Calling All Alumni

DECEMBER 04, 2003

The 2003-2004 LSUS baseball teams is inviting all alumni to attend the first anual Pilot Baseball Alumni Weekend. Friday, February 6 a 7 innning baseball game will be played at Pilot Field beginning at 6:30. The Alunmni team will be coached by LSUS Athletic Director and first ever LSUS baseball head coach, Doug Robinson. Food and refreshments will be provided for those who attend. Saturday, February 8, the LSUS Pilots and Lady Pilots basketball teams will be at home in conference action versus the University of Mobile. We will be hosting a tailgate party in support for our basketball teams which will begin at 2:30 outside of the Health and Physical Education building.

All those alumni who attend are encouraged to stay for both games Saturday as the LSUS Athletics Department will be paying tribute at halftime of the men's game to the 2003 LSUS Baseball team who finished 3rd at the 2003 NAIA World Series.

Pilots land four on NAIA World Series All-Tournament Team

MAY 31, 2003

Tyson Arishenkoff, shortstop for the LSUS Pilots, won the Gold Glove Award for the 2003 NAIA World Series and, along with three teammates, was named to the All-Tournament Team. The Gold Glove Award goes to the most valuable defensive player in the tournament.

Pilots' ace Gene Stevens was the No. 1 pitcher on the All-Tournament Team. His battery mate, catcher Aaron McRae, and outfielder Cole Reynolds were also named to the elite squad.

McRae and second baseman Wesley Gray both received honorable mention recognition in NAIA All-American balloting.

Six of the 10 teams in the World Series had All-Tournament players. National Champion Lewis-Clark State College placed five players on the team. LSUS and City University, which was ranked No. 1 all season but lost two straight games to Lewis-Clark to finish second, placed four players each to the team. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Daytona Beach, Fla.), Indiana Tech University (Ft. Wayne) and Bellevue (Neb.) University each had one player named to the team.

Two Lewis-Clark players joined Arishenkoff as winners of individual awards. First baseman Emerson Frostad received the Charles Berry Hustle Award, and pitcher Mark Kaiser was name the tournament's most valuable player.

The Pilots, who made their first-ever appearance in the World Series, triumphantly returned to Shreveport Friday evening after finishing the tournament in Third Place. LSUS defeated Indiana Tech, Embry-Riddle and Spalding University (Louisville, Ky.) by combined scores of 33-9, but lost twice in the double-elimination competition to . For the Stars, it was Yogi Berra's "deja vu all over again." Two years in a row, the Oklahoma City squad sailed into the championship game undefeated. And, for the second straight year lost twice to Lewis-Clark to finish runner-up. Lewis- Clark hosted the tournament in Lewiston, Idaho, for the third consecutive year.

The Pilots earned their way to the World Series by winning the Region XIII tournament and the Atlantic South Super Regional.

Gulf Coast Athletic Conference rival William Carey College, playing host to the Region XIII tournament in Hattiesburg, Miss., defeated the Pilots 10-2 in the undefeated semi-final game. LSUS then won three in a row to win the regional championship. The final two games against William Carey were both one-run thrillers, the first 2-1 and the second 10-9 in 11 innings.

McRae and Gray were also named to the All-Region XIII Team, and head coach Rocke Musgraves was named Region XIII Coach of the Year.

The Pilots then played host to Embry-Riddle, then the No. 4-ranked team in the nation, in the Super Regional. LSUS took the first game 8-5, then dropped the second game 9-3. A coin toss made the Pilots the visiting team on their own field. They used the opportunity to jump on the Eagles for seven runs in the top of the first inning and never look back. The Pilots won the weather-shortened third game, 13-2, at the end of the sixth inning.

Musgraves loses six seniors from the record-setting 52-24 team: Arishenkoff, McRae, outfielder Ramsey Branch, infielder Miles Fletcher, pitcher Dustin Walden and catcher/infielder Miguel Hernandez.

LSUS Pilots finish in third place in NAIA World Series!

MAY 28, 2003

Nationally ranked No. 1, the Stars proved to be too much for the LSUS Pilots in the final elimination game of the 2003 NAIA World Series Wednesday night. The Pilots lost 12-2, and bowed out of the tournament in third place behind the Stars and Lewis-Clark State College, the host of the tournament in Lewiston, Idaho.

The visiting team Wednesday night, the Stars jumped on freshman pitcher Daniel Welch for three hits in the top of the first inning, including a three-run homer. Trailing 3-0 with no outs, Pilots Coach Rocke Musgraves went to the bullpen, calling on senior left-hander Dustin Walden, who ended the inning with no further damage. Musgraves would call on a total of six pitchers on the night.

Pilots catcher Aaron McRae opened the LSUS second with a home run, but the Pilots were unable to take advantage of two more hits. Oklahoma City scored one in the top of the third, another in the fourth and three in the fifth, increasing their cushion to 8-1. The Pilots added one run in the fifth to close to the margin to six. After quiet sixth and seventh innings, however, the Stars scored a run in the top of the eighth, and ripped a three-run homer in the ninth to make it a 12-2 game. The Pilots went down in order in the bottom of the ninth.

The Stars recorded 18 hits on the night, while the Pilots got to Oklahoma City pitching for 11 hits.

The Pilots (52-24), who made the school's first-ever NAIA World Series appearance, were beaten twice by the Stars, but recorded three impressive wins in their other games. In their opener against Indiana Tech (Ft. Wayne) Friday, the Pilots recorded the only 10-run "mercy rule" win of the tournament, downing the Warriors 11-1. The Pilots lost to the Stars 13-5 Saturday in their second game, then came back Monday to defeat Spalding University, of Louisville, Ky., 8-4. Tuesday, the Pilots trounced No. 2 seeded Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, of Daytona Beach, Fla., 14-4.

The Lewis-Clark Warriors will have to take two straight games from the Stars Thursday and Friday nights to repeat as national champions. The Stars have been No. 1 in the national NAIA rankings since the first poll of the season.

The Warriors faced exactly the same scenario in the 2002 World Series. Having been handed their single loss of the tournament by again top-ranked Oklahoma City, Lewis-Clark defeated the Stars twice to win the championship.

LSUS Pilots advance to Final Four in NAIA World Series

MAY 27, 2003

Junior pitcher Gene Stevens pitched his second complete game of the NAIA World Series Tuesday as the LSUS Pilots thrashed No. 2 seed Embry-Riddle Eagles, 14-4, and advanced to the Final Four in the tournament.

The Pilots will play again Wednesday against No. 1 seed Oklahoma City, with the time -- either 5:30 or 9:30 p.m. (CDT) -- to be determined by the tournament games committee. LSUS and Oklahoma City are joined in the final four by Bellevue (Neb.) and Lewis-Clark State College, who will play in the other Wednesday game. Oklahoma City and Lewis-Clark were to play the nightcap Tuesday.

The Pilots had a huge second inning, scoring eight runs off six hits and sending 13 batters to the plate. Designated hitter Thomas McManis, one of four players to step to the plate twice in the inning, struck out to start the second, but came back in his second appearance to blast a three-run homer over the right center field wall. First baseman Miguel Hernandez and shortstop Tyson Arishenkoff recorded 2 RBI and third baseman Ben Wingerter had the eighth RBI.

The Pilots spread their other six runs evenly over the remaining seven innings, scoring two runs in the fifth, eighth and ninth innings. Had it not been the ninth inning when LSUS scored its final two runs, the game would have ended under a second 10-run "mercy rule" win for the Pilots, who defeated Indiana Tech 11-1 in their first game of the tournament.

LSUS scored its 14 runs on 16 hits and had one fielding error. Embry-Riddle, of Daytona Beach, Fla., had 4 runs on 8 hits and one error. The win marked the third time in as many weeks that the Pilots defeated the Eagles, ranked No. 4 in the NAIA polls coming into the World Series. The Pilots won the best-of-three series from Embry-Riddle to gain the invitation to the NAIA's version of "The Show."

Play-by-Play (Courtesy of NAIA World Series)

LSUS starters: 25/lf Reynolds; 16/2b Gray; 41/ss Arishenkoff; 18/dh McManis; 33/c McRae; 24/rf Morben; 44/1b Hernandez; 14/3b Wingerter; 19/cf Branch; 15/p Stevens;

Embry-Riddle (FL) starters: 11/cf Croley; 5/ss D'Antonio; 17/dh Rojas; 37/lf Smith; 30/3b Clifford; 4/2b Lewis; 27/1b Cocolin; 23/rf Davis; 22/c Poole; 31/p Murphy;

LSUS 1st - Reynolds flied out to cf (1-0). Gray walked (3-1). Arishenkoff grounded into double play ss to 2b to 1b (0-0); Gray out on the play. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Embry-Riddle (FL) 1st - Croley singled through the left side (2-2). D'Antonio struck out, bunt (0-2). Rojas hit by pitch (0- 0); Croley advanced to second. Smith hit by pitch (1-2); Rojas advanced to second; Croley advanced to third. Clifford reached on a fielder's choice, RBI (0-0); Smith out at second ss to 2b; Rojas advanced to third; Croley scored. Clifford out at second c to 2b to 1b to ss, caught stealing; Rojas scored. 2 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

LSUS 2nd - McManis struck out (1-2). McRae walked (3-0). Gibbons pinch ran for McRae. Gibbons advanced to second on a wild pitch. Morben walked (3-1). Hernandez doubled down the lf line, 2 RBI (2-1); Morben scored; Gibbons scored. Wingerter singled up the middle, RBI (0-0); Hernandez scored. Branch popped up to 2b (0-0). Reynolds singled to right field (0-0); Wingerter. Gray walked (3-0); Reynolds advanced to second. Butler to p for Murphy. Arishenkoff singled, advanced to second on the throw, 2 RBI (0-1); Gray advanced to third; Reynolds scored; Wingerter scored. McManis homered to right center, 3 RBI (1-1); Arishenkoff scored; Gray scored. McRae to c for Gibbons. McRae singled to third base, bunt (0-0). Gibbons pinch ran for McRae. Gibbons out at first p to 1b, picked off. 8 runs, 6 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Embry-Riddle (FL) 2nd - McRae to c for Gibbons. Lewis singled to second base (1-2). Cocolin walked (3-0); Lewis advanced to second. Davis grounded out to p, SAC, bunt (0-0); Cocolin advanced to second; Lewis advanced to third. Poole singled through the left side, RBI (0-2); Cocolin advanced to third; Lewis scored. Greer pinch ran for Poole. Croley grounded into double play ss to 1b (1-0); Greer out on the play. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

LSUS 3rd - Murphy to c for Greer. Morben fouled out to 1b (0-0). Hernandez grounded out to 2b (0-1). Wingerter walked (3-1). Branch reached on a fielder's choice (2-0); Wingerter out at second ss to 2b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Embry-Riddle (FL) 3rd - D'Antonio grounded out to 2b (0-0). Rojas singled to right field (0-0). Smith grounded out to 2b (0-0); Rojas advanced to second. Clifford grounded out to ss (1-2). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

LSUS 4th - Reynolds singled to shortstop (2-1). Reynolds stole second. Gray singled to third base, bunt (2-1); Reynolds advanced to third. Arishenkoff reached on a fielder's choice (0-1); Gray out on the play; Reynolds out on double play 1b to c to 3b to ss. McManis grounded out to ss (1-1). 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Embry-Riddle (FL) 4th - Lewis struck out (3-2). Cocolin grounded out to 3b (2-2). Davis struck out looking (2-2). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

LSUS 5th - McRae grounded out to 1b unassisted (0-0). Morben reached on a fielding error by 3b (0-2). Hernandez reached on a fielder's choice (0-1); Morben out at second 2b to ss. Wingerter doubled down the rf line, RBI (0-0); Hernandez scored, unearned. Branch singled to left field, RBI (0-0); Wingerter scored, unearned. Branch stole second. Reynolds walked (3-1). Anderson to p for Butler. Gray struck out (0-2). 2 runs, 2 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.

Embry-Riddle (FL) 5th - Murphy lined out to 2b (2-1). Croley grounded out to 3b (2-1). D'Antonio singled through the left side (0-0). D'Antonio advanced to second on a wild pitch. Rojas walked (3-1). Smith reached on a fielding error by 2b (0- 1); Rojas advanced to third; D'Antonio scored, unearned. Clifford flied out to rf (0-0). 1 run, 1 hit, 1 error, 2 LOB.

LSUS 6th - Arishenkoff popped up to ss (0-1). McManis singled to left field (2-2). McRae flied out to rf (1-1). Morben grounded out to 3b (3-1). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Embry-Riddle (FL) 6th - Lewis grounded out to 3b (2-2). Cocolin grounded out to 2b (1-1). Davis singled to right center (0-1). Greer grounded out to 3b (2-1). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

LSUS 7th - Huff to 2b for Lewis. Poole to c for Murphy. Hernandez singled to shortstop (1-1). Wingerter out at first 1b to p (0-1); Hernandez advanced to second. Branch struck out (1-2). Hernandez out at second c to ss to 3b to 2b, picked off. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Embry-Riddle (FL) 7th - Croley doubled down the lf line (3-2). D'Antonio grounded out to ss (2-2). Rojas lined out to lf (3- 2). Smith flied out to lf (2-1). 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

LSUS 8th - Reynolds walked (3-0). Gray grounded out to 3b (1-1); Reynolds advanced to second. Arishenkoff singled through the right side, RBI (2-0); Reynolds scored. Arishenkoff stole second. McManis grounded out to 2b (0-1); Arishenkoff advanced to third. Arishenkoff scored on a wild pitch. McRae grounded out to 2b (1-0). 2 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Embry-Riddle (FL) 8th - Clifford grounded out to 2b (1-0). Huff grounded out to ss (2-0). Cocolin grounded out to ss (0- 0). 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

LSUS 9th - Blass to p for Anderson. Frye pinch hit for Morben. Frye singled to center field (1-1). Ketchum pinch hit for Hernandez. Ketchum grounded out to 1b unassisted (0-1); Frye advanced to second. Lewis pinch hit for Wingerter. Lewis singled to left field, advanced to second on the throw (2-1); Frye advanced to third. Cox pinch hit for Branch. Cox grounded out to 1b unassisted, RBI (2-1); Lewis advanced to third; Frye scored. Gibbons pinch hit for Reynolds. Gibbons doubled to left field, RBI (1-2); Lewis scored. Fletcher pinch hit for Gray. Fletcher grounded out to 2b (0-0). 2 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Embry Riddle FL 9th - Reynolds to lf for Gibbons. Fletcher to 2b. Dupree to c for McRae. Frye to rf. Hernandez to 1b for Ketchum. Wingerter to 3b for Lewis. Branch to cf for Cox. Davis flied out to lf (0-1). Goettsch pinch hit for Poole. Goettsch singled up the middle (0-1). Croley grounded into double play 2b to ss to 1b (1-0); Goettsch out on the play. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

LSUS Pilots advance in NAIA World Series with 8-4 win

MAY 26, 2003

LSUS Pitcher Levi Montoya went the full nine innings as the Pilots outscored the Spalding University (Louisville, Ky.) Pelicans 8-4 to advance in the losers' bracket of the NAIA World Series.

The Pilots spread 12 hits in scoring the eight runs, left 11 runners on base and played errorless ball. Montoya gave up nine hits in allowing the four runs.

The Pilots play again at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. They will take on the loser of tonight's game between Lewis-Clark State College, the World Series host and NAIA defending champion, and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, Fla., the No. 2 seed in the tournament. The Pilots beat Embry-Riddle in the Atlantic South Super Regional (5-2, 3- 9, 13-2) to advance to the World Series. The Super Regional was played in Shreveport.

LSUS fielding and a Spalding running mistake got Montoya out of a jam in the top of the first. With one out and runners at second and third, the Pelicans' designated hitter hit a pop foul down the left field line. Pilots left fielder Cole Reynolds made the catch, then spotted the runner halfway down the third-base line and rifled a throw to third baseman Ben Wingerter for the put-out.

Three Spalding errors in the bottom of the first opened the door for the Pilots to score three. LSUS added four in the third, and Spalding never mounted a serious threat after that.

LSUS drops second World Series game to nation's No. 1

MAY 25, 2003

The , No. 1 in the nation all season in the NAIA rankings, proved to be too much for the LSUS Pilots Saturday night and Sunday morning in the Pilots' second NAIA World Series game. The Stars' powerful lineup scored runs in every inning after a 1-hour-27-minute rain delay in the top of the third inning.

Well after 2 a.m. Sunday, the game wound its way through the top of the ninth, ending with the Stars taking a 13-5 win to the next round in the winners' bracket. But, not before the Pilots recorded a rare triple play in the bottom of the seventh. Left fielder Cole Reynolds caught a fly ball in foul territory with the bases loaded for the first out, threw to Ben Wingerter at third who relayed the ball to Miguel Hernandez to catch the runner coming back to first, and finally back to Wingerter to nail the runner caught off third base. LSUS played Oklahoma City scoreless until the rain delay, which came with two outs in the top of the third inning. The Stars scored twice in the bottom of the third, but the Pilots came right back to take the lead with three runs in the top of the fourth. The Stars answered with four in the bottom of the fourth to retake the lead for good. Pilots crossed the plate once in the fifth and sixth innings, but the Stars "one-upped" the Pilots in each frame, scoring 1, 3, 2 and 1 runs in the fifth through eighth innings.

The game gave Oklahoma City its 60th win of the season(60-6-1), while LSUS' record moved to 50-23.

The Pilots play Spaulding (Kentucky) University at 2 p.m. (CDT) Monday. Oklahoma City plays Bellvue (Nebraska) at 5:30 p.m. Monday.

'Mercy rule' invoked in seventh for Pilots' first World Series win

MAY 23, 2003

The LSUS Pilots pounded the Indiana Tech Warriors for 11 runs by the seventh inning of Pilots' first NAIA World Series appearance, invoking the 10-run "mercy rule" for the 11-1 win.

With third baseman Ben Wingerter on second base, center fielder Ramsey Branch nailed his first home run of the season in the bottom of the seventh to seal the victory for the Pilots.

LSUS plays No. 1 seed Oklahoma City, also No. 1 in the nation in the NAIA rankings, at 9:30 p.m. (CDT) Saturday.

The Pilots spotted Indiana Tech one run in the top of the first inning before peppering the Warriors for seven hits and as many runs in the bottom of the first. The Pilots added a run in the bottom of the second. Another run in the sixth, followed by Branch's two-run homer in the seventh was all it took to send the Pilots into the second round. The Pilots had a game- totals of 11 runs, 15 hits and 2 errors.

The win improved the Pilots' record to 50-22 on the season.

Line Score 123 456 789 R H E

Indiana Tech 100 000 0xx 1 4 1

LSUS 710 001 2xx 11 15 2

Play-by-Play (courtesy NAIA)

Indiana Tech starters: 2/ss Masden; 4/3b Turner; 9/2b Wilson; 31/dh Trujillo; 33/rf Henderson; 8/cf Foster; 5/1b Carper; 32/lf Lehner; 15/c Hosier; 3/p Knowling;

LSUS starters: 25/lf Reynolds; 16/2b Gray; 41/ss Arishenkoff; 18/dh McManis; 33/c McRae; 24/rf Morben; 44/1b Hernandez; 14/3b Wingerter; 19/cf Branch; 15/p Stevens; Indiana Tech 1st - Masden singled to center field. Turner reached on a throwing error by p, SAC, bunt; Masden advanced to third. Turner stole second. Wilson flied out to cf, SF, RBI; Masden scored, unearned. Trujillo grounded out to ss. Henderson struck out. 1 run, 1 hit, 1 error, 1 LOB.

LSUS 1st - Reynolds singled through the right side. Gray singled through the right side; Reynolds advanced to third. Arishenkoff singled, bunt, RBI; Gray advanced to second; Reynolds scored. McManis doubled down the lf line, 2 RBI; Arishenkoff scored; Gray scored. McManis advanced to third on a throwing error by p, failed pickoff attempt. McRae fouled out to 3b. Morben doubled down the rf line, RBI; McManis scored. Hernandez reached on a fielder's choice; Morben out at second 3b to 2b. Wingerter singled through the left side; Hernandez advanced to second. Branch hit by pitch; Wingerter advanced to second; Hernandez advanced to third. Reynolds doubled to left center, 3 RBI; Branch scored; Wingerter scored; Hernandez scored. Brew to p for Knowling. Gray grounded out to 3b. 7 runs, 7 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB.

Indiana Tech 2nd - Foster struck out looking. Carper grounded out to 3b. Lehner grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

LSUS 2nd - Arishenkoff flied out to rf. McManis doubled to right center. McRae flied out to lf. Morben singled to center field, RBI; McManis scored. Hernandez singled through the right side; Morben advanced to second. Wingerter flied out to cf. 1 run, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.

Indiana Tech 3rd - Hosier grounded out to 2b. Masden grounded out to 3b. Turner lined out to lf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

LSUS 3rd - Branch grounded out to ss. Reynolds flied out to lf. Gray hit by pitch. Gray advanced to second on a balk. Arishenkoff fouled out to 3b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Indiana Tech 4th - Wilson grounded out to 3b. Trujillo grounded out to ss. Henderson singled to right field. Foster grounded out to p. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

LSUS 4th - McManis flied out to rf. McRae grounded out to 2b. Morben popped up to 1b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

Indiana Tech 5th - Carper flied out to rf. Lehner reached on a throwing error by ss. Hosier hit by pitch; Lehner advanced to second. David pinch ran for Hosier. Masden flied out to lf to left center. Turner hit by pitch; David advanced to second; Lehner advanced to third. Wilson flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 1 error, 3 LOB.

LSUS 5th - Hosier to c for David. Hernandez grounded out to p. Wingerter grounded out to ss. Branch hit by pitch. Reynolds flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Indiana Tech 6th - Trujillo singled to shortstop. Henderson flied out to cf. Foster grounded out to 3b; Trujillo advanced to second. Carper struck out, out at first c to 1b. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. LSUS 6th - Langham to p for Brew. Gray doubled up the middle. Arishenkoff singled, out at first rf to 1b; Gray advanced to third, scored on the throw. McManis struck out. McRae tripled to right field. Gibbons pinch ran for McRae. Morben grounded out to ss. 1 run, 3 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

Indiana Tech 7th - McRae to c for Gibbons. Lehner grounded out to ss. Hosier singled up the middle. David pinch ran for Hosier. Masden flied out to lf. Turner flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.

LSUS 7th - Hosier to c for David. Sebastian to lf for Foster. Lehner to cf. Hernandez grounded out to ss. Wingerter doubled to center field. Branch homered to left field, 2 RBI; Wingerter scored. 2 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.

LSUS Pilots open NAIA World Series play Friday

MAY 21, 2003

The LSUS Pilots begin play in the NAIA World Series at 2 p.m. (CDT) Friday (May 23) in Lewiston, Idaho, against the Indiana Tech Warriors. The Pilots are the No. 8 seed in the NAIA's national baseball tournament and the Warriors are the No. 9 seed.

The Pilots take a 49-22 record to the game, while Indiana Tech sports a 40-18 record.

The Pilots earned their berth in the tournament by winning the Region 13 tournament and taking the best-of-three Super Regional series from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University last Thursday and Friday at Pilots Field.

The Pilots won Thursday's series opener 5-2. Weather prompted a possible Friday double-header, made necessary by a 9-3 Embry-Riddle win in the first game. The Pilots stormed back in the deciding game, putting nine runs on the board before Embry-Riddle scored, and winning the rain-shortened six-inning game 13-2. Embry-Riddle, which was ranked No. 4 by the NAIA, received an at-large berth in the tournament, and is seeded No. 2.

The winner of the LSUS-Indiana Tech game will take on No. 1 Oklahoma City at 9:30 p.m. (CDT) Saturday. The loser plays at 11 a.m. (CDT) Saturday against the loser of the Biloa (California)-Bellevue (Nebraska) game. The NAIA World Series will conclude either Thursday (May 29) or Friday (May 30), depending on the outcome of games in the double- elimination format.

You Can't Bottle Heart: Pilots win Super Regional over Embry Riddle By Nancy Cook

MAY 17, 2003

It was The Natural, Angels in the Outfield and Field of Dreamsall rolled into one when the LSUS Pilots won the Atlantic South Super Regional on May 16th and punched their ticket to the NAIA World Series. Robert Redford couldn't have produced a movie as good as the games, played at Pilots Field on the LSUS campus, because you can't bottle heart and put in in a movie. Too big to fit on the screen.

When it came to getting to the NAIA World Series, the LSUS Pilots were a lot like commercial Pilots trying to fly just about anywhere from Shreveport -- there was no direct route. But the team didn't care. Didn't matter to them if it was pretty. They just wanted to get there. Any way they could.

That may be what made it so sweet when, after winning the first game of the Atlantic South Super Regional three-game series against the No. 4-ranked Embry Riddle Eagles and dropping the second, they came back slamming in the third game to win the tournament and a trip to the NAIA World Series in Lewiston, Idaho.

After a 5-2 victory in the first game of the series, Pilots fans were pumped up, and the team was on a natural high going into Friday's second game. But, before the night was over, the fans behin the fence around Pilots Field could have been poster kids for the ABC Wide World of Sports motto, "The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat," though not necessarily in that order.

Though the three-game series was slated to be played May 15-17, Mother Nature had different plans for the weekend -- or anyway the National Weather Service thought she did -- making it necessary to play the second and "if-necessary" third game in a double header beginning at 3 p.m. on Friday, May 16.

Though the weather forecast was somewhat akin to what blew Dorothy right out of Kansas, the sun was shining brightly when the Pilots took the field for the first pitch of the first game. After soundly beating the Eagles Thursday, the Pilots' and their fans' dispositions were as sunny as the sky. Neither lasted long.

Before the Pilots got on the scoreboard with three runs in the seventh inning, Embry-Riddle had six runs. In the eighth the Eagles added three more, for a final score of 9-3.

The agony of defeat.

In the beginning, the crowd was festive, animated. Professors with Ph. D.s sat on the bleachers with students on academic probation, feeling the kinship, the common ground, only a winning baseball team can bring. Parents, grandparents , and yes -- because it was college -- wives, lined the fence in the plastic lawn chairs on the grass in front of the stands, giving the atmosphere the festive and familiar feeling of a Dixie or Little League game.

But, as Embry-Riddle began hitting and LSUS didn't answer, the crowd became less festive, quieter. The breeze picked up, and the clouds began moving in from the north.

By the end of the first game, tailgate parties were held in the parking lot just north of the baseball field. But between the increasingly threatening sky and the devastating loss, the atmosphere took on the qualities of a wake, with people trying to bolster each other's spirits, with half-hearted smiles and lukewarm "it's-not-over-til-it's-over" platitudes.

Soon -- too soon, it seemed -- it was time to go back and play game No. 2 of the doubleheader and try to beat both the Embry-Riddle Eagles and the storm that was swooping down from the north. The game began quietly, the crowd was subdued. Fans seemed to have no pulse, no blood pressure. Just play the game and get home before the rain starts. Get it over with.

Being NAIA Region XIII Champions is something to be proud of. Finishing the season with an overall record of 47-21 before this series started is a darn good record for any four-year school -- not to mention having its head coach named Coach of the Year in the region.

We lose. Oh well. There's always next year.

But somebody forgot to tell the team to get it over with.

So, the Pilots issued a wake-up call to their opponents with two runs in the first inning. Though the Eagles didn't seem to quite get it yet, the runs definitely got the crowd's attention -- a good thing since the Pilots were just warming up.

By the third inning, the LSUS team was a hitting machine, adding six more runs, including a homer and a three-run double.

The game went into the fifth inning with the wind picking up, the sky ominous, and LSUS officials on the telephone with the National Weather Service tracking a storm that reportedly carried up to 80-mile-an-hour winds and glof-ball-sized hail in Plain Dealing moving south.

LSUS Chancellor Vince Marsala and vice chancellor Gloria Raines were glued to the fence near the dugout, watching the game, watching the weather, while athletic director Doug Robinson paced behind them.

TV sports guys' eyes nervously darted between the game and the sky, wondering if any moment they would have to throw their bodies over their cameras for protection. It was time to play fast and get the game over with.

The Pilots had won. They were going to the World Series. With only two runs on the scoreboard, there was no way Embry Riddle could come back. Stick a fork in 'em, they were done.

But again, somebody forgot to tell the Pilots. And they were just getting warmed up. Regardless of the weather, regardless of rain delays, regardless of possibly having to come back another day and play out the game using the score from the last completed inning, they were a finely-tuned hitting machine.

And you can't just turn off a hitting machine. Which is why they managed to score five more runs in the fifth inning, two of which came from bases-loaded walks, and another from a hit batter.

The game made it to the seventh inning before it shut down just in time for the Pilots to roll plastic over the diamond moments before the downpour came down in sheets. The score was 13-2 in favor of the Pilots. The boys didn't get to celebrate on the mound. They didn't get to carry their coach off the field on their shoulders. In fact, they were in the basketball gym, known as The Dock, to get out of the storm when they learned from their head coach that the NAIA had decided the game be final and send the Pilots to the World Series for the first time in school history!

And that's about as good as it gets.

LSUS to host Embry-Riddle in NAIA Super Regional

MAY 12, 2003

The LSUS Pilots, who won the NAIA Region XIII baseball championship with two one-run wins Saturday, will host the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Eagles in the best of three Atlantic South Super Regional series beginning Thursday.

Games begin at 6:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday at the LSUS baseball field on the university's campus. Saturday's game, if necessary, will begin at 2 p.m. General admission tickets are $5. LSUS students and children 4 years old and younger will be admitted free to all games.

The winner of the Super Regional series advances to the NAIA World Series May 23-30 at Harris Field on the campus of Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho.

The Daytona Beach-based Embry-Riddle Eagles, sporting a 46-12 season record, won the Region XIV championship by defeating Warner Southern twice on Saturday, 4-3 and 10-6, in the double-elimination tournament. Both schools are members of the Florida .

LSUS, 47-21, won the Region XIII title by taking two games from Gulf Coast Athletic Conference foe and tournament host William Carey College. The Pilots won the first game 2-1 and the second 10-9 in 11 innings. In the second game, the Pilots built an eight-run lead, only to see the Crusaders whittle it away by taking advantage of an exhausted pitching staff. By the end of the series, the Pilots had played four games in two days - three against William Carey - and gave up a total of 25 runs. William Carey played only three games Friday and Saturday, all against LSUS, giving up 14 runs.

At the end of the regional tournament, Pilots Head Coach Rocke Musgraves was named NAIA Region XIII Coach of the Year. The Pilots' skipper was recognized for leading his team to a school-record numbers of wins for a season, bounding past the previous record of 36-28 set last year. He was also recognized for taking the Pilots to their first-ever NAIA regional tournament, and for winning the tournament.

LSUS Pilots win NAIA Region XIII Baseball Tournament

MAY 11, 2003

The LSUS Pilots took two one-run games from William Carey College Saturday to win the NAIA Region XIII Baseball Tournament. The Pilots move to the Super Regional Tournament this week. Their first opponent will be the Embry-Riddle (Daytona Beach, Fla.) Eagles, who won the Region XIV tournament. The day, time and location of that game have yet to be announced. The Pilots rebounded from a 10-2 loss to William Carey College in the winners' bracket semi-final game Friday afternoon, sending them to the losers' bracket semi-final game against , a Montgomery, Ala., private school. The Pilots defeated Faulkner, 8-5, to advance to the championship series Saturday against Gulf Coast Athletic Conference foe William Carey. LSUS and William Carey each won two and lost one in their regular-season meetings.

The Pilots took a pitcher's duel in the first championship game of the double-elimination tournament, besting the Crusaders, 2-1. The second championship game was a slugfest that took 11 innings to decide, with the Pilots coming out on top 10-9. The tournament was played at William Carey's H. R. Morgan Field.

The Pilots take a 47-21 overall record to their first Super Regional game.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University has two campuses, Daytona Beach and Prescott, Ariz., and bills itself as "the world's leader in aviation and aerospace higher education." The Eagles play in the Florida Sun Conference, which they won with a 17-4 conference record, and bring a 46-12 overall record to the Super Regional game against the Pilots. Embry-Riddle, the No. 1 seed in the Region XIV tournament, defeated Warner Southern College, 10-6, for the regional championship. The Warner Southern Runnin' Royals, of Lake Wales, Fla., also play in the Florida Sun Conference.

Pilots hold off Mobile, 8-6, for NAIA win

MAY 08, 2003

The LSUS Pilots held off a late charge by the University of Mobile to stay undefeated in the NAIA Region XIII tournament at Hattiesburg, Miss.

The 8-6 win over one of two Gulf Coast Athletic Conference foes in the regional tourney sends the Pilots into the winner's bracket semi-final game at noon Friday against William Carey College, the other GCAC competitor and the tournament host. A win in the noon game will propel the Pilots to the regional championship game at 2 p.m. Saturday, while a loss would send them to the losers' bracket semi-final game at 6 p.m. Friday.

Tony Ferguson, a 6-4 sophomore, pitched seven innings Thursday night and was credited with the win, improving his season record to 9-5. Daniel Welch, a 6-4 freshman, recorded his second save of the season. The Pilots spread five hits among five players, while Mobile committed four errors.

Pilots head coach Rocke Musgraves was undecided late Thursday night on a starter for Friday noon's game. He has both Brandon Ezernack (8-5), a 6-2 freshman, and Levi Montoya (2-2), a 5-8 junior, ready to take the mound.

The Pilots have a couple of scores to settle with William Carey when they take the field Friday. William Carey won the GCAC regular season championship by a half-game over the Pilots. The half-game difference was the result of the rainout of a William Carey-Loyola University game in mid-April. Because the rainout was not made up, William Carey finished the season with a 20-9 conference record, while LSUS played a full 30-game conference schedule with a record of 20-10. March 21-22, William Carey won two of three games from the Pilots in Hattiesburg by a net total of one run. Feb. 7-8, William Carey came to Shreveport and dropped two of three to the Pilots. The two teams did not meet in the GCAC tournament, which was also hosted by William Carey.

Line Score

LSUS 004 310 000 - 8 5 0

Mobile 200 002 110 - 6 9 4

WP Ferguson (9-5), Save Welch (2) LSUS Pilots win first-ever NAIA tournament game

MAY 07, 2003

The LSUS Pilots, playing in their first-ever NAIA baseball tournament game, defeated North Georgia, 10-4. Senior pitcher Gene Stevens recorded his 11th win of the season as the Pilots improved their all-time school high season record to 43- 20.

The Pilots return to the diamond in Hattiesburg, Miss., tomorrow (Thursday) at 6 p.m. against another Gulf Coast Athletic Conference squad, the University of Mobile, which also won its first-round game. Mobile will likely seek revenge against the Pilots, who traveled to Mobile the last weekend of the conference season (April 25-26) and swept a three-game series. That sweep cost the then-conference leading Rams the conference championship, moving them to third place behind LSUS, which finished a half-game behind conference champ William Carey College.

All-Conference shortstop Tyson Arishenkoff led Pilot hitters, going 3-4 with two doubles. Three other Pilots, including All- Conference utility infielder Wesley Gray (2-4), contributed two hits. Ben Wingerter was 2-5 with a double, and Ramsey Branch hit 2-4.

Tony Ferguson, a 6-4 sophomore, is scheduled to pitch tomorrow against Mobile. Ferguson is 8-5 in 19 appearances this season, with a 4.28 ERA.

Line Score LSUS.... 220 301 110 10 14 0 N. Ga.... ……………000 022 000 4 8 2 WP Stevens (11-5) LP Blackman. 2B Wingerter (2), Arishenkoff.

LSUS to make first-ever appearance in NAIA championship

MAY 06, 2003 The LSUS Pilots will face North Georgia College at 3.p.m. Wednesday in its first-ever appearance in the NAIA baseball championship tournament. The game will be played in Hattiesburg, Miss.

The Pilots' 42-20 record is a school-high for season wins, and is currently the best college baseball record in Louisiana. Four members of the record-setting and pace-setting LSUS team were named to the All-Conference team of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference. Aaron McRae, a 6-1 senior, was named one of two all-conference catchers. Shortstop Tyson Arishenkoff, a 6-2 senior; utility infielder Wesley Gray, a 5-11 junior, and pitcher Gene Stevens, a 6-0 junior, were also named to the All-Conference team. This is Gray's second consecutive selection to the GCAC squad.

LSUS received the automatic season conference champion bid to the NAIA Region XIII tournament because the Pilots finished the season second, a half-game behind William Carey College, which also won the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference tournament. William Carey is the No. 1 seed in the regional tournament, LSUS is No. 4 and the University of Mobile, also of the GCAC, is the No. 5 seed.

LSUS' first-round opponent, North Georgia, was the Georgia, Alabama, Carolina Conference regular season champion. Two other GACC, Faulkner and Shorter, round out the regional tournament's field of six teams. Faulkner plays Mobile at noon Wednesday and William Carey plays Shorter at 6 p.m.

The GCAC and GACC are the only two conferences in NAIA Region XIII, which also includes a number of independent teams.