GABRIEL HURLS CAJUNS PAST LSU?March 12, 2002
3/12/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
GABRIEL HURLS CAJUNS PAST LSU...March 12, 2002
BATON ROUGE -- Louisiana's Ragin' Cajun baseball team rode the arm of left-hander Justin Gabriel, and the squad got some clutch hitting late in a 2-1 win at eighth-ranked LSU Tuesday night at Alex Box Stadium.
Gabriel (3-1) went the distance, allowing seven hits while striking out eight in helping Louisiana-Lafayette (12-6) snap a three-game skid. LSU's Lane Mestepey (3-1) got the loss, giving up two runs in three innings.
Cajun center fielder Jason Wilson provided the eventual game-winner, lacing an RBI single past a drawn in infield in the ninth. The slap plated Justin Bouque, who led off the frame with a double. The Cajuns scored their first run in the seventh on a Phillip Hawke sacrifice fly.
LSU (13-6) did not get many scoring chances against Gabriel. The 2000 All-American was not expected to go the distance, but his pitch-count was so low, head coach
Tony Robichaux decided not to pull his ace.
"We went and got him at Texas A&M and we went and got him last weekend against Houston," said Robichaux, who improved to 9-14 all-time against the five-time national champions. "We ended up losing both games with him in the dugout. I told him this game was his to win or lose, and he went out and got it done."
LSU got six quality innings from Jake Tompkins, who held the Cajuns to just three hits in six innings. The two teams combined for just 12 hits in the normally hitter-friendly ballpark. The game took under two-and-a-half hours to play.
Louisiana-Lafayette, which is currently in a stretch of eight straight games against teams ranked in the Top 10 of at least one poll, will travel to seventh-ranked Wichita State for a three-game series this weekend. LSU will visit "Tigue" Moore Field at 6:30 p.m. next Tuesday.
--LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE--
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