Lucas Cooperman homered on the second pitch of the game to set the tone for the Houston Tigers’ 14-3 five-inning victory Monday at Thayer.
Eight different players had hits for Houston (7-1, 3-0 SCA). Chris Mooney was 2-for-3 with a pair of RBIs, and Cooperman and Eli Smith scored three times apiece.
Kyle Poynter earned his third victory in relief of Cooperman. Poynter struck out seven and allowed one hit in three innings.
Cooperman, who left with the game tied 3-all, gave up three earned runs in two innings.
Kenny Barton and Mooney had run-scoring singles in the third inning as the Tigers took the lead for good. Houston added six runs in the fourth, highlighted by Nathan McCarthy’s two-run single and a RBI double by Brandon Belt.
On Friday, Cooperman and Kaleb Poynter knocked in two runs apiece in the Tigers’ 6-5 victory at Mountain Grove.
Cooperman, Kyle Poynter and Kaleb Poynter had two hits each for Houston.
Mooney, who didn’t allow a run his first 11 2/3 innings of the season, gave up four earned runs in the complete-game victory. He struck out five and walked two.
Kaleb Poynter had a two-run double in the first, and Cooperman had a two-run single in the fifth.