After two weekend series victories, Matt Riser and Memphis baseball played their first full, five-game week of the season. The Tigers started the week with a dominant home victory against Alabama A&M, before taking a tough loss on the road against Little Rock and winning their weekend series at Louisiana Tech.
Game 1: Memphis 17 Alabama A&M 3
Memphis jumped out early and never looked back against Alabama A&M. The Tigers scored 3 runs in the first inning, capped off by freshman Carter McKay's first collegiate home run.
Alabama A&M got one back in the top of the second with a solo homer of their own, but Memphis responded with a run in the bottom half to keep their lead at 3.
The Tigers continued to dominate scoring 6 runs in the third, 3 in the fourth, and 4 in the fifth, leading to a 17-3 seven-inning mercy rule victory.
James Smith IV shined for the Tigers, going 2 for 2 with a walk and scoring three runs.
Game 2: Little Rock 9 Memphis 8
Isaac Lucas made the start for the Tigers, and he cruised through the first three innings. Memphis took advantage of two walks and two hit-by-pitches to score three runs in the second inning.
The Tigers added two more in the fourth, but Little Rock responded in a big way in the bottom half. The Trojans tied the game with five runs capped by a Zach Henry bases-loaded triple.
In the sixth, UALR added three more to take an 8-5 lead. The Tigers came back with two in the seventh to cut the deficit to one run.
Down to their final two outs, the Tigers tied the game in the top of the ninth and kept the Trojans at bay in the bottom half to force extra innings.
Memphis went scoreless in the tenth, and Little Rock walked-off the Tigers 9-8.
Game 3: Memphis 7 Louisiana Tech 2
In the first game against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, Matt Riser sent Seth Garner to the mound. Garner threw 6 strong innings, giving up 4 hits and 1 run.
Louisiana Tech struck first, however, with two of those hits coming in the second inning. A triple and a double scored the first run of the game, giving the home team a 1-0 lead.
In the fourth, Memphis took the lead with three consecutive hits of their own. Chase Nixon hit a solo homer, then James Smith IV singled and Shane Cox doubled him home.
Neither team produced a scoring threat in the next two innings, and the Tigers pulled away in the seventh inning. The Tigers hit another pair of doubles, and Chase Nixon hit his second home run of the game, this time a 2-run bomb, to make it 7-1 Tigers.
The Bulldogs didn't go quietly. They added another run in the ninth, but Memphis' Seth Cox shut down any hopes of a ninth inning rally, giving Memphis a 7-2 series-opening victory.
Game 4: Louisiana Tech 11 Memphis 4
The Tigers sent David Case to the mound in game 2 against the Bulldogs. Case struggled to avoid bats, allowing 7 hits in 4.1 innings.
Louisiana Tech scored 2 in the first inning thanks to a 2-run jack with no outs, but Memphis responded with one of their own off a wild pitch to make it a 2-1 game.
Tech scored another in the bottom of the inning, forcing coach Riser to go to the bullpen with redshirt freshman Will Howell.
Howell struggled in his 1 inning of work, allowing 2 walks, 2 hits, and 2 runs. After six innings, the Bulldogs led 6-1.
The Tigers scored three in the top of the seventh to make it 6-4, but Memphis' bullpen continued to struggle, giving up 5 more runs to get to the final score of 11-4.
Game 5: Memphis 7 Louisiana Tech 3
Caden Robinson took the mound for the Tigers in the series finale agains Louisiana Tech. The Tigers jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the second inning thanks to another Caden, Caden Roberston, who smashed an RBI double.
The Bulldogs responded in the third with 2 runs thanks to a pair of singles, a sacrifice fly, and a Memphis error.
In the fourth, Memphis took full control. The Tigers added one run on a hit-by-pitch, before Chase Nixon hit a grand slam, making it 6-2.
Louisiana Tech's Cade Patterson hit a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth to cut the Memphis lead to 6-3, but the Tigers' pitchers shut out the Bulldogs for the rest of the contest to earn Memphis its third series victory of the year.
What's Next:
The Tigers will be back at FedEx Park to take on Central Arkansas on Tuesday at 4:05, Little Rock on Wednesday at 2:05, and Southeastern Louisiana for a three game set over the weekend.
