HAMMOND, La. – No. 1 Southeastern Louisiana kept its season alive twice on Saturday, eliminating No. 8 HCU before surviving an instant-classic against No. 5 McNeese to force a decisive Hammond Bracket Final at the 2026 Southland Baseball Championship.
The Lions and Cowboys will meet Sunday at 1 p.m. with a trip to the championship series on the line.
Game 5 — (1) Southeastern Louisiana 8, (8) HCU 4
Facing elimination for the first time this postseason, Southeastern Louisiana responded with a complete offensive performance to eliminate HCU and keep its championship hopes alive. The Lions scored in five different innings and finished with 12 hits while controlling the game from the third inning onward.
Connor Cuff continued his dominant tournament with a three-hit, four-RBI performance that included a three-run home run in the third inning to break the game open. Dane Watts and Ben Robichaux each added multi-hit efforts, while Blaise Priester homered in the eighth inning to provide additional insurance late.
HCU trimmed the deficit with a two-run sixth inning and added another late push in the ninth behind Preston Curtis’ two-run homer, but Southeastern consistently answered each rally. Truitt Webb worked seven strong innings on the mound for the Lions, allowing just two runs while keeping the Huskies off balance through the middle innings.
The victory sent Southeastern into Saturday night’s bracket final needing two wins against McNeese to extend its season.
Game 6 — (1) Southeastern Louisiana 13, (5) McNeese 12 (11 innings)
Southeastern Louisiana showed remarkable resilience in Saturday night’s Hammond Bracket Final, regrouping after surrendering a seven-run lead before ultimately outlasting McNeese in an 11-inning thriller to force Sunday’s winner-take-all matchup.
The Lions appeared firmly in control for much of the night, racing out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning behind a leadoff home run from Ben Robichaux and a three-run double from Justin Williams. Southeastern continued to apply pressure throughout the evening, building an 11-4 advantage entering the bottom of the seventh inning behind home runs from Brody Capps and Alex Perry and a five-RBI night from Peyton Woods.
McNeese responded with one of the tournament’s biggest rallies. Isaiah Keller launched a two-run homer in the seventh before the Cowboys exploded for four runs in the eighth inning to tie the game at 11-11. Matt Stancliff delivered a two-run double during the rally, while Hayden Stringfellow reached on a fielder’s choice that brought home two more runs after a key error extended the inning.
Despite watching the lead disappear, Southeastern settled back in and continued to answer. Luke Lirette escaped a major threat in the ninth inning after McNeese moved the winning run to third base with one out, and the Lions stranded the bases loaded in the 10th before finding another response in the 11th.
Woods delivered the decisive swing with a two-run home run to right field in the top of the 11th inning, giving Southeastern the lead once again. McNeese immediately answered with Keller’s second home run of the night and brought the tying run aboard later in the inning, but Lirette closed out the final outs to secure the dramatic victory.
Woods finished with four hits and five RBIs for Southeastern, while Capps added four hits and reached base five times. Keller powered the Cowboys with two home runs and three RBIs, while Stancliff and Marcus Heusohn each collected three hits as McNeese totaled 16 hits in the loss.