Cane Cutters News

Cane Cutters drop two in heartbreaker at Baton Rouge

The Acadiana Cane Cutters (14-22) had an unsuccessful campaign against the previously-swept Baton Rouge Rougarou (17-17) at Pete Goldsby Field. They fell 8-4 in Saturday night’s rescheduled contest and 2-3 in extra innings on Sunday night.

Konnor Graham got the jump in game one, giving up a single hit while walking four. Bryce Calloway, Reid Snider, and Parker Gwyn drove in runs in the first, third and fourth innings respectively for early support. Calloway mashed two doubles in his first two at-bats, going 3-5 on the night overall. 

Baton Rouge’s offense surged in the bottom of the fifth, taking advantage of pitching slights from Graham. Reliever Jimmie Johnson walked the Rougarou’s first run home, while doubles from Joshua Shelly and Zion Stephens led the charge in the Rougarou putting up a dominant eight-spot. 

Acadiana scored one more run in the ninth thanks to a sacrifice fly from Christian Garcia, but not much more could be done in the 4-8 loss.

Johnson (0-1) took his first loss of the season while Baton Rouge’s Aidan Vosburg (1-0) picked up his first win in his Rougarou debut. Johnson saw three earned runs cross on three hits as well as the runners he inherited. 

Game two saw a neck-and-neck match, as is typical with the I-10 Battle of the Basin rivals. Starter Julian Garcia shoved for 6.2 innings to keep the Rougarou off the scoreboard until the sixth inning. In his outing, he gave up two earned runs on four hits while striking out six.

The Cane Cutters graced the board first, plating Conner O’Neal on a fielding error in the sixth. An RBI single from Justin Vosos in the bottom of the inning didn’t allow the lead to last very long. Shelly scored on a passed ball in the seventh to nudge the Rougarou ahead in the race. 

In a big moment, the previously 0-4 Hank Howard crushed a single into deep center, scoring Tanner Hornback to re-tie the contest 2-2 in the ninth inning. As the Rougarou were unable to respond offensively in the bottom of the inning, sending the game into extras for the third time in the last four faceoffs between the two clubs. 

Closer Bryce Calloway held Baton Rouge off in the tenth, but Cane Cutter bats were too cold to push the ghost runner home. In the bottom of the eleventh inning, Parker Coley scored Peyton Woods on a deep sacrifice fly to secure their weekend sweep. 

Calloway (1-2) took the loss while the Rougarou’s Jackson Low (1-1) evened his record. The Acadiana pitching staff allowed a combined three earned runs on six hits, issuing five walks and nine strikeouts. Even though Rougarou arms gave up seven knocks, Acadiana bats scored a single earned run and struck out 10 times. 

The Acadiana Cane Cutters will be back in action versus the Lake Charles Gumbeaux Gators in a four-game set starting on Tuesday. First pitch is set for 7:05 PM and all games can be streamed live on TCL TV. 

Fans can check for news and updates with the Cane Cutters on X (@CanecuttersBB), Instagram (@canecuttersbsb) and Facebook (@Acadiana Cane Cutters Baseball).

Maddy Branning, Cane Cutters Writer