HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Three RBI from
Houston Parker gave the Trojans the offense it needed, and then a second-straight complete game victory for
Aaron Funk shut the door on Southern Miss as the Trojans salvage the weekend series with a 5-1 win at Pete Taylor Park.
Little Rock improves to 9-8 on the year as the Trojans hand the Golden Eagles just their second home loss of the season.
Funk went the distance, allowing just one run on five hits with a walk and nine strikeouts on 119 pitches. He took a no hitter into the sixth before back-to-back hits scored the Golden Eagles lone run of the day, then escaped a jam in the bottom of the ninth, ending the game with a strikeout to preserve the win.
For the third-straight game in the series, Little Rock struck first, this time coming off a solo home run from
Kale Emshoff in the top of the first to give the Trojans the 1-0 lead. It was Emshoff's seventh round-tripper of the season and his 11th-straight game with a hit, the longest on the team this season.
With two outs in the top of the third and Emshoff due up, Southern Miss intentionally walked the junior, bringing Mississippi native
Houston Parker to the plate. Parker made the Golden Eagles pay, ripping a double down the right field line to bring Emshoff home from first and extend the Little Rock lead to 2-0.
It was the first of three RBI on the day for Parker, who used a sacrifice fly in the top of the fifth to bring
Tyler Williams home following a leadoff single, giving the Trojans the 3-0 lead. Parker then belted his second home run of the season off the scoreboard in left center in the top of the eighth, pushing the Trojan lead to 4-1. He finished 2-for-3 on the day with the three RBI and run scored.
The Trojans would add another run in the eighth off a sacrifice fly from
Tucker Childers, another Mississippi native, allowing
Miguel Soto to score and give Little Rock the 5-1 lead.
Funk returned to pitch the ninth for Little Rock and allowed a pair of hits to Southern Miss, giving the Golden Eagles runners at first and second with two outs. But he got Matthew Guidry, Southern Miss' best hitter, to chase a 3-2 fastball in the top of the zone to secure the win for Little Rock.
The Trojans finished with nine hits on the afternoon, including a pair from Parker, Williams (2-for-4) and
Kobe Barnum (2-for-4). Barnum tallied a pair of doubles for the Trojans as Emshoff led the team with a pair of runs scored, scoring the first two of the game for Little Rock.
After playing 17 games through the first 24 days of the 2020 season, the Trojans will have a little bit of a break, going without a midweek game this week. Little Rock then opens up Sun Belt Conference next weekend, welcoming UT Arlington to Gary Hogan Field for the three-game league opening series, getting underway Friday, March 13 at 6 p.m.
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