When asked what the Firebirds needed to improve on after their third-straight loss, manager Kelly Nicholson’s answer was simple.

“Everything,” Nicholson said. “We need to pitch better, defend better, swing the bat better, run the bases better, we need to coach better, and in all phases we need to get better.”

Coming off two consecutive losses, the Birds extended their scoring woes to a three-game rut after their 7–3 loss to the Braves on Wednesday at Doran Park.

Unlike Orleans, the Braves escaped their five-game losing streak against the Birds in front of a packed home crowd.

It didn’t start off sour for Orleans, though. In fact, the Birds maintained the upper hand in the top of the first inning.

Starting on the mound for Bourne was Colin Fisher (Arkansas), who notched seven strikeouts and allowed six hits and two runs in his 4 2/3 innings pitched.

However, Orleans was able to put enough pressure on Fisher in the first inning to make a dent.

That started with an Elijah Ickes (Hawaii) double. Ickes then scored off a Robbie Lavey (George Washington) RBI, giving Orleans an early 1-0 lead.

Soon enough, Bourne responded in the bottom of the first. Kade Lewis (Wake Forest) cleared the left-field fence with a homer that knotted the score at 1-1.

Marking the third straight inning with a score, Alejandro Garza (Cal Poly) did not let his foot off the gas pedal for Orleans. Hammering a dominant home run past left field, Garza extended the Birds’ lead to 2-1.

“I’ve been struggling a little bit as of late, so I was trying to go up there and simplify it,” Garza said. “He left a fastball over the zone, and I was able to get it in the air into the jetstream and get it over the fence.”

The same tempo did not transfer over to the top of the third, as Fisher sent Michael O’Shaughnessy (Georgia), Ickes and Lavey quickly back to the dugout.

However, that rhythm did carry over for the Braves, as they notched another two runs in the inning off a Lewis RBI and Kuhio Aloy (Arkansas) single that brought Ryder Waite (Vanderbilt) home.

Instead of responding to the lead change, the Birds faltered in the fourth.

Unable to convert off a Michael Crossland (UC San Diego) and Garza single, Orleans wasn’t able to get anything started.

While the bottom of the fourth seemed more promising when Truman Pauley (Harvard) took the mound and held Bourne to a 1-2-3 inning, nothing ultimately came from the defensive stop.

Tallying another run in the bottom of the fifth, the Braves held a 4-2 edge off a Waite single that scored Nick Groves (Illinois).

The Braves' lead only grew in the bottom of the sixth. After Cole Tryba (UC Santa Barbara) replaced Pauley on the mound, Bourne met him with instant offensive force. After two consecutive singles and a Campbell Smithwick (Mississippi) RBI, the score was 5-2 Braves.

With Groves at bat, Gavin Kelly (West Virginia) advanced to third on a balk. Despite Groves striking out, a Waite single scored Kelly on the next play.

Waite finished with two runs and two RBIs against the Birds.

While an Ickes single scored Javar Williams (Wake Forest) and narrowed the score down to 6-3 Bourne, it would not be enough to propel the Birds past the Braves.

Having Steele Murdock (UC San Diego) finish it off for the final two outs of the eighth inning, Waite was hit by a pitch. After stealing both second and third, Waite now found himself in prime location to run back home one final time.

Off a Murdock wild pitch, Waite did just that, earning the Braves a 7-3 lead that would stick.

And in the top of the ninth, there was nothing that Orleans could do, as Bourne took the game and continued the Birds’ woes.

For Orleans, it’s clear what needs to be done to end the skid.

“It’s just going to be taking care of the baseball,” Garza said. “Over the past couple of games, we’ve made a bunch of defensive mistakes and a lot of mistakes on the base, so just doing the little things correctly will get us back on track.”