Cane Cutters News

Ashton Quiller secures the series sweep in extras over the Rougarou

The Acadiana Cane Cutters (13-18) took down the Baton Rouge Rougarou (14-15) 10-9 and 5-4 in back-to-back nail biters at Fabacher Field. With these wins over their basin rivals, they improved to second place in the Louisiana division of the TCL with a second half record of 3-4.

Both contests saw comeback efforts from both squads, but Acadiana came out on top thanks to clutch knocks by Ashton Quiller. Quiller pinch-hit in the tenth inning in Tuesday night’s game, grounding a single through the 3-4 hole to score Bennett Mittelsteadt. He did it again on Wednesday night, scoring Reid Snider on a line drive over the head of the Rougarou second baseman. 

Saturday night’s game saw the Cane Cutters start strong by plating four runs in the first inning. Momentum was established fast with a string of singles from Alexander Saunier, Bryce Calloway and Hank Howard, capped off by a two-RBI double from Reid Snider. 

Calloway mashed his second triple of the year to drive in two more runs in the second inning. Acadiana succeeded in another four-run show when the Privateer touched home on a bases-loaded walk and Howard scored on a fielder’s choice. 

Though managing to put up one more run in the third, bats went cold while facing Baton Rouge’s Garrett Walker. Lacking in offensive production, the Cane Cutters saw their 9-1 lead slip inning-by-inning until the Rougarou managed to tie it in the eighth. 

While Acadiana’s pitching staff was able to limit the hitting game in holding Baton Rouge to six knocks, issuing free bases plagued them: 15 combined walks were issued by the seven pitchers that saw time on the hill. Seven of these walked batters later came in to score. 

Despite allowing the Rougarou to get a little too close for comfort, Howard and Noah Melancon teamed up to hold their rivals scoreless in the ninth and tenth innings. Quiller secured the 10-9 victory in the bottom of the final inning to fend off the comeback. 

Acadiana closer Melancon (3-0) took the win for holding off the Rougarou bats in extras while Baton Rouge’s Tristan Perry (0-2) took the loss. Notable on the night was the bat of Saunier, who went 3-5 at the plate with one walk in his Cane Cutter debut. He managed a double in the second inning and scored two runs on the night.

Wednesday night’s game progressed in near opposite fashion: the first five innings of play saw a pitcher’s duel between Acadiana’s Will Taylor and Baton Rouge’s Hayden Stallings. Taylor’s 5.0 IP saw no runs cross after giving up just three hits while striking out three. Stalling gave up four hits while collecting 10 K’s in 7.0 IP. 

The Rougarou broke the mold in the sixth, scoring two runs on two hits against reliever Jimmie Johnson. They plated two more in the seventh, managing three hits off of Melancon.

With the threat of a shutout looming, the Cane Cutters responded in the late game. Tanner Hornback scored Acadiana’s first run in the bottom of the eighth after being walked home. Mark Collins crushed an RBI triple to cut the Rougarou lead in half. He and Hornback both scored on a fielding error to tie the contest, to which Quiller was able to close out a 5-4 victory in the bottom of the tenth. 

Harper Jordan (1-0) brought home his first win as a Cane Cutter, shutting out the Rougarou in the final two innings. He gave up no hits while striking out three. Baton Rouge’s Kameren Hardebeck (4-1) received his first loss, having allowed six hits and all four runs to cross in his 1.1 IP. 

The Acadiana Cane Cutters will be back in action at home versus the Seguin River Monsters on July 11-12 before hitting the road to rematch the Rougarou at Pete Goldsby Field on July 13-14. All games can be streamed live on TCL TV. 

Fans can check for news and updates with the Cane Cutters on X (@CanecuttersBB), Instagram (@canecuttersbsb) and Facebook (@Acadiana Cane Cutters Baseball).

Maddy Branning, Cane Cutters Writer