An extra-inning loss in game one set the tone in a weekend series loss for ULM.

The Warhawks (7-13; 0-2) hosted their first conference series of the 2023 season against Old Dominion (17-2; 2-0) in the first-ever meeting between the two teams. ULM hoped to turn its season around after a disappointing end to non-conference play, losing eight out of the last 10 games. It was a tough task to do against the Monarchs, who stand at the top of the Sun Belt Conference.

Friday night’s game started with an error by the Warhawks to get a runner on base, but two strikeouts helped put an end to the threat. In the top of the second, the Monarchs got on the board with a solo homer to right field, leading 1-0. 

After two uneventful innings, the Warhawks finally responded in the bottom of the fifth. Jake Haggard started the inning with a lead-off double. Chenar Brown followed up with a double to score Haggard and tie the game. An RBI single by Cardell Thibodaux scored Brown, and the Warhawks took a 2-1 lead. 

Despite the scoring, the Warhawks left two men on base, including a runner on third base. Old Dominion tied the game the next inning with another solo shot to left field. 

The Monarchs took the lead in the seventh with an RBI single up the middle. ULM tied the game with a single by Kade Dupont in the bottom of the eighth but once again left runners on base. The two teams went scoreless in the ninth, and the game went into extras. 

The Monarchs wasted no time in scoring, as a single combined with an error gave them a 5-3 lead. A double play for Old Dominion in the bottom of the 10th sealed the game. 

Cam Barlow pitched a solid six innings with nine strikeouts and three hits allowed. Nicholas Judice pitched three innings with four strikeouts.  

In game two, the Monarchs scored with consistency. They scored at least one run in the first five innings, including homers in the second and fifth inning. The lead at the end of the fifth was 9-1 in favor of Old Dominion. 

“The bottom line was that their approaches and their offense were on fire,” head coach Michael Federico said. “They were on the barrel and used the big part of the field to get those extra-base hits.”

Riley Davis hit a double in the fourth inning to score the only run of the day for the Warhawks. 

Old Dominion scored four more runs in the top of the seventh with base hits and unearned runs from foul balls and wild pitches. 

When the final out was made, the Warhawks found themselves with a conference-opening series loss.