Lamar sports information

NACOGDOCHES — The Lamar baseball team ended the regular season in style. The Cardinals completed Jim Gilligan’s regular season career with a dominating 12-0 run-rule win that swept Stephen F. Austin Saturday afternoon in another offensive outburst at Jaycees Field in Southland Conference action.

Friday, the Cardinals (35-17, 20-1 Southland Conference) trounced the Lumberjacks (27-28, 14-16) with eight homers in two games — including six in the second game. Saturday, it was more of the same when five long balls were scorched to give the Cardinals 60 homers as a team on the season, first time since 1999 and is the fourth highest total in school history.

The Cardinals locked up the fourth seed in the Southland Conference Tournament and will be facing fifth-seeded Central Arkansas, who comes in after sweeping Southeastern Louisiana, at 7 p.m. Wednesday. It’s the highest seed Big Red has had going into the tourney since it was the fourth seed in 2009.

Reid Russell was one of the Cardinals to jump the yard, which was his 18^th on the season. That homer tied Michael Ambort’s school record for home runs in a season that was set in 2005. The junior is also the first 60-RBI Cardinal since Ambort’s 63 in 2007.

For the second time in as many games, Russell and Trey Silvers hit back-to-back jacks. In the second inning, the two of them put the Cardinals up 7-0. Lamar threw three on the board in the first inning on two bases-loaded walks to Jacoby Middleton and Robin Adames- who also homer in the contest.

Billy Love (6-4) had another great day on the hill; he allowed only three baserunners (two hits and a walk). The first runner was a leadoff single in the first inning from Tyler Kendrick, but he was rolled into a double play by Nick Ramos. With one out in the second frame, he walked Connor Fikes, but he too was rolled in a twin-killing.

Tickets to the Southland Conference Tournament are already on sale. An all-tournament pass, which allows entry into all 15 possible games of the tournament, is $60.  A single-day pass, which will include four games on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday with a possibility of three game on  Saturday, is $18 each day.

Children 5 and under will be admitted free of charge, while students at Southland Conference Institutions will also gain free admission with a valid student ID.

Tickets are available for purchase at the Constellation Field box office, by phone at 281-240-4487 and online at sugarlandskeeters.com. Online orders are subject to a $2 service charge per ticket.