The Green Wave dropped the first game of its weekend series to the 49ers by a score of 10-0.
The Tulane Green Wave would like to erase Friday night's game against the Charlotte 49ers from its memory.
The Sluggerbirds were ineffective all across the field, ultimately falling 10-0 in seven innings to the worst team in the American Conference.
J.D. Rodriguez took his first loss on the mound for the Green Wave after earning the Friday night start. The senior pitcher saw just 3.0 innings of action, giving up eight runs on 10 hits with five strikeouts and two batters walked. It was a shocking outing for Rodriguez, who has undoubtedly been one of the program's top pitchers this year.
Charlotte struck quickly with three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning, then added another pair of runs in the second to quickly take a 5-0 lead.
The 49ers would reach base again in the third, but Rodriguez was able to keep any baserunners from scoring. The pitcher would give up a pair of hits and a walk to load the bases in the top of the fourth, and though LuisPablo Navarro would come on in relief, the home team would still manage to bring all three runs home.
The final two runs of the game -- which gave Charlotte enough to secure the run-rule win -- came on another two-run single in the bottom of the sixth inning. All in all, the 49ers recorded 13 hits on the night and drew three walks.
Meanwhile, Tulane's offense was notably absent in the contest, all thanks to a complete game from Niners pitcher Ryan Combs. The program as a whole recorded just three hits in the contest while striking out nine times in 24 at-bats.
Two of those hits came on back-to-back two-out singles in the fourth inning from Matthias Haas and Nate Johnson. James Agabedis rounded out the hitting with a single in the sixth.
What comes next for the Green Wave? Will the team find a way to respond in the face of adversity, or will this lopsided loss spiral into a complete meltdown to end the season? Tulane needs to find a way to win the remaining two games of this series, especially against the worst team in the league. Otherwise, the program runs the risk of falling out of the top eight in the American and missing the conference tournament completely.
The Sluggerbirds will look to bounce back in a big way as they try to even the series with Charlotte on Saturday. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. CT.