Brian Benton's ULM Scouting Report
The Cajuns and Warhawks meet this weekend in what could be the series that decides the Sun Belt conference championship. Louisiana-Monroe, picked to finish last in the Sun Belt preseason poll, has far exceeded last season’s 18 win total and finds themselves only two games behind the Cajuns with three conference weekends remaining. The Warhawks were led earlier in the season by balanced hitting and strong starting and closing pitching. But the starting rotation has experienced problems in recent weeks and will see some more change this weekend.
Senior right-hander Bucky Chandler (2-3, 4.50) was the consistent Friday night starter for much of the season, but has had problems keeping pitches down and retiring hitters in recent weeks. 2006 Freshman All-American/SLC 1st Team/SLC Freshman of the Year Ben Soignier (2-1, 10.89) will get the call on Friday night. The sophomore right-hander has struggled on the mound this season, yielding a HR nearly every two innings. Soignier pitched for the first time in three weeks last weekend against Troy, pitching an inning of middle relief. Junior left-hander Keith Christensen (3-3, 4.50) will continue his role as the Saturday starter while Sunday is TBA. Senior right-hander David Mixon (5-0, 2.86, 6 Saves) has been the stopper and team MVP. Mixon has closed on a Friday night and started on a Sunday in conference. If Mixon throws minimally on Friday and rests Saturday, he could go seven innings or so on Sunday. If Mixon cannot go on Sunday, either Chandler or senior right-hander A.J. Ford (5-4, 4.82) could get the call. The bullpen is not deep, but midweek starter Jared Jennings (5-1, 4.42) has been dependable and has logged 20 appearances this season. The junior left-hander threw 78 pitches in a rain-shortened victory over Grambling State Tuesday night.
The Warhawks have some offensive punch as evidenced by their 56 home runs. While shortstop/pitcher Ben Soignier (.261, 2 HR, 26 RBI) has not picked up where he left off last season (.348, 5 HR, 30 RBI), he is still dangerous and is an important part of an offense that has deep ball punch in nearly every slot of the lineup. ULM is led by junior left-fielder Dexter Fontenot (.338, 5 HR, 34 RBI, 10/12 SB, 11 HBP, .463 OB), junior right-fielder A.J. Siggers (.331, 4 HR, 32 RBI), junior second-baseman Kyle Suire (322, 8 HR, 40 RBI, 10/14 SB), and senior first-baseman Bo Bowman (.307, 7 HR, 37 RBI). Defensively, the Warhawks have been inconsistent committing 73 errors with 13 each at the second base and third base positions. Three Warhawks have double digit steals this season.
Returning Cajun pitchers (Farquhar, Wilborn, Laughter, Pilgreen) fared well against ULM last season while David Mixon, Ben Soignier, and Jared Jennings were shelled hard by the Cajuns in the two ’06 meetings. But the Warhawks have a winning attitude this season, are in the thick of the conference title race, and are playing at home. This should be the series to watch this weekend in the Sun Belt.
Brian Benton
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