Ragin? Cajun News

3/10/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

HOUSTON USES LONG BALL TO SWEEP CAJUNS March 10, 2002

LAFAYETTE – When the 16th-ranked Houston Cougar baseball team walked into "Tigue" Moore Field Sunday, the squad had gone deep six times. Not anymore.

The Cougars belted out a season-best five home runs and overcame a strong Louisiana-Lafayette rally to take a 9-8 win Sunday afternoon. UH catcher Chris Snyder hit a towering solo home run in the eighth, breaking an 8-8 tie, to lift the Cougars (12-4) to their seventh straight win and a three-game sweep over the 27th-ranked Cajuns (11-6).

UH infielder Brett Cooley hit two home runs, including a grand slam, while Hyung Cho and Jesse Crain also hit round-trippers. The five-homer assault was part of just a six-hit day for the Cougars, who left only one runner on base.

It was a much better offensive effort for the hosts, though. After recording just seven hits in the first two games, the Cajuns rapped out 11 hits Sunday. Third baseman Scott Carboni went 3-for-4 with two RBIs, and first baseman Phillip Hawke went 3-for-3 -- which included his first home run of 2002.

Despite an aggressive Cajun offense, UH still jumped ahead for the third straight game. The Cougars scored a run in the top of the first, but the Cajuns took their only lead of the series with two runs in the second.

UH, though, got to Cajun starter Kevin Ardoin with three runs in the third. In the fourth, Ardoin did not get much defensive help in loading the bases. Head coach Tony Robichaux brought in reliever Andy Gros, and Cooley greeted the southpaw with a slam over the left field wall.

Gros, however, let the Cajuns get back in it by holding the Cougars scoreless during the next three innings. After scoring single runs in the fourth and fifth, Louisiana-Lafayette got three in the sixth keyed by a two-run home run by Doug Vicknair. The Cajuns tied it in the seventh on a two-out, RBI single by Carboni.

But Snyder put UH ahead to stay with his solo shot to lead off the eighth. The effort made a winner out of UH reliever Matt Hooper (1-0) who got the last two outs of the seventh. Crain used an overpowering fastball to strike out four in the final two innings and get the save.

Gros (2-1) got the hard-luck loss despite giving up just two hits and striking out six in six innings of work.

Louisiana-Lafayette will try to bounce back Tuesday when it travels to LSU for a 6:30 p.m. midweek encounter.

--LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE--