PRIVATEERS FORCE DECIDING GAME ON SUNDAY ... May 13, 2000

LAFAYETTE – New Orleans scored four runs in the last two innings and held off a late Cajun comeback on the way to a 8-5 victory over Louisiana's Ragin' Cajun baseball team on Saturday at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field.

That sets up a one-game showdown between the two teams at Moore Field on Sunday with the winner claiming the 2000 Sun Belt Conference regular season title. The Privateers, who will enter the 2000 SBC Tournament next weekend at no worse than the No. 2 seed, entered the three-game series on Friday needing a sweep and are up 2-0 in the series after taking an 8-1 win on Friday.

UNO took a 6-2 lead into the bottom of the eighth inning after scoring two runs on John Ballon's 13th home run to lead off and then an interference call at third base, which allowed Todd Thompson to score.

The 20th-ranked Cajuns put three runs on the scoreboard to cut into the margin and make it a 6-5 game. Neil Simoneaux laced an RBI-double down the left field line to start the rally before Steven Feehan lifted a sacrifice fly to score Rick Haydel and Ryan Gill ripped an RBI-single to score Simoneaux.

However, UNO (34-21, 19-9 SBC) rallied with two insurance runs in the top of the ninth. Steve Rowell lifted a sacrifice fly to score Sammy Cooper and Matt Matejcek's RBI-single plated Drew Pizza for an 8-5 UNO lead.

Ryan Lousteau then retired the side in the ninth to record his team-leading sixth save.

Louisiana-Lafayette (39-14, 20-9 SBC) had its chances earlier in the game but was unable to come up with the clutch hit when it needed it. The Cajuns loaded the bases in the sixth and seventh innings but walked away with no runs. In the sixth, the team had the bases loaded with no outs, but UNO starter Jason Waddell got Scott Atwood to foul out and struck out Haydel before forcing Neil Simoneaux into a groundout.

"We didn't get the big hit down the stretch and then we let it get away in the end with the pitching," head coach Tony Robichaux said. "We had opportunities early and when you don't convert you put yourself in a position to play the game perfectly which is impossible because you are playing an imperfect game."

After jumping out to a 4-0 lead through the first four innings, the Cajuns answered with two runs in the fifth on RBI-hits from Feehan and Simoneaux.

Cajun starter Justin Gabriel lost only his second game this season to fall to 8-2. The junior southpaw gave up five hits and four runs in 5.0 innings.

UNO was led by Thompson who went 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI with Ballon, Matejcek and Rowland Skinner each chipping in with two RBIs. Skinner and Rowell – who saw his Sun Belt Conference-record 27-game hitting streak snapped – each posted a team-high two RBIs.

Nathan Nelson led the Cajun offense with a 3-for-5 performance while Simoneaux – returning to the Cajun lineup after injuring his hamstring at McNeese State on April 25 – posted a team-high two RBIs.

University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics

PRIVATEERS FORCE DECIDING GAME ON SUNDAY ... May 13, 2000

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