned run, but the damage could have worse as they stranded two runners in scoring position.

LSU Eunice grabbed a 3-2 lead in the fifth after back-to-back hit batters loaded the bases with two outs and Tyler Mitchell's infield single put the Bengals ahead to stay.