Preview: Houston Christian Huskies at McNeese State Cowboys

LAKE CHARLES, La. (Interstat) — The Houston Christian Huskies and McNeese State Cowboys, both seeking to climb above .500, open a three-game series with a doubleheader Friday at Joe Miller Ballpark.

The opener features two teams with identical 6-6 records in their last 12 contests. Houston Christian (6-7) arrives after a 16-3 road loss to Texas on Tuesday. McNeese State (6-6) is coming off a 14-5 victory at Southern on the same day.

A key matchup will be Houston Christian’s hot-hitting Katcher Halligan against a McNeese State squad that has won four of its last six. Halligan, the Huskies’ first baseman, is batting .500 (12 for 24) with two home runs and 11 RBIs over his last eight games. He homered in the loss to Texas.

The Cowboys counter with outfielder DJ Pinkerton, who went 4 for 5 with three RBIs in the win at Southern. Pinkerton is 4 for his last 7 at the plate.

On the mound, both teams will look for stability. Houston Christian’s Caleb Matthews struggled in his last start against Texas, failing to record an out. McNeese State received strong relief outings from Jairus Miller (4.0 IP, 0 H, 1 ER, 5 K) and Jaden Bahl (2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 3 K) in its midweek win.

The Huskies took two of three from Incarnate Word last weekend, while the Cowboys won a series at Nicholls State before the victory at Southern.

According to Interstat’s game simulator, the projected final score is Houston Christian 7, McNeese State 5.

The series continues with the second game of the doubleheader Friday afternoon, followed by the finale Saturday.