RUSTON, La. (Interstat) — Louisiana Tech hosts Sam Houston on Thursday night at J.C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park to open a three-game Conference USA series.

First pitch is set for 6 p.m. under clear skies with a forecast temperature of 84 degrees.

The Bulldogs (31-22) enter with a significant edge in form and home-field advantage. Louisiana Tech took two of three at Liberty last weekend and has won five of its last seven overall. The Bearkats (23-30) lost three of four to Delaware before dropping a 4-3 decision Tuesday against Houston Christian.

Interstat’s ELO system projects Louisiana Tech with a 69.9 percent win probability, forecasting a 6-4 final.

### Players to watch

Sam Houston: Right-hander Zachery Alarid has shown flashes of effectiveness. In Tuesday’s loss to Houston Christian, Alarid tossed 2.0 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out one. In his prior outing May 3 at Kennesaw State, he worked 2.2 innings, yielding one earned run with three strikeouts. Alarid also threw a scoreless inning April 21 against Baylor. Shortstop Hunter Alvord homered and drove in two runs Tuesday.

Louisiana Tech: Right-hander Landon Fontenot has been inconsistent but possesses high strikeout upside. He threw 4.0 innings Sunday at Liberty, allowing three earned runs on no hits. On April 19 at Kennesaw State, he turned in his best outing of the season: 5.0 innings, no hits, no runs, seven strikeouts. In his last start April 26 against Missouri State, Fontenot went 4.0 innings, allowing one earned run on three hits.

### Recent results

Sam Houston fell behind early in Tuesday’s 4-3 loss to Houston Christian. Besides Alvord’s RBI double and homer, reliever Collin Aloisio struck out two in a scoreless inning.

Louisiana Tech dropped a 3-2 decision Sunday at Liberty despite strong relief from Luke Nichols (2.0 IP, 0 H, 2 K) and Joey Wittig (2.0 IP, 0 H, 1 K). The Bulldogs have won four of their last six games overall.

### Series implications

The teams meet again Friday and Saturday at the same venue. Both are seeking momentum in the final weeks of conference play. Thursday’s opener could set the tone for a pivotal weekend in Ruston.