McNeese State University’s baseball team is set to host Houston Christian University for a three-game series at Joe Miller Ballpark in Lake Charles. Due to concerns about the weather, the schedule has been adjusted: both teams will play a doubleheader on Friday starting at 2 p.m., with the second game beginning 45 minutes after the first ends. Saturday’s game remains scheduled for a 2 p.m. start.
The Cowboys currently hold a record of 7-6 overall and are 2-1 in conference play. They recently secured back-to-back midweek wins against Southern and LSU-Alexandria, producing a combined total of 26 runs from 19 hits over those two games. Pitchers Jairus Miller and Paul Coppinger contributed significantly, with Miller pitching four innings against Southern, allowing one run on three hits while striking out five batters to earn his second win of the season. Coppinger pitched three innings versus LSU-Alexandria, also allowing just one run and striking out five to collect his first win this year.
Second baseman Matt Stancliff was named Southland Conference hitter of the week following his performance last Friday night when he went 5-for-5 at the plate, missing only a triple for the cycle. Over last week, Stancliff hit .500 with one double, one home run, and five RBIs.
Houston Christian comes into the series with a 6-7 overall record and is also 2-1 in conference play. The Huskies won their opening conference series against Incarnate Word but lost their most recent midweek game to third-ranked Texas by a score of 16-3.
Looking at recent history between these teams, McNeese has lost two out of its last five meetings with Houston Christian. The Cowboys’ last home loss to the Huskies occurred on May 11, 2024, by a score of 9-7.
Key players for McNeese include DJ Pinkerton who leads in batting average (.398), Danny Barbero who leads in home runs (three), and Eric Nachtsheim who tops the pitching staff with 23 strikeouts across four appearances this season. Hayden Stringfellow enters the weekend on both an eight-game reached base streak and an eight-game reached safely streak.
This season’s roster features considerable continuity as McNeese returns three of its top four hitters from last year: Easton Dowell (.369 average), Marcus Heusohn (.327 average with fifteen doubles), and Larry Edwards Jr., who led in RBIs with forty-seven runs batted in during the previous campaign. Simon Larranaga is also back after leading last season’s team in home runs (twelve).
Head coach Justin Hill continues into his thirteenth season leading McNeese baseball; he holds school records for career wins (365) and conference victories (180). This year’s squad includes twenty returning players along with twenty-one newcomers from various colleges across several states.
Three teams on McNeese’s schedule advanced to NCAA Regionals last year: Kansas, Houston Christian itself, and LSU—the latter having won the College World Series against Coastal Carolina.
The Cowboys have thirty-two home games slated for this season.
