RUSTON, La. – On a day full of excitement and celebration, Louisiana Tech's baseball team sent fans home with yet another thing to smile about after posting an 11-0 shutout victory over McNeese State on Friday evening at J.C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park.
 
The Bulldogs started their day at the ballpark earlier than usual on Friday, welcoming Louisiana governor John Bel Edwards to the Love Shack for a ceremonial ribbon cutting to usher in the new Bulldog ballpark. After a one-hour rain delay and a game time running just under three hours, reliever Landon Tomkins struck out McNeese State's Jake Dickerson to nail down LA Tech's first shutout victory of 2021.
 
Jonathan Fincher delivered a gem in his second start at the new Love Shack, striking out the first four batters he faced before finishing his night with a timely 6-3 ground-ball double play in the sixth to keep the Cowboys off the scoreboard. The left-hander finished the night with eight punchouts while allowing just five hits and one walk in six frames.
 
"That's what it looks like on a Friday night in college baseball with two great pitchers going at each other," head coach Lane Burroughs said. "I thought we had some great at-bats against [Will] Dion, but the play of the game was Fincher's double play in the sixth."
 
"That's what we're capable of doing. I think we got a little bit of our edge back, and I thought we played a solid game. We shoved the ball in the strike zone, had some good at-bats and scored some runs tonight."
 
The Bulldogs broke the scoreless tie in the fifth with an RBI double from shortstop Alex Ray, slicing a ball down the right field line to bring home catcher Jorge Corona from second. Leadoff man Taylor Young then sailed his first of two sacrifice flies on the night to center field to bring home first baseman Ben Brantley from third to make it 2-0 Diamond Dogs. LA Tech tacked on its third run of the inning after an error on McNeese State's second baseman brought home Ray.
 
LA Tech tallied two more three-run frames in the sixth and seventh to stretch its lead to 9-0. Ray, who finished the night 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored, knocked in Tech's fourth run with a single to center field. Young then drove in a run with a sacrifice fly before Wells reached on another Cowboys' error to make it 6-0 after six.
 
Brantley punched a single through the right side in the seventh to plate two Diamond Dogs to push Tech's lead to 8-0. A wild pitch brought in LA Tech's ninth run.
 
Senior outfielder Steele Netterville put an exclamation point on the runaway victory with a two-run shot in the eighth, hammering a ball beyond the left field wall on a 2-1 pitch. LA Tech scored at least two runs in each of its final four innings in the Friday night triumph.
 
Tomkins pitched the final three innings in relief to earn his first save in a Bulldog uniform. The Brandon, Mississippi native recorded three strikeouts while allowing just one hit to nail down the Diamond Dog victory.
 
LA Tech will return to the Love Shack on Saturday at 2 p.m. when right-hander Ryan Jennings will take the mound in the second matchup of the weekend series.