LAKE CHARLES, La. (Interstat) — The Houston Christian Huskies erupted for a seven-run fourth inning and pounded out 17 hits to overpower the McNeese State Cowboys 12-4 in a Southland Conference baseball game Saturday at Sudduth Coliseum.

The Huskies evened their overall record at 8-8, while the Cowboys fell to 7-8. The victory gave Houston Christian the series win after the teams split a doubleheader Friday.

The most important part of the game was Houston Christian’s immediate and sustained offensive response after McNeese State took an early lead. The Cowboys’ Matt Stancliff led off the bottom of the first inning with a solo home run to left-center field, his third of the season, to give McNeese State a brief 1-0 advantage.

That lead vanished quickly and emphatically. The Huskies answered with two runs in the top of the second. After a single by Castilleja and a double by Curtis, Jackson tripled to deep center field to drive in both runners. Jackson then scored on a groundout by Rader to make it 3-1.

Houston Christian broke the game open an inning later. Hendricks singled and, after a groundout, Castilleja launched a two-run homer to left field, his first of the season. Following a McNeese State pitching change that brought in Jake Blackwell, Curtis greeted the new arm with a solo shot to left-center, extending the lead to 6-1.

The Huskies sent 11 men to the plate in the decisive fourth inning, scoring seven runs on six hits to put the game out of reach at 12-1. The rally featured a two-run double by Hendricks and a two-run single by Castilleja, who finished the day 4-for-5 with a home run, four RBIs and three runs scored. Houston Christian batted around in the frame, chasing Blackwell and later tagging reliever Parker Morgan.

McNeese State’s offense, which managed eight hits and grounded into two double plays, could not mount a comeback. The Cowboys added single runs in the fourth, fifth and eighth innings. In the fourth, Simon Larranaga doubled home a run. In the fifth, Seth Fontenot hit a solo home run, his first of the season. In the eighth, pinch-hitter turned left fielder Viggo Lopez hit his first homer of the year, a solo shot to right field.

The Cowboys used seven pitchers in the loss. Starter Jake Blackwell was charged with three runs in two-thirds of an inning. Relievers Elliott Burrows and Parker Morgan each allowed multiple runs. Jairus Miller provided a bright spot with two innings of relief, allowing one run on two hits while striking out four. Connor Achee finished strong for McNeese State, tossing 1 1/3 scoreless innings with one strikeout.

Houston Christian starter Smith earned the win, pitching six innings and allowing three runs, two earned, on six hits. The Huskies bullpen of Lambert, Marsh and Rheaume combined for three innings of one-run relief to close it out.

The result defied the pregame projections from Interstat, whose game simulator had predicted a 7-5 Houston Christian win, while its ELO system gave McNeese State a 69.1% probability of victory.

Houston Christian next travels to face Tarleton State for a three-game series beginning March 13. McNeese State visits Louisiana-Lafayette on March 11 before opening a conference series at Lamar on March 13.