By JJ Sledge
62 Games Down. Several more to go.
It’s hard to believe that just over three months ago, Tech started the 2024 campaign on a Friday afternoon in February against Northern Colorado to start a 4-game weekend.
After a regular season conference championship capped off with a series sweep at Liberty, Tech was the top seed entering this past weekend’s conference tournament. Despite winning their first game, a tough loss to Liberty in game 2 bumped Tech to the loser’s bracket. Because of this, they would end up playing 5 games in around 72 hours. They fought back to win their next 4 games. But unfortunately, the Dogs just ran out of gas. Dealing with a mix of heat, sickness and an unfortunate 1st inning, the Dogs ultimately fell to DBU in the title game Sunday afternoon.
However, this incredible season isn’t over. Thanks to an incredible 19-4 run over the past 6 weeks after being swept in Arizona, Tech climbed over 50 spots in the RPI standings to sit in the top 30 as the regular season ended.
Now, Tech is headed north to Fayetteville and the Arkansas Regional this weekend for their 3rd NCAA Baseball Tournament Regional Appearance in the last 4 years. And I personally feel this team has a great shot at contending for the regional crown and even a possible super regional berth.
This was my 4th straight C-USA Baseball tournament to attend as a Tech fan, and second to attend at the Love Shack. Here’s how I’d break it down:
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Games: 5/5
Honestly, the Conference tournament is always a wild card. You typically have at least one team that is considered fairly safe for an NCAA Tournament Regional Bid (those being DBU and Tech this year). And then you also have the remaining teams who are hoping a little luck is on their side so that they can put together a run over 5 days and win a Conference Championship.
As we saw on Wednesday/Day 1, anything can happen. It doesn’t matter what your team is seeded, because 6th seed FIU’s 4 home runs gave them a win over 3rd seed Western Kentucky.
And in typical Louisiana May fashion, “Mother Nature” decided to make an appearance later that evening. Now I assume many of you have heard about what happened by now. But if you missed it: Tech was up 8-2 over Middle Tennessee going into the top of the 9th inning. As the 8th inning finished, thunder cracked and there was a flash of lightning. The game was paused right around 7 pm. After nearly 2 hours of negotiating, it was announced that the game would be finished Thursday morning at 9 am. Now typically the game would have been ruled final since it was well past the cutoff point of 5 innings. However, in a tournament scenario with regional bids on the line, the normal rules are not always applied as they want to finish every game if possible. I have heard that MTSU could have agreed to end the game Wednesday night, but I guess they were hoping for a little morning magic. Anyway, in what might unofficially be the longest game in school history and after a roughly 14-hour delay, Tech and Middle Tennessee finished the game in what was officially a 3 minute and 37 second, 9th inning on Thursday morning with just 13 pitches needed by Ethan Bates.
But if you wanted even more drama, all you needed to do was watch Tech’s games on Saturday.
Coming off a close win Friday night, Tech was now tasked with winning twice Saturday to make it to the Championship Game Sunday afternoon.
In game one, Tech and Liberty traded blows through the first 4 innings before Mike Ballard scored Ethan Bates on a fielder’s choice to take a 2-run lead. Bates would later score again on a wild pitch in the 6th to ultimately give Tech the winning run as Liberty would get within a run on a 2-run homer in the top of the 9th before Bates shut them down to earn his nation leading 17th save of the season.
But Saturday night will go down as one of the greatest games in J. C. Love Field history.
Liberty stormed out to a 4-0 lead after 4 innings. But the Dogs still had some life left in them. After chipping away, Tech faced a 3-run deficit heading into the 8th inning. Cole McConnell knocked in a run with 1 out to put runners on the corners. Down to 1 out in the inning, Jorge Corona doubled to right field with a phenomenal hit that landed just in fair territory before rolling into the right field corner. Even though he was told to stop by Coach Burroughs, Cole ran full speed and got in to home just before the Liberty catcher tagged him. And just like that, the Dogs had tied it up at 5. But the drama wasn’t quite over.
It’s possible you could have heard a pin drop in the Love Shack just seconds before Conference Player of the Year Ethan Bates took the mound to begin the 9th. Senior first baseman Dalton Davis sprinted off the field due to heat related symptoms just moments before the inning started, so Tech had to quickly re-shuffle the defense. Tech moved Grant Comeaux over to first and brought in senior Logan McCloud to play third. Liberty quickly loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the 9th off Bates. With the pitching staff dwindling rapidly, Coach called on reliever Nate Crider, who had pitched just 13 innings this season. And in a performance that will long live in fans memories, Crider got those 3 outs facing just 2 batters to end the threat. And then he came back in the top of the 10th to extinguish the Flames threat once again.
And oh, that bottom of the 10th inning. Down to its last out, Tech had seniors Corona and Adarius Myers on base. Junior speedster Thaxton Berch came in to pinch run for Corona, as redshirt freshman Grant Comeaux came to the plate. In the 4th inning, Comeaux had been hit in the face by a pitch. Faced with potentially being pulled in that 4th inning moment, Grant said no way and stayed in. With a bruised and swollen face and maybe some blood on his jersey, he dug deep and got his sole hit of the game. Comeaux hit a line drive through a gap between first and second, and Berch flew home to score the winning run for a 6 to 5 victory.
These Cardiac Canines just never give up. I’ve shared way too many head shakes and laughs with Coach Burroughs this season after countless dramatic endings for the Dogs.
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Atmosphere: 5/5
There’s just something special about a packed Love Shack. This was by far the hottest weekend of the year to this point, but Tech fans didn’t let it affect them. With temps in the upper 80’s to mid-90s and a heat index over 100, the Love Shack faithful showed up and showed out. Even with the sun blazing down on them, they continued to get loud and support the Dogs.
I honestly think the last time it was that loud was when Tech beat Southern Miss in the 2021 tournament. Saturday night was especially amazing to me. There were fans starting chants all over the park and the whole crowd got into them. At one point, the wave was going around the stadium. When the winning run was scored, you could barely hear the person sitting next to you. Even when Tech was down 4-0 Saturday night and also facing an even bigger deficit Sunday, that crowd wasn’t giving up on the Dogs.
When the Love Shack is rocking, you can feel the difference in the Diamond Dogs.
One last note, I was proud of the Love Shack crowd for sticking around on Sunday. Even when it was clear Tech wasn’t going to pull it off, they remained to give these players the support they deserved. And in a moment of true class, the crowd erupted in standing ovations as Coach Burroughs pulled some of his seniors in the 9th. There was even a curtain call for catcher Jorge Corona, who has long been a fan favorite and will go down in Tech history as one of the all-time greats.
The only thing I wish that could have been added to those 9th inning moments would be a chance for the last Junkyard Dog, Adarius Meyers, to get that standing ovation. He was the final player to have been on the team when the tornado hit Ruston. And even though he could have left, he chose to stay and stick it out. “AD,” as we’ve come to know him, was named a Bulldog Man prior to last season, meaning he is a team captain for life.
(Writer’s Note: My rating is based solely on Tech’s games, as I only saw a few moments of other games in person.)
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Facilities: 5/5
Yes, I will admit I am biased as a Tech fan. But the new Love Shack is one of the hidden gems in the South. From the open concourses to the “loyal blue” chairback seats lining nearly the entire park, it is something special. Really, there is not a bad seat in the house. Season tickets just about sell out every year. And as devastating as that 2019 tornado was, it gave Tech a chance to rebuild something special that will last for many years to come. Having a baseball specific facility attached to the park is a huge recruiting opportunity for the Tech staff. I was able to see it a couple of years ago after the inaugural season had ended. It really is top of the line with indoor batting cages, excellent training/meeting areas, and a first-class locker room.
I do know that teams also used the Ruston High facilities for their pre-game warm-ups. And while those are currently in the process of heading to renovation, they are still high quality and I’m glad they were available to help keep things running smoothly. Hopefully those upgrades will be finished by the next time Tech gets to host the conference tournament again.
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Special Recognition:
I just want to say the job that Gerald Jordan and the entire Tech staff did this past week was phenomenal. They had to deal with weather delays, schedule changes, etc. and never blinked. Coach Burroughs mentioned some of the Tech staff were literally sleeping on the couches in the baseball facility just to make sure things were going smoothly. But he also mentioned how many coaches and officials told him how impressed they were with how things went and also how great the staff was. In my opinion, it was clear that the Tech crew used that knowledge from the 2021 tournament and made the 2024 one even better.
The Aramark/Tech concession staff also continued the amazing job they had done all year. There’s no telling how many bottles of water and cold drinks were sold. Even during the rain delay Wednesday night, they were still cooking food and making sure fans were taken care of. But the fact that they continued the daily specials from the regular season when they didn’t have to shows how committed they were. They helped pull off an amazing hosting opportunity once again for Tech.
I also want to give a shoutout to Malcolm Butler. In addition to what he does on a daily basis for the Journal, Malcolm was also in the TV announcers booth for the tournament. Teddy Allen was supposed to do several of the games, but he unfortunately fell under the weather and was unable to. Malcolm stepped up and took over Teddy’s role, including calling just about every game Friday and Saturday. I saw him Saturday night and he jokingly said, “One more.”
I know every person who was working behind the scenes will definitely enjoy some rest and relaxation over the next couple of days before getting ready to support the Dogs as they head to Arkansas.
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Overall Score: 4.75/5
The only thing that could have made this tournament better was if the Diamond Dogs had pulled off a win Sunday. From top to bottom, this tournament was run with excellence and class. While it looks like it will be several years before the tournament returns to Ruston, this was definitely one that will go down as one of the best in recent memory.
I want to thank the Lincoln Parish Journal staff for giving me another opportunity to give my thoughts on Tech Baseball, this time regarding the C-USA Tournament. In early March the journal asked me to do a similar article on the “Battle at the Ballpark” tournament Tech participated in. And hopefully, there will be more tournaments to do similar things on in the near future.
