Cane Cutters News

Cane Cutters split with Gumbeaux Gators, shine in second shutout of the year

The Acadiana Cane Cutters (11-17) managed to snap a daunting losing streak with a dominant 5-0 victory over the Lake Charles Gumbeaux Gators (16-11) on Saturday night. Though they fell 2-3 in Sunday night’s contest, they remain tied with the Baton Rouge Rougarou (13-13) with a 1-3 second half record.

No bigger moment could come for Konnor Graham in game one: his 8.1 innings of work stunned the Lake Charles battery, holding them to just two hits while striking out six. He, along with ninth-inning reliever Caleb Muffoletto, helped lead Acadiana to just their second shutout victory this year.

Cane Cutter bats came through with the insurance. Middle infielders Tanner Sever and Tanner Hornback recorded two hits on the night each. Hornback, Blaise Blancher, and Bennett Mittelsteadt worked to drive in three combined runs, as Acadiana worked to draw eight walks on the night to pose a constant threat.

Gator Colby Morse (0-1), a usually dominant starter on the mound, drew his first loss of the season. He gave up four hits and walked five in four innings pitched.

Game two was a much closer match. Hank Howard scored Dylan Biddick on an RBI double in the first inning to put the Cutters on the board first. The same duo worked to plate the second run of the night in the third inning.

Fabacher Field saw six different pitchers grace the mound for Acadiana on Sunday night. Starter Caleb Menard threw two innings, followed by Will Taylor and Julian Garcia throwing one each. Jake Guidry, Muffoletto, and Kade Linn saw out the remaining five innings.

It was in the sixth inning that the Gumbeaux Gators managed to score their first runs of the entire series: Guidry, who entered in the fifth, gave up back-to-back singles to Lane Lusk and Bryce Jones who later scored on a two-RBI ground-rule double by Austin O’Malley. Lake Charles took the lead when Carson Hepworth scored their third run on a fielder’s choice.

Acadiana left seven runners on base, unable to do anything against reliever Parker Primeaux and closer Carson Laws. Caden Copeland (1-0) took his first win after going five innings and striking out eight batters. Laws earned his sixth save of the season in helping the Gumbeaux Gators secure their 3-2 win.

The Acadiana Cane Cutters will be back in action on July 6-7 in an away series versus the Rougarou following the All-Star break. All games can be streamed live on TCL TV.

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

- Maddy Branning, Cane Cutters Writer