Where's the retractable roof when you need it?
Where's the retractable roof when you need it?
no doubt one of the emotions of cajuns and their fans after game 1 ..Originally posted by Turbine
grrrrrr
john sounded "stunned" "shocked" not-believing what he had just experienced.. in the post game talk..
he did have the knowledge that "whatever" had just happened.. they have to re-group quickly.. thinking as i type this .. the cajuns are behind in game 2 .. 5-2 top of the last inning..
its not over yet.. although as tony always preaches.. he wants to see how one reacts when things aren't going well .. lets see what the team can do in their last at bat..
LOUISIANA La. - Not much went the way of the Ragin’ Cajuns Saturday afternoon as the Arkansas State Indians claimed both ends of the doubleheader at Moore Field. With the losses, Louisiana moves to 30-19 overall and 10-9 in Sun Belt play. ASU, who came into this week fighting for their playoff lives, move into the eighth and final spot with the wins (and UALR’s losses last night and today). ASU also picked up their first conference series win on the season with today’s victories.
Arkansas State battled back from a 6-0 hole to claim a 12-11 victory over the Cajuns in game one of today’s doubleheader at Moore Field.
Jeff Morgan came on in relief and allowed the winning run as he took the loss in the first half of the twin bill. Morgan (1-1) allowed the lone run off of two hits in an inning and a third of action.
ASU reliever Matt Hicks (2-2) came in to pick up the game one win tossing three innings and allowing one run on four hits. Ryan Hamilton closed the contest to pick up his fourth save of the season.
Mike Sirianni reached base on an infield fielding error but was picked off by Cajuns starter Kevin Ardoin for the third out of the first inning.
Blake Ring (2-2) pitched a solid game two to lead the Indians. Ring picked up the win going the full seven innings allowing two runs on five hits.
Theloss in game two went to Patrick Green. Green (4-2) allowed five runs, two earned on six hits through four and two-thirds innings.
Justin Merendino led off the Cajuns half of the first inning. John Coked dropped the barrel on a bunt single to advance Merendino to third. Rhett Buras homered on a 3-0 pitch after Coker was caught trying to steal second giving Louisiana an early 2-0 lead.
Micah Cockrell was hit with a pitch with the bases juiced to bring in the third run of the game for the Cajuns after Josh Landry singled up the middle. Ryan Core moved the runner to third with a single through the right side before Kevin Preau drew a walk to load the bases.
Buras drove in another run in the second with a double to left after Brad Saloom hit a two-out double to the wall in center.
Landry gave the home team a 6-0 lead with his third homerun on the season. Landry’s two-run shot left the yard via the wall in center.
Karnie Vertz came on in relief of Tharp to get the last out of the inning.
The Cajuns picked up one more run in the third inning as Cockrell doubled to left and tagged up on a deep fly ball to advance to third. Merendino plated Cockrell with a double bringing the score to 7-0.
The Indians pulled two across in the fourth. Brad Burkhead singled to right to open the inning for ASU. Burkhead advanced to second on a groundout to the pitcher. Brad Hayes singled scoring the base runner. Chris Rich doubled to the gap in right-center to score Hayes.
Burkhead homered to with one in the top of the fifth on to pull ASU to within three at 7-4.
ASU picked up two more to make it a one-run game after Siriani singled up the middle and a pair of doubles were knocked off the bats of Hayes and Rich.
Kraig Schambough entered the game in relief of Ardoin to record the last out of the inning.
The Cajuns put a pair of base runners at first and second with no outs in the bottom of the fifth when Core reached on an infield fielding error and Preau singled up the middle. Devon Bourque hit into a fielder’s choice to put runners on the corners. Merendino drew a walk to load the bases. Coker ripped a single into center to score Core and Bourque. A wild pitch scored Merendino and put Coker on third.
Matt Hicks came in to deal for the Indians after Vertz issued a walk to Brad Saloom. Hicks got the last out of the frame, but the damage was done as Louisiana claimed a 10-6 lead.
Andy Runyan drew a walk and took second on an Issac Dillon single to start the sixth for ASU. Adam Roberson stretched a slow-rolling bunt into a base hit to load the bases. Burkhead came through again for ASU driving in two on a single to right.
Sirianni hit into a fielder’s choice to pull the visitors to within one. Hayes homered with Sirianni on to give ASU their first lead of the afternoon at 11-10.
Morgan came out of the bullpen to pitch for Louisiana-Lafayette to get the Cajuns out of the inning.
Ryan Core hit a solo shot in the bottom of the sixth to even things at 11-11.
Geoff Desmond homered to center to untie the game giving the lead back to ASU at 12-11.
Brandt Sanders took over on the hill for the Ragin’ Cajuns in the top of the eighth and would retire the Indians in order.
The Cajuns threatened in the eighth when Landry drove one off the wall in right-center for a double to start the bottom of the inning. Core singled and advanced on the throw in from center to put Landry on third. Pinch hitter Phillip Hawke drew a walk to load the bases.
Saloom singled in the bottom of the ninth before being lifted for a pinch runner. Landry doubled to left with two gone
Hamilton came in to pitch for the Indians and closed out the inning without allowing the tying run to score.
Burkhead started game two with a triple to left-center before an infield groundout plated the runner and gave ASU a 1-0 lead.
Core delivered a two-out single with the bases loaded giving Louisiana a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the first.
Desmond continued with the back-and-forth fashion of the afternoon hitting a solo homerun to tie the game at 2-2 in the top of the second.
Green sat the Tribe in order in the top of the third.
ASU retook the lead in the top of the fifth. Hayes went the opposite way with a three-run shot after Adam Roberson doubled and took third on an infield fielding error that allowed Sirianni to reach base. Hayes’ homerun put the Indians up 5-2.
Sanders came on in relief of Green to get out of the fifth.
Hawke doubled through the hole on the left side of the infield with one gone in the sixth. Hawke took third on a fly out to center, but Ring would get the last out of the inning with a routing fly out to right.
ASU got a pair of insurance runs in the top of the seventh and held on to take game two by a final count of 7-2.
The Cajuns and Indians will wrap up the series tomorrow afternoon with a 1 p.m. tilt at the “Tigue” in Lafayette.
LOUISIANA SI
Indian surprise party
Arkansas State sweeps Cajuns to escape cellar
LOUISIANA La. — In the span of six hours Saturday, Louisiana’s baseball team went from controlling its own destiny to a near-afterthought in the Sun Belt Conference race.
A sweep at the hands of cellar-dwelling Arkansas State left the Ragin’ Cajuns only one game over the .500 mark in league play and left Cajun coach Tony Robichaux looking for answers.
“We had everything in front of us,” Robichaux said after his team dropped a 12-11 opener and a 7-2 nightcap to the Indians. “Now we’ve got the noose around our neck.”
The free-swinging Indians rallied back from a 7-0 deficit in Saturday’s first game, and a two-out three-run homer by Brad Hayes in the fifth inning of the seven-inning nightcap snapped a 2-2 tie and put ASU in position for its first conference sweep of the year.
“We’ve been swinging the bats really well the last three or four weeks,” said Indian coach Keith Kessinger. “On the mound we’ve been struggling, but Blake Ring gave us a big lift today and went all the way, which helps give us a chance tomorrow.”
Ring was the biggest factor in the nightcap, setting the Cajuns (30-19, 10-9 Sun Belt) down on only three hits in the final six innings after Ryan Core’s two-run single temporarily gave the hosts a 2-1 first-inning lead.
The rest of the story
Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com
LOUISIANA La. — After watching sheets of rain roll off the trap at Moore Field Sunday afternoon, Louisiana coach Tony Robichaux was resigned to the fact that there wouldn’t be any baseball for his club.
“It’s just been a tough week,” Robichaux said after 45 minutes of heavy rain made an already-drenched field unplayable for a scheduled Sun Belt Conference series finale against Arkansas State. “We’ve been fighting this for what seems like two weeks now.”
The Cajuns (30-19, 10-9 Sun Belt) managed to get in pregame Senior Day activities, and they and the Indians (26-24, 7-13) began play at 1:28 p.m. and actually got to play one inning before impending weather brought out the tarp for the second time.
The heavy rains began almost immediately after the tarp was put in place, and just before 2:30 p.m. the coaches and umpiring crew made the decision to call the game because of field conditions. As per Sun Belt rules, the game will not be made up.
ASU had taken surprising 12-11 and 7-2 wins on Saturday, and the Cajuns hoped to salvage something from the weekend in Sunday’s game and keep flickering hopes alive for a league regular-season title.
“You can’t blame losses on the weather because they played in the same weather we did,” Robichaux said. “But we had a bad week of preparation. Our pitching was very poor, and the lack of work probably had something to do with that.
“That’s where having our indoor facility will help us next year.”
The rest of the story
Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com
our pitching caved in, very disapointing.......you figure, give your ace a 7 run lead and it's all over. sad to say our pitching let us/themselves down big time, i'm still feeling bad.
LOUISIANA La. — Tony Robichaux wants his Louisiana baseball team to get tough.
“It’s time,” Robichaux said Wednesday after his team completed its final preparations for this weekend’s Sun Belt Conference series at South Alabama. “You always want to come out with a conference championship when you have that chance, but mostly this weekend we’ve got to show some mental toughness.”
The Cajuns still have an outside chance to win the league title going into the final weekend of the regular season, but to do that they’ll have to sweep at USA’s Eddie Stanky Field — a tough proposition since the Jaguars lead the league with a 14-7 mark. The teams open their three-game series Friday at 6 p.m.
The Jags also control their own destiny, since three wins would give them the league title. Two USA wins would open the door for Middle Tennessee to claim the title with a weekend sweep of Arkansas-Little Rock.
The rest of the story
Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com
MOBILE, Ala. — It’s status quo versus shake-it-up.
South Alabama goes into this weekend’s Sun Belt Conference baseball series looking to extend its winning ways ... and claim the league regular-season title.
Louisiana will try to turn things around from a recent slump ... and claim the regular-season title.
Both clubs also will hope to carry momentum into next week’s Sun Belt Tournament, which begins Wednesday at USA’s Eddie Stanky Field. The Cajuns will get a preview of that field beginning tonight when they take on the Jaguars at 6 p.m. in the opener of a three-game Sun Belt series.
The Jaguars (27-25, 14-7) have come back from early-season struggles and have vaulted two games over the .500 mark for the first time this season. USA also has won nine of its last 11 games including seven of nine in Sun Belt play, bumping the Jags into first place in the league standings.
The Cajuns (30-19, 10-9) have a better overall mark, but also have lost six of their last seven conference games. The free-fall dropped UL from the top of the standings and leaves the squad with only the slimmest of hopes for the league crown.
“We’ve put the noose around our own neck,” said UL coach Tony Robichaux, “and now we’ve got to toughen up. The tougher a team is mentally, the better their chances to win on the road. That’s why South Alabama’s in first place.”
The rest of the story
Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com
Louisiana
Stanky Field
USA
8
10
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Ragin' Cajuns 3 0 2 0 0 0 2 1 0 8 14 3 USA 0 2 0 0 5 0 0 3 X 10 14 1 MOBILE, Ala.-Despite banging out five homeruns in the game, the Cajuns couldn’t solve the University of South Alabama Jaguars. The Jags took game one of the series by a 10-8 final after pulling three runs across in the bottom of the eighth inning.
Guillermo Martinez reached on a sharply hit ball to third and stole second with one gone in the bottom of the eighth. Martinez took third on a wild pitch as Louisiana was intentionally walking Adam Lind. Josh Touchstone singled to score Martinez knotting the game at eight.
The Cajuns surrendered a pair of runs to the Jaguars on a Quendon Montgomery single and a pair of errors that allowed Martinez and Touchstone to score.
Justin Rayborn won the game for USA after coming in to pitch the final one and two-thirds inning. Justin Rayborn (2-#3) allowed only two hits without surrendering a run.
Kraig Schambough surrendered three runs on four hits through three and one-thirds innings in the losing effort. Schambough (6-3) was charged with two earned runs while striking out five.
Rhett Buras gave Louisiana an early 3-0 lead in the top of the first with his sixth homerun of the season. Buras stroked his homerun to center after Josh Landry singled up the middle with one gone in the inning. Landry moved to third on Phillip Hawke’s single through the right side.
Kevin Ardoin issued a walk to Brad Gordon to start the USA half of the first. Touchstone advanced the baserunner to second with a two-out single to left; but Ardoin would get Montgomery gazing at strike three to retire the Jaguars.
Jansen Rayborn pulled USA to within one in the bottom of the second with a homerun that came after Justin Harawah singled to left
Justin Bourque and Ryan Core went back-to-back with a pair of homeruns in the top of the third giving the Cajuns a 5-2 lead.
Jansen Rayborn and Tim Land both singled with one gone in the inning.
South Alabama skipper Steve Kittrell was ejected after an animated argument with firstbase umpire Steve Dew on a double-play call that got the Cajuns out of the fourth.
USA starter PJ Walters retired the Cajuns in order in the top of the fifth.
A five run fifth inning was started for the home team when Adam Lind went the opposite way for a double, driving in a run for the Jags in the frame. Lind’s RBI double came after Gordon again drew a walk, this time in the inning. Gordon took second on an infield groundout.
A Touchstone single to right put runners on the corners. Harawah doubled to center to drive in the two tying the game at five.
Jansen Rayborn drove in the go-ahead run with an infield single. The Jag’s sixth run chased Ardoin in favor of Kraig Schambough. Land put USA up 7-5 with a double off the wall in center that scored Rayborn. Schambough hit Guillermo Martinez with a pitch and walked Gordon to load the bases. Schambough struck out Secchiari to put an end to the inning.
Hawke tied the game at seven with a two-run shot that came after Landry singled to center.
Schambough sat the Jags in order in the bottom of the seventh.
Cockrell hit a solo shot over the wall in left to give the Ragin’ Cajuns an 8-7 lead. Cockrell’s homerun closed the book on Walters who was lifted for Justin Rayborn.
UL Lafayette and South Alabama will play tomorrow at 4 p.m. and wrap up the series Sunday at 1 p.m.
Been downhill since 2000 cws......should be the other way around.........
whos man enough to start asking some tough questions?
not I.
Z.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)