HATTIESBURG, Miss. (Interstat) — Matthew Russo’s walk-off double in the bottom of the 11th inning lifted Southern Mississippi to a 2-1 victory over Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday in the opening game of a Sun Belt doubleheader at Pete Taylor Park.

Russo, the Golden Eagles’ first baseman, finished 2 for 5 with the game-winning RBI. His double to right field scored pinch-runner Gillespie from first base, capping a pitchers’ duel that lasted nearly three and a half hours. The win improved Southern Mississippi to 33-14 overall; the Warhawks fell to 24-23.

Southern Mississippi’s Grayden Harris earned top-star honors after throwing seven innings of five-hit ball, allowing one earned run while striking out nine. The right-hander worked around early trouble and kept the Warhawks off the board after the second inning. His recent outing against South Alabama on April 24 saw him surrender two earned runs over 5.2 innings in a 4-3 win.

Louisiana-Monroe countered with starter Adam Brodnax, who turned in a dominant performance despite taking a no-decision. Brodnax tossed 8.1 innings, allowing zero hits and one earned run while striking out seven. He exited after giving up a single to start the ninth, but the Warhawks’ bullpen could not preserve the tie.

The game remained scoreless until the top of the second inning. Louisiana-Monroe’s Kade Dupont led off with a double to left field. After a walk and a hit-by-pitch, the Warhawks loaded the bases for catcher White, who grounded into a double play. The fielder’s choice allowed Dupont to score from third, giving Louisiana-Monroe a 1-0 lead.

Southern Mississippi answered in the bottom of the fourth. Second baseman Kyle Morrison launched a solo home run to right field, his 14th of the season, tying the game at 1-1. Morrison finished 1 for 4 with the homer and an RBI.

From there, both pitching staffs tightened. Harris settled in after the second inning, striking out nine over seven frames. Colby Allen relieved Harris in the eighth and was nearly untouchable, throwing four innings of one-hit ball with seven strikeouts. Allen stranded a pair of Warhawks runners in the eighth and retired the side in order in the ninth, 10th and 11th.

Louisiana-Monroe’s bullpen also delivered. Tyler Roark entered in the ninth after Brodnax allowed back-to-back singles to Gillespie and Russo. Roark induced a game-ending double play to escape the jam but was not as fortunate in the 11th.

The Warhawks had chances to break the tie in extra innings but could not capitalize. In the top of the ninth, Allen struck out the side. In the 10th, he fanned two more. Louisiana-Monroe’s designated hitter Marcus Aranda went 0 for 5, grounding out in his final at-bat in the 11th.

In the bottom of the 11th, Morrison drew a leadoff walk against Roark. Gillespie entered as a pinch-runner and advanced to second on a fielder’s choice that erased Morrison at second. Russo then stepped in and smacked a double to right field, allowing Gillespie to race home with the walk-off run.

Dupont led the Warhawks with a 1-for-4 day, scoring their only run. Louisiana-Monroe collected six hits overall, while Southern Mississippi had seven. Ty Long added a single in three at-bats for the Golden Eagles. Tucker Stockman went 0 for 3 with a sacrifice bunt and a strikeout.

The victory extended Southern Mississippi’s winning streak in Sun Belt play after they took two of three from South Alabama the previous weekend. Louisiana-Monroe entered the doubleheader having lost three of its last five, including a 16-2 win over Louisiana Tech on April 28.

The two teams were scheduled to play the second game of the doubleheader later Saturday afternoon. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Southern Mississippi with an 83.40 percent probability to win the opener. Southern Mississippi will host Louisiana-Monroe again Sunday before traveling to James Madison next weekend. Louisiana-Monroe will face Mississippi Valley State on Tuesday before a three-game series at Marshall.