UL – Nolan Gisclair’s (Marrero, La.) bloop RBI single to shallow right-center field in the eighth inning snapped Louisiana’s three-game losing streak to lift the Ragin’ Cajuns to a 4-3 win over the Northwestern State Demons on “Turn Back the Clock Night” at M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field.

Wednesday night’s win was head coach Tony Robichaux’s 500th victory as the Ragin’ Cajuns skipper. Louisiana (18-18) won the season series with Northwestern State (18-17) three games to one.

Senior southpaw Brent Solich (Lakewood Ranch, Fla.) finally got off the snide on the mound, tossing two innings of near-flawless relief for his first win of the season. Solich (1-3) struck out three of the seven batters he faced.

Northwestern State’s Kyle Broughton suffered the loss, allowing the game-winning run on four hits in two innings of work. NSU starter Johnnie Santangelo was touched for three runs on three hits with three strikeouts through 5 2/3 innings.

Despite pitching to a no-decision, Louisiana starter Matt Broussard (Breaux Bridge, La.) tossed a season-high seven innings. Broussard allowed three runs on seven hits with five strikeouts. Broussard’s seven innings is a season-high by a Cajuns midweek starter tying Michael Cook (against Southeastern Louisiana on March 5) and his previous outing against Northwestern State last week.

Scott Hawkins (Collierville, Tenn.) led the charge as the Cajuns’ lone multi-hit performer, finishing 2-for-3 with his first triple of the season. Gisclair, Jordan Poirrier (Reserve, La.) and William Long (Valrico, Fla.) each added a hit and a RBI.

Mike Jaworski paced the Demons offense with a 3-for-4 night that included a two-run homer in the first inning.

Northwestern State picked up where it left off in Tuesday’s win in Natchitoches. With one on and one out, Jaworski cranked a two-run home run off the old scoreboard in left field for a 2-0 lead.

The Demons added an insurance run in the fifth for a 3-0 advantage. Chase Lyles and Denney Choate led off with back-to-back singles before Lyles scored on a Broussard throwing error on an attempt pick-off at first.

Louisiana equaled the score in the home half of the fifth, 3-3. Chance Harst (Lafayette, La.) roped a triple into the right-center gap and later scored on Poirrier’s RBI sacrifice fly. Travis Whipple (Morgan City, La.) later reached on a Choate fielding error at shortstop. Choate’s miscue allowed Gisclair to score from second, cutting the deficit to 3-2.

Long then scored Whipple with a RBI single to left-center to tie the game at 3-3.

In the eighth, freshman Brian Bowman (Lafayette, La.) his third hit in three straight at bats against Northwestern State pitching, sending a single back up the middle. Two batters later, Hawkins’ infield single moved Bowman to second. Harst then drew a one-out walk to load the bases for Gisclair who promptly lifted a bloop single that dropped into shallow right-center field.

Gisclair’s eventual game-winning hit played Bowman for the 4-3 go-ahead score.

Then, in the ninth, Solich allowed just one base runner, while striking out two Demons to record his first victory of the season.

Louisiana returns to Sun Belt Conference play this weekend when the Ragin’ Cajuns to travel to Mobile, Ala., to face the South Alabama Jaguars at Stanky Field.

RaginCajuns.com

Chris Yandle