LSU-Eunice redshirt freshman Clay Tageant put his name in the win column for the first time as a college baseball player Tuesday, as the Bengals defeated Triton Community College 12-7 at home.

The 2011 Franklinton graduate entered in a tough spot. The Bengals were up 7-5 with two outs, but Triton had already plated three runs and had runners on first-and-second.

Tageant, the son of Franklinton coach Jeff Tageant, fanned the first hitter he saw to get the Bengals back into the dugout with the lead.

Things stayed that way until the sixth when the defense let Tageant down. Triton scored two runs without the benefit of a hit and the Bengals committed three errors.

Tageant retired the first two hitters on a fly out to right field, followed by a swinging strikeout. An error, followed by a walk and then two more miscues led to a pair of unearned runs and tied things 7-7.

LSU-Eunice answered with a five spot to reflect the 12-7 margin of victory.

Tageant threw 2.1 innings of hitless ball and he struck out three, while walking two. “I felt good,” Tageant said.

Tageant said he struggled early this season with being too pumped up.

“I just had to relax, trust myself and trust my defense,” Tageant said.

Tageant said his two-seam fastball was working the best for him.

“We were doing a lot of pitches on the corners of plate. It was running back over and I felt like I had good velocity on it,” Tageant said.

Going into yesterday’s game, Tageant had seen limited action. He was 1-1 in four appearances with one start, which covered 7.1 innings. He had a 6.14 earned run average at press time, but had allowed just three hits and opponents were only hitting .111 against him. Tageant has seven strikeouts and eight walks.

LSU-Eunice began Thursday with a 23-3 record and riding a 12-game winning streak.

Tageant talked about the key their success this year.

“We pitch really well (2.45 ERA). Our philosophy is to challenge hitters,” Tageant said. “Our offense puts up so many runs (9.2 per game) it makes it easier for us. The work we put in during offseason pays off for us.”

The Bengals closed out their series with Triton yesterday. They begin a three-game set in Texas against Tyler Junior College with games running today-Sunday.