The Book: 2003 Softball

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Lady Cajuns cruise past MSU for Classics title.

LAFAYETTE — Jill Robertson has left the building.

So has Danyele Gomez.

So has Lauren Castle.

So has Becky McMurtry.

Louisiana’s Lady Cajuns made short work of the McNeese State Cowgirls in Sunday’s final game of the Louisiana Classics, long-balling their way to a 5-inning, 11-0 victory to clinch the tournament title at Lady Cajun Park.

Coach Stefni Lotief’s team went 4-1 on the weekend. For all intents and purposes, they sewed up the crown with Saturday night’s 5-3 win over Notre Dame, which finished 3-2 with a 12-7 Sunday win over Northwestern State.

McMurtry was named Most Outstanding Player on the Cajun-laden All-Tournament Team after lashing her fourth home run of the weekend in Sunday’s runaway win and going 6-for-15 with 9 RBI in the five games.

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Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com

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Gomez, Mitchell pace Lady Cajuns’ twinbill sweep

LAFAYETTE – Danyele Gomez continued her breakout freshman campaign, blasting three home runs and driving in nine runs and Brooke Mitchell tossed her first career no-hitter as Louisiana's Lady Cajuns softball team cruised to a 4-0, 13-5 doubleheader sweep of Southern Mississippi here Sunday at Lady Cajun Park.

Gomez was 3-for-3 with two home runs and six RBIs in the second game of the afternoon twinbill to pace the Lady Cajuns offense which belted five home runs in that game.

The Metairie native ended the day 4-for-6 with nine RBIs and three home runs. She now has six homers this season and 18 RBIs and raised her team-leading average to .413.

Louisiana (12-2) concluded the day with seven home runs to run its season total to 29 home runs through 14 games for an average of 2.1 home runs per game. The Lady Cajuns have hit 22 home runs in their last seven outings. Louisiana is now on pace to hit 103 home runs which would easily shatter the school record of 76 set last season.

Louisiana has won 10 of its last 11 and will conclude its current nine-game homestand at 3 p.m. today against Boston University in a doubleheader.

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South Louisiana Publishing

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allow time for video to load.

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I had to leave the game in the fourth. By then the HOMERUN fun was well under way.

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Winner of one of the HomeRun shirts.

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Mr. Hebert and Mr. Harris. Making and taking notes.

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Run win streak to seven games

LAFAYETTE — Louisiana's Lady Cajun softball team ran its season-high winning streak to seven games with a pair of 8-0 mercy-rule wins over Boston University Monday afternoon at Lady Cajun Park in the final game of the Cajuns’ current nine-game homestand.

Louisiana (14-2) took advantage of the home run in the first game and capitalized on BU miscues in the second in the first-ever meeting between the two schools.

The Cajuns swept their seventh straight twinbill dating back to last season and have now won three straight games by the eight-run mercy rule. Louisiana has collected six run-rule wins out of 16 games this season and has outscored the opposition 105-27.

In game one, Brooke Mitchell and Michael Parrott combined for a one-hit shutout of the Terriers (0-5). The Cajun offense was guided by three home runs hit by Lauren Castle, Danyele Gomez and Joe Webre.

Gomez got the Cajuns rolling in their half of the first when she laced a three-run home run off of the scoreboard in right field for a quick 3-0 lead.

Webre made BU pitcher Tiffany Finateri pay for pitching around Gomez in the third inning with a towering home run over the left field wall and into the bleachers for a 6-0 lead.

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LAFAYETTE — Louisiana’s Lady Cajuns softball right fielder Danyele Gomez and pitcher Brooke Mitchell were honored as the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Softball Hitter and Pitcher of the Week on Tuesday.

Gomez, a freshman from Metairie, earned the state’s hitter of the week award after going 4-for-6 with three home runs and nine runs batted in the Ragin’ Cajuns sweep over Southern Miss last weekend.

She opened the doubleheader by driving in three of the Cajuns’ four runs with a three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning.

In the second game, Gomez stroked a two-run home run in the bottom of the first inning and another three-run home run in the bottom of the fourth.

Mitchell earned her second pitcher of the week award this season after tossing a no-hitter in the Cajuns’ 4-0 win over Southern Miss in the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader.

It was her second no-hitter of the season. She tossed a perfect game in the season opener against La. Tech.

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LAFAYETTE — Louisiana’s Lady Cajuns softball team left Wednesday for the 2003 KIA Klassic, which runs today through Sunday at Cal State-Fullerton in Fullerton, Calif.

The Cajuns (14-2) will face their toughest challenges of the young season in their ninth straight appearance in the KIA Klassic, one of the most prestigious regular-season events in college softball.

This year’s Klassic features nine teams ranked in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Top 25 poll — six of which are in the Top 10.

Louisiana’s first appearance in 1994 produced a tournament championship.

The tournament gets under way with pool play today. Louisiana is a member of Pool D and is paired with No. 2 Arizona (26-2), No. 16 Florida State (18-7) and Long Beach State (9-12).

Both Arizona and FSU made it to the semifinals of the 2002 Women’s College World Series, with Arizona advancing to the title game.

Once pool play is over on Friday the teams will be paired in brackets according to their finish in pool play.

The Lady Cajuns will play at 1 p.m. (CST) today against Long Beach State (9-12), and will also match up with the second-ranked Wildcats at 5 p.m. (CST).

Louisiana and Arizona are meeting each other in pool play for the third straight season. The Lady Cajuns will conclude pool play on Friday at 11 a.m. (CST) against FSU.

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South Louisiana Publishing
Staff Reports
Louisiana SI

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FULLERTON, Calif. — Senior Becky McMurtry hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth inning to help propel Louisiana to a 3-0 win over No. 16 Florida State Friday in the final game of pool play for both teams in the 2003 KIA Klassic hosted by Cal State Fullerton.

Later Friday, Oklahoma’s Erin Evans hit a bloop single to left field in the bottom of the sixth to break up Brooke Mitchell’s no-hitter.

Evans then stole second, advanced to third on a passed ball and scored on a Leah Gulla sacrifice fly as sixth-ranked Oklahoma (24-3) escaped with a narrow 1-0 win over the Cajuns (15-5).

The loss in the first game of bracket play drops Louisiana into the consolation bracket at 3 p.m. (CST) today against the loser of Hawaii and Fresno State’s bracket game. It will be the Lady Cajuns’ final game in the tournament.

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LAFAYETTE — Louisiana softball coach Stefni Lotief announced Friday that a doubleheader with Louisiana Tech on Monday has been added to the team’s schedule.

The Lady Cajuns (15-5) will travel to Ruston on Monday for a 4 p.m. doubleheader with the Lady Techsters at the Lady Techsters Softball Complex located on the La. Tech campus.

It will be the Lady Cajuns first action in 10 days. They have been off since Friday, March 14 following the KIA Klassic.

Following Monday’s games, Louisiana will return home to begin a 16-game homestand. The stretch, which will conclude the Lady Cajuns 2003 home schedule and run through April 17, begins on Thursday, March 27 at 7 p.m. in a single game against SEC-member Alabama.

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LAFAYETTE — The 25th-ranked Louisiana Lady Cajuns will open their season-long 16-game homestand today at Lady Cajun Park in a 7 p.m. single-game softball showdown against No. 16 Alabama.

The game will be carried live on SportsRadio ESPN 1420-KPEL AM in the La. area. Jay Walker and Steve Peloquin will call of the action live from Lady Cajun Park beginning at 6:45 p.m.

The Lady Cajuns (15-5) enter the game fresh off of their first ranking of the 2003 season and will be playing their first contest in 13 days.

Louisiana last played on Friday, March 14 at the KIA Klassic against then-No. 6 Oklahoma, falling 1-0 on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth.

The Lady Cajuns are 10-1 at home this season, including 7 straight, and have taken 110 of the last 122 dating back to 1999. The Cajuns are 58-8 (.879) at home under coach Stefni Lotief.

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South Louisiana Publishing
Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com

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Louisiana vs Alabama

I am just out of radio range, and can't hook up on the internet.

What I think I heard is the score in the top of the 5th is . . .

Louisiana 1
Alabama 0

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LAFAYETTE — Hits and runs were at a premium Thursday night at Lady Cajun Park, and Brooke Mitchell made sure Louisiana didn't need much of either one.

Mitchell limited No. 16 Alabama to one hit and struck out seven as the Lady Cajuns scored a 2-0 victory to improve to 16-5 on the season.

The Crimson Tide, which used three pitchers in anticipation of its weekend series at SEC rival LSU, dropped to 25-11 despite allowing just four hits by the home team.

“I think our kids looked at it as a great opportunity at home,” coach Stefni Lotief said of her No. 25 Lady Cajuns. “They wanted to go out and have fun. They were loose, and I knew they were going to play every pitch.
“Brooke was just phenomenal. She and (catcher) Joy (Webre) work so well together. She was in total control of the game.”

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South Louisiana Publishing
Bruce Brown
bbrown@theadvertiser.com