CAJUNS BOUNCE BACK WITH VICTORY OVER UNO ... March 26, 2000

CAJUNS BOUNCE BACK WITH VICTORY OVER UNO ... March 26, 2000 NEW ORLEANS - For Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns, good things tend to happen when runners reach base.

Throughout their first two games at Privateer Park, though, Cajun hitters have reached base only to be left there. However, on Sunday, in the rubber match of their weekend Sun Belt Conference series with New Orleans, the UL Lafayette offense began to hit on all cylinders.

"This was a big win, especially because it was on the road," UL Lafayette head coach Tony Robichaux said. "Their kid (starting pitcher Kevin Uhles) did a great job on us early and our kid (Justin Gabriel) did a great job on them. It was a matter of who would make adjustments first. Fortunately, we made some great adjustments."

UL Lafayette (23-2, 8-1 Sun Belt) collected at least one hit in each of the first eight innings en route to a 14-hit day, their highest total since March 12, in a 6-2 victory over the Privateers (14-8, 5-3).

After starting slowly for the third time in as many games, the Cajun offense started rolling in the fourth inning with a Will Hawkins leadoff double. Hawkins scored on Tommy Clark's single to leftfield and the Cajuns never looked back.

UL Lafayette added another run on a Jess Poche single and then followed with single runs in each of the next four innings, including Danny Massiatte's eighth home run of the season in the sixth inning. Massiatte finished a perfect 3-for-3 and Ryan Gill added three hits for the Cajuns, who watched New Orleans snap their 17-game winning streak a day earlier at Privateer Park.

"That shows the depth of our team," said Robichaux, whose leading hitter, Nathan Nelson, left the game in the sixth inning because of a sore lower left back. "We've got guys on this team who can step up and pick us up when another guy goes down."

The Cajun offense benefitted from yet another strong start from Gabriel. The southpaw junior college transfer did not yield a hit in the first four innings and limited the Privateers to only six safeties in 7 1/3 innings before exiting the game. Then, Trey Bullinger entered the game with runners on first and third and one out. However, the Clinton native subdued the Privateer threat with a strikeout and groundout and then worked a perfect ninth for his second save of the season.

"Justin did a great job again," Robichaux said. "After a loss, you can get picked up by a good outing or get buried by that same arm. We've got a good pitching staff. It's hard to get all of them work. We just have to keep the cobwebs off them."

The Cajuns return to New Orleans on Wednesday to face Tulane at 7 p.m. at Turchin Stadium before returning to the comfy confines of M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field to face Louisiana-Monroe in a makeup of the March 15 game that was postponed because of heavy rains.

University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics

CAJUNS BOUNCE BACK WITH VICTORY OVER UNO ... March 26, 2000

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