UL – A daring and perfectly executed squeeze by Kyle Olasin broke a seven-all tie in the 11th inning to lift the Cajuns to an 8-7 win over the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks Tuesday night at M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field. .
The Cajuns stopped a three-game slide with the win and improved to 18-15-1 overall and 8-3 in their last 11 games. Michael Cook won the game on two shutdown innings of relief to close out the contest, allowing no runs on just three hits, one walk and two strikeouts.
Olasin had the bases loaded for his walk-off bunt down the third base line, scoring Matt Hicks from third after he came in to pinch run for Chad Keefer. Overall, Olasin was 2-for-4 with two RBI.
For UL, it was the ninth-straight win within the confines of “The Tigue,” the last seven served in comeback fashion. Louisiana is now 12-5-1 in front of a home crowd.
Chad Keefer was the offensive leader, blasting two-run home runs in back-to-back at bats in the fourth and sixth innings, supplying four RBI on his 3-for-5 night.
Other offensive leaders for Louisiana included Matt Goulas (2-for-4, one RBI), Kyle Bostick (2-for-3), and Greg Fontenot (1-for-5, one RBI). A Tyler Benzel (1-for-4) double in the sixth inning extended a 20-game team double streak, and a 21-game team extra-base hit streak.
UL used six pitchers in the game, Cook taking home the ‘W’. Matt Lackie started on the mound, and cruised until the fifth inning when he allowed three of his four earned runs and left without recording an out. In total he went four innings and allowed six hits, two of them in the fifth, with two walks and three strikeouts.
Blake Haagen (2.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB 3 K), Randall Bulliard (0.0 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 0 K) and Zach Osborne (2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K) pitched the Cajuns through the eighth to get to Justin Robichaux. He threw one inning, allowing no runs on one hit, one walk and no strikeouts. Cook entered to finish off the game and faced eight batters in his two inning appearance.
Louisiana led 7-5 going into the seventh inning when Bulliard put runners on base and Osborne allowed the hit to bring two in to even the score. Osborne and Robichaux then combined to keep the Lumberjacks from taking the advantage, while Chris Court kept the Cajuns bats at bay all the way until the 11th.
Chad Keefer singled his way aboard to start the 11th and Matt Hicks came in to pinch run. Alex Fuselier hit a grounder right back to Court, but his throw to second for the fielder’s choice veered into the outfield and allowed Hicks to advance to third.
Richard Folmer replaced Court on the mound and induced a groundout from Tyler Benzel, which moved Fuselier to second but did not allow the run to score. The Jacks intentionally walked Kyle Bostick to bring up Kyle Olasin, and that’s when Olasin delivered his bunt to squeeze Hicks across the plate and win the game for the Cajuns.
UL Press