There was an increased level of satisfaction found in the success of the 2023 season for Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Softball head coach Gerry Glasco.

The Ragin' Cajuns extended their impressive streak of consecutive conference series won to 81 straight, claimed a fourth consecutive Sun Belt Conference regular season and tournament championship, collected the program's 24th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, had a No. 9 RPI rating and finished ranked Top 20 across the board in all major national polls.

But the greatest achievement of 2023 came through a trip earned to Seattle for an NCAA Super Regional appearance that's left Glasco and his staff yearning for more.

One thing's for certain, though: you will never catch Glasco and the Louisiana Softball program resting on their laurels.

A mere few weeks after the final out in Seattle was recorded, they were covering ground on the recruiting trail making sure no stone was left unturned in an effort to keep the momentum rising.

"The Ragin' Cajuns program is a very historic and important part of the college softball landscape," Glasco said. "It is extremely important to the overall reputation of the Louisiana Athletics Department, and we want to do everything we can as a coaching staff to maintain our place in college softball."

Much of the Ragin' Cajuns success in recent years has been a byproduct of the team's depth, particularly in the pitching staff. Heading into the offseason, Glasco and his staff set out to not just keep the status quo, but further enhance the advantage.

"The biggest key for us going into the offseason was knowing that we lost three senior pitchers," Glasco said. "We were able to add depth through veteran drop ball pitcher Denali Loecker and another veteran pitcher in Lexie Delbrey, who has World Series experience and was very successful at an SEC program.

"We also feel bringing in Sam Ryan, who is currently pitching for the Canadian national team, gives us both experience and depth," Glasco added. "We do expect huge things from our returnees Sam Landry and Chloe Riassetto, but believe they will benefit from the added help in the bullpen."

The work put in to rebuild the pitching staff depth also keeps Louisiana at the forefront of the nation's top collegiate softball programs.

"You are definitely seeing a trend among Top 25 college softball programs going to a four-to-six pitcher rotation," Glasco said. "The benefit of having multiple pitchers in your rotation is that you can match your pitcher's strength to the offensive weaknesses of your opponents."

In going over the roster with a fine-tooth comb, Glasco and his staff didn't stop in the pitcher's circle.

"We have added depth on defense with the addition of infielders Brooke Ellestad, Sam Roe and Gabbie Stutes," Glasco said. "I love our roster. We have a very deep and talented pitching staff, we have power offensively and we have team speed."

Drawing on the benefits of the deep and talented bench in the 2023 season served as a guiding light for Glasco in shoring up the 2024 roster.

"The 2023 season was challenging with the Florida trip and losing our leadoff hitter Mihyia Davis during that timeframe made it even more challenging, "Glasco said. "Depth is a critical element of college softball and 2023 seemed to heighten our awareness of that."

So what's the next priority when Glasco and his group assemble in August?
"Developing a deeper and more talented roster into a team, in order to take the next step, will be No. 1 on the list," Glasco said. "We want to get back to the super regional with this ball club and take the next step to the Women's College World Series.

"I believe the pieces are in place for our program to have an extremely successful 2024 season and to reach new heights," Glasco added.

When the four-time defending Sun Belt champions return to campus in August they'll begin preparations for the seventh season of Glasco's tenure and continue the quest of returning the Ragin' Cajuns back to college softball's promised land of Oklahoma City.

The newly acquired roster pieces will join returning team members Mihyia Davis, Jourdyn Campbell, Alexa Langeliers, Maddie Hayden, Sophie Piskos, Sam Landry, Lauren Allred, Laney Credeur, Victoria Valdez, Taylor Roman, Cecilia Vasquez, Chloe Riassetto, Kayla Falterman and Samantha Graeter in generating excitement for Ragin' Cajuns fans in 2024.