University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
New Mexico State
Gomez Sets Freshman Home Run Record, Cajuns Sweep Aggies Again
4/13/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Sunday, April 13, 2003
LAFAYETTE – The 21st-ranked Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns softball team had the offense in high gear for the second straight day as the Cajuns racked up yet another doubleheader sweep in taking a 9-0, 18-3 pair of mercy-rule wins over an outmanned New Mexico State squad here on a sunny Sunday afternoon at Lady Cajun Park on Senior Day.
UL Lafayette (28-5, 8-0 Sun Belt) pounded out 27 runs, 27 hits and eight home runs en route to a Sun Belt Conference softball four-game sweep of NMSU (7-44, 0-8 Sun Belt).
The Cajuns scored in every inning of each game including a 10-run bulge in the fourth inning of game two.
Combined with yesterday's barrage, the Cajuns ended the weekend scoring 58 runs and tallying 51 hits over the four games while hitting 13 home runs.
Though Senior Day was celebrated before the day's first game, it was a freshman who stole the spotlight.
Metairie
native and Cabrini High School product Danyele Gomez
ended the doubleheader 6-for-7 with three home runs,
seven RBI and four runs scored.
She hit two home runs in the bottom of the fourth inning of game two and was 4-for-4 with six RBI in that second game – her second six-RBI game of the season.
It was Gomez's first home run of that fourth inning which allowed her to make school history. With that home run, she set the school's freshman record for home runs in a season with her 13th. She eclipsed the previous freshman record of 12 home runs set by former All-American shortstop Alana Addison in 1999.
She is now just two home runs away from tying the single-season record of 16 established by Addison in 2002.
Senior All-American third baseman Becky McMurtry extended her season-high hitting streak to 15 games as she hit a solo home run in the first inning of game one and led off the fourth inning of game two with a single to left center.
The
North Platte, Neb., native also tied her career-best
hitting streak.
She is hitting 22-for-36 (.611 average) during the streak with six doubles, five home runs and 19 RBI. She has risen her Sun Belt-leading batting average to .453 and is hitting .632 (12-for-19) in SBC play.
Freshman Afton Thoms and senior Rachel Reese combined for a no-hitter in game one with Reese collecting her first decision at UL Lafayette.
In game two Michael Parrott went the distance surrendering three runs and four hits as the Aggies scored at Lady Cajun Park for the first time in eight games and 44 innings.
With the sweep, the Cajuns extended their season-high winning streak to 13 games and home win streak to 20. Dating back to last season, the Cajuns have now won 22 straight Sun Belt games and improve to 42-2 all-time in league play.
The twinbill sweep was UL Lafayette's 13th straight and 19th in the last 20 doubleheaders. UL Lafayette is now 13-0 all-time against the Aggies and has outscored them 122-22 in the 13 meetings.
In game one, the Louisiana-Lafayette wasted no time in jumping on the Aggies.
Jill Robertson and McMurtry hit back-to-back home runs to
lead off the first inning and give the Cajuns a quick
2-0 lead. Robertson's home run was her eighth of the
season and the team's 50th.
Brittany Bryant, who reached on a fielder's choice, would score later that inning as she stole home while Lauren Castle was being chased back to first on a steal attempt.
UL Lafayette added four more runs in the second receiving an RBI single from McMurtry and a three-run home run to left field by Joy Webre.
The Cajuns increased their advantage to 9-0 with one-run innings in the third and fourth innings.
Crystal George scored on a wild pitch in the third and Gomez led off the bottom of the fourth with a solo home run into the left field bleachers.
That
was more than enough offense for Thoms and Reese as they
combined for a no-hitter. The Aggies managed just one
base runner – a walk issued by Reese to Christine
Stephens in the top of the fourth.
Reese, a senior who was recently accepted into medical school, tossed three innings while striking out five for her first win in a Cajuns uniform. She struck out the side in the third inning.
The shutout was the Cajuns 17th of the season and fifth in SBC play.
UL Lafayette's top four hitters each had two hits. McMurtry was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBI while Webre led the way with three RBI.
In game two, Gomez hit her first of two doubles in the game to bring home Robertson and McMurtry for an early 2-0 lead.
That lead grew to 4-0 in the second inning when Robertson hit her second home run of the day and ninth of the season, a two-run shot that scored Summar Lapeyrouse who led off the inning with a walk.
Louisiana-Lafayette's flood gates kept on flowing in the fourth inning.
Gomez led off with a double and was brought home on Webre's second home run of the afternoon to make it 6-0. George made it 8-0 with a double of her own that scored Tiffany Hebert and Summar Lapeyrouse.
NMSU finally crossed home plate at Lady Cajun Park after seven scoreless games and 44 scoreless innings. The Aggies scored three times in the top of the fourth to trim the Cajuns lead to 8-3.
Apparently the Cajuns didn't like the fact that they gave up runs to the Aggies and would put up their second 10-spot of the weekend with 10 runs on nine hits in the bottom half of the fourth.
The fourth-inning onslaught was highlighted by McMurtry extending her hitting streak to 15 games and Gomez hitting two home runs as the Cajuns batted around.
Gomez had two home runs and four RBI in that inning alone as she made history with the first of the two home runs. Gomez ended the weekend 10-for-13 (.769 avg.) with three doubles and four home runs while driving in nine runs.
The
Cajuns also got RBI doubles from Lapeyrouse and George
as they pushed their lead to 18-3 and set a season-high
for runs. The 18 runs scored were the most by any Cajuns
team in Sun Belt play and the most in the Lotief era.
The five-inning, mercy-rule win was the Cajuns 14th mercy-rule victory of the season and sixth in eight Sun Belt games.
UL Lafayette will return to action on Wednesday, April 16 in a 5 p.m. doubleheader with Nicholls State at Lady Cajun Park. The two teams met earlier this season with the Cajuns posting a 1-0, 6-3 sweep of NSU in Thibodaux.
The home season will then conclude on Thursday, April 17 in a 7 p.m. single game with Texas-San Antonio. After that it's 12 straight road games before heading to the conference tournament in Bowling Green, Ky., May 8-10.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
