Southern can't overcome early deficit

• Advocate staff report
• Published: Mar 24, 2008 - UPDATED: 6:45 a.m.

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GRAMBLING — Grambling broke out to a 6-0 lead after three innings and held off Southern, 7-4, in Southwestern Athletic Conference baseball action Sunday afternoon.

The Tigers (10-11, 8-4 SWAC West) took two of the three games from the rival Jaguars (7-9, 6-3).

“We lost the game in the first three innings,” Southern coach Roger Cador said. “They had a couple of Texas hoppers and a home run and after that we were playing catch-up.”

Grambling had the Jaguars playing catch-up in the first inning when right fielder Jeremy Shelby blasted a two-out, three-run homer off SU starter Cody Elliot (0-2).

The Tigers struck again in the second inning as Justin Kelly and Manny Kumar had RBI singles and the Jaguars committed one of their four errors.

“We just didn’t pick up the ball,” Cador said of the errors. “We prolonged innings and that gave them a chance to get more runs.”

Cador replaced Elliot with Chris Donaby to start the third inning. The Jaguars veteran quickly ran into trouble as the Tigers took advantage of another SU error, a walk and a single to load the bases.

Brandon Williams then hit a sacrifice fly to make it 6-0. Donaby, who went 41/3 innings, got out of a bases-loaded jam when he got Justin Kelly to ground out.

Southern got three back in the fifth as Calvin Anderson and Victor Franklin singled to start the inning. Franklin scored on a GSU error and Michael Gavion singled to plate Anderson.

The third run scored when Michael Thomas came home on a passed ball.

The Jaguars cut further into the lead in the sixth on three hits, including an RBI single by Torey Brown. But SU left the bases loaded, still trailing 6-4.

Matthew Feheeley started for Grambling and went six innings for the win. He gave up four runs on six hits while striking out four and walking one.

Cador said Feeheeley (2-2) threw a lot of off-speed pitches, which the Jaguars were slow to adjust to.