The Book: 2004 Baseball

[DieHard1280]

That CWS was now four years ago. The program has not been strengthened at all from that experience. It looks like it may have been a flash in the pan type thing. I for one am not encouraged at all by this season.

GEAUX CAJUNS

[NewsCopy]

MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama did what a four-time conference baseball champion is supposed to do here Sunday afternoon — take advantage of opportunities.

The Jaguars scored in all but two innings and plated eight of their 10 runs after two batters were out, and that was enough for a 10-7 victory over UL Lafayette in the Sun Belt Conference and regular-season finale for both teams.

The Jaguars (29-26, 16-8) had to settle for a share of the league title even with Sunday’s win since Middle Tennessee also won its season finale, and USA will be the number two seed for the league tournament that begins Wednesday here at Stanky Field.

The Cajun squad (31-21, 11-11), as it turned out, could not have affected its seeding one way or the other regardless of Sunday’s outcome. UL Lafayette is the fourth-seeded team for the eight-team tournament and will meet New Mexico State at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday in their first-round game.

But Cajun head coach Tony Robichaux wasn’t as concerned about his team’s seeding as its performance Sunday.

“The early runs they scored, we basically gave them,” Robichaux said, “and you can’t give people runs on Sunday ... or any day. We gave up too many runs early in the game.”

USA, which has won or shared the league title every year since 2001, scored two runs in both the first and third innings after the Cajuns had bolted out to a 3-0 first-inning edge courtesy of Phillip Hawke’s RBI single and Rhett Buras’ two-run homer.

Cajun starter Ian Pecoraro couldn’t make that lead hold up, walking two batters in the first including one with the bases loaded and then being touched for a walk, a wild pitch, an RBI single and the first of Jansen Rayborn’s two doubles.

The rest of the story

Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com

[NewsCopy]

MOBILE, Ala. — The MASH unit that Louisiana's baseball team is rapidly becoming will limp into this week’s Sun Belt Conference Tournament with a lot of questions looking for answers.

The Ragin’ Cajuns open play in the league’s postseason event Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. against New Mexico State, knowing that winning the tournament is almost certainly its only path to NCAA postseason play.

That’s the biggest question, but there are many other concerns for coach Tony Robichaux as the Cajuns (31-21, 11-11 Sun Belt) head into the league meet at South Alabama’s Stanky Field as the number four seed against fifth-seeded NMSU (32-23-1, 12-12).

The foremost worry is injuries. The Cajuns have been without starting third baseman Dallas Morris since May 2 when he suffered a lower leg injury rounding second against New Orleans. Perhaps not by coincidence, UL Lafayette has won only one conference game since that date, going 1-5.

Morris is sidelined the rest of the year unless the Cajuns make a deep run into the NCAA Tournament, and is the most serious of the hurts. But several others beset the squad over the past weekend in the regular-season finale series here against South Alabama.

“That’s what happens when you play hard and go to war,” Robichaux said. “You have casualties when you play hard and we played hard. Now we have to suck it up and move on.”

The rest of the story

Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com

[NewsCopy]

Mobile, Ala. - Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns Baseball team will enter this year’s Dodge Sun Belt Conference Tournament as the Number 4 seed and play fifth seeded New Mexico State in round one. The Tournament starts tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. with Louisiana and New Mexico State playing at 3:30 p.m. at South Alabama’s Stanky Field.

The Cajuns will be without the services of INF/DH Justin Bourque in this year’s tournament. Bourque suffered a torn ACL in Sunday’s game against South Alabama on a knee-to-knee collision with the third base umpire. Infielder Jeffries Tatford will drive in from Lafayette and take Bourque’s place on the 25-man roster.

Fans can follow the Ragin’ Cajuns in the Dodge Sun Belt Conference Baseball Tournament on ESPNRadio 1420 AM or by logging on to www.ragincajuns.com and clicking on the “listen live “ icon on the homepage.

Fans can also view the standings and tournament bracket at www.sunbeltsports.com.

LOUISIANA SI

[NewsCopy]

FINAL CONFERENCE STANDINGS

Standings		SUNBELT				OVERALL
Seed	TEAM	W	L	PCT.	STK.	W	L	T	PCT.	STK.
1	*Middle Tennessee	16	8	.667	W8	37	18	0	.673	W3
2	*South Alabama	16	8	.667	W1	29	26	0	.527	W1
3	New Orleans	13	10	.565	L1	27	26	0	.509	L1
4	Louisiana	11	11	.500	L1	31	21	0	.596	L1
5	New Mexico State	12	12	.500	L3	32	23	1	.580	L5
6	Florida International	12	12	.500	W2	27	31	0	.466	W2
7	Western Kentucky	12	12	.500	W1	30	26	0	.536	W1
8	Arkansas State	8	15	.348	L2	29	26	0	.527	L2
#	Arkansas-Little Rock	6	18	.250	L6	16	32	0	.333	L7
* Co Champs     # Did not make tournament

LOUISIANA SI

[NewsCopy]

Sun Belt honors Bourque
Teurlings Catholic product was only Cajun on the first team

MOBILE, Ala. — The biggest issue for Louisiana’s baseball team entering the Sun Belt Conference tournament is reflected in the All-Sun Belt team announced here Tuesday night.

For only the second time since 1997, a period spanning most of Tony Robichaux’s Cajun coaching career, his squad does not have a pitcher on either the first or second team.

“That tells you something,” Robichaux said at Tuesday’s pre-tournament social and banquet. “We’ve got to get tougher on the mound. We’ll only go as far as we can pitch.”

The Cajuns were better represented elsewhere on the all-conference first and second teams selected by the league coaches. UL Lafayette had one first-team pick, senior designated hitter Justin Bourque, and three selections to the second team — catcher Ryan Core, first baseman Phillip Hawke and third baseman Dallas Morris.

Only one other school matched that figure, with league co-champion and tournament No. 1 seed Middle Tennessee putting four on the first team and five on the overall squad. New Orleans and No. 7 seed Western Kentucky each had three picks with two on the first team and New Mexico State, the Cajuns’ opponent in today’s 3:30 p.m. opener, had one first-teamer and three picks overall.

The rest of the story

Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com

[NewsCopy]

MOBILE, Ala. — Louisiana has history on its side, along with a weekend’s worth of experience at the tournament site.

But New Mexico State has a full squad, and a rested squad, and that could be a big advantage today when the Ragin’ Cajuns and the Aggies meet today in the opening round of the Dodge Sun Belt Conference Baseball Tournament.

The Cajuns (31-21) and the Aggies (32-23-1) are the fourth and fifth seeds in the eight-team double-elimination event, and play in today’s third tournament game at 3:30 p.m. at South Alabama’s Eddie Stanky Field.

No. 3 New Orleans and No. 6 Florida International kick off the tournament and the pursuit of the league’s automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament at 9:30 a.m. Top-seeded Middle Tennessee meets No. 8 Arkansas State at 12:30 p.m., and host and second-seeded South Alabama meets No. 7 Western Kentucky in today’s nightcap at 6:30 p.m.

The Cajun squad earned the No. 4 seed despite losing five of its last six and eight of its last 10 in Sun Belt play, including losing two of three here at Stanky Field in a season-ending series with USA.

But the Aggies haven’t fared much better, being swept in their final league series by that USA squad and entering the tournament on a five-game losing streak after non-conference losses to ranked foes Texas Tech (20-3) and Arizona State (12-5) last week.

New Mexico State had its open weekend in conference play at the end of the regular season, and the Aggies will go into today’s game having not played in seven days.

“To be honest, that should be a huge advantage for us,” said NMSU coach Rocky Ward. “We didn’t have to make any huge pitching decisions based on what we did over the past weekend. And the way this league was, nobody could save anybody. People were scrambling for seeds, and we should have all our arms and bodies rested.”

The rest of the story

Dan McDonald
dmcdonald@lafayette.gannett.com

[Cajun Express]

hey coach the pitchers are the ones you recruited, and coached. i am still a robe backer, but this team belongs to him in both the good and the bad. he needs to do a better job of evaluation and recruiting.

coach robe could also use a little help from the baseball gods. we have had way to many injuries to the pitching staff over the last 4 seasons. one has to wonder if we are doing anything that is leading to that.

[LSU Bob]

Here is a quote from Kevin Garnet

"That’s what happens when you play hard and go to war,” Robichaux said. “You have casualties when you play hard and we played hard. Now we have to suck it up and move on."

Oh wait it's the baseball coach at UL-Laf sorry my mistake.

[1stTake]

Suck it up and move on goofball you add nothing to the table.

[RaginRash]

Geaux Gators

[CajunFanatic91]

Congrats to the Cajuns on the win and good luck againts Middle Tennesse State tomorrow!