Grambling State flipped the script in a big way Friday night.
After a rough outing in the series opener, the Tigers came out sharp, focused, and aggressive—riding timely hitting and a strong performance on the mound to a 7-2 win over Bethune-Cookman.
The victory pushes Grambling State to 21-29 overall and 18-11 in SWAC play, keeping them firmly in the conference race.
The Wildcats were unable to clinch the SWAC regular-season title after the loss
From the jump, GSU set the tone.
Martavius Thomas led off the game with a single, and Trey Bridges followed with a double to put immediate pressure on the Wildcats. Cameron Hill wasted no time cashing in, driving home the first run with an RBI single. Hasani Johnson added another with a double, giving Grambling a quick 2-0 edge before Bethune-Cookman could settle in.
Grambling State bats woke up
The Wildcats answered with a run in the bottom half of the inning, but that momentum didn’t last long.
Grambling came right back in the second inning—and this time, they did damage in a hurry.
Chris Marcellus launched a solo shot to left, and Ryan Davis followed immediately with a blast of his own to left-center. Just like that, back-to-back home runs stretched the lead to 4-1 and put Bethune-Cookman on its heels.
T2 | Make that 4-1 Tigers! Ryan Davis goes yard!
GSU 4
BCU 1#GramFam | #ThisIsTheG🐯 pic.twitter.com/uil34XPXaW— Grambling State Baseball (@GramSt_Bsb) May 15, 2026
From there, the Tigers leaned on their pitching.
Trevor Esparza delivered a steady outing, going 5.2 innings while allowing just one run on six hits. He kept the Wildcats off balance all night and improved to 4-2 on the season with the win.
Grambling added to its cushion in the sixth when Marcellus came through again, ripping a double to score Shannon Martin and make it 5-1.
Bethune-Cookman showed some life in the seventh on a solo homer from Andrey Martinez, trimming the deficit to 5-2—but that would be as close as it got.
Tigers put the game away late
The Tigers responded with authority in the ninth.
After Davis was hit by a pitch and Thomas reached with a single, Hill delivered once again with an RBI knock. Johnson followed with a sacrifice fly, putting the finishing touches on a complete offensive performance.
Out of the bullpen, Rafael Capistran shut things down. The right-hander tossed 3.1 innings, allowed just one run, and struck out four to secure his third save of the season.
At the plate, Thomas led the way with a 3-for-4 night and two runs scored. Bridges added a pair of hits, while Hill drove in two runs. Marcellus filled up the stat sheet with a homer, a double, and two RBIs, and Davis contributed a home run while scoring twice.
All told, Grambling State racked up 11 hits and, just as importantly, held Bethune-Cookman to two runs—a major turnaround after surrendering 23 in Thursday’s opener.
