The Cowboys’ hopes of sweeping through opening weekend fell short Sunday as Wichita State won the finale 6-2 at Joe Miller Ballpark.

Scoring four times in the first two innings, the Shockers were able to hold on to hand McNeese its first loss of the season. 

The Cowboys had their chances down the stretch. They loaded the bases in the eighth and ninth, bringing the tying run to the plate. However, both times, the inning ended with back-to-back strikeouts.

Camden Johnson hit the game’s first pitch out to right field to give the Shockers (1-2) the lead for good. The blast came off McNeese (2-1) starter Jake Blackwell, a transfer from Murray State.

Johnson hit Blackwell’s first pitch as a Cowboy for his first home run of the season. Johnson drove in two more runs with a single in the second as the Shockers took a 4-0 lead with three runs, two of which were unearned. 

Blackwell was handed the loss in his first start at McNeese.

The Cowboys got back in the game in the fifth with a pair of runs as Conner Westenburg drove in the second with an infield single. Wichita State added two runs in the eighth with a rally that began with two out and nobody on. 

That set up the final two McNeese at-bats, which came up empty despite putting six runners on base.

Jace Miner worked five innings, allowing the two runs, to earn the victory, while Nick Potter picked up his first save.

McNeese will travel to College Station Tuesday to take on No. 1 Texas A&M in a midweek game.

Softball

Jada Munoz homered, and Samatha Mundine added three more hits and drove in three runs as the Cowgirls knocked off Tulsa 6-2.

The victory moved McNeese to 7-4 with their third-straight win.

Mundine finished 3-for-4 to improve her batting average to .531 in the early going. 

Freshman Maddie Taylor (3-1) went the distance to earn the victory. She allowed just two runs and six hits against Tulsa. 

The victory came one day after McNeese head coach James Landreneau set the school record for wins, which he now has at 305.