University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
* Florida International (DH)
FIU Pulls Off Upset Sweep of 20th-ranked Cajuns
4/20/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Sunday, April 20, 2003
MIAMI – History repeated itself here on Eastern Sunday at University Park and history was made as the 20th-ranked Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns softball team was swept in the final doubleheader of its Sun Belt Conference weekend series with Florida International by the scores of 2-0 and 2-1.
Louisiana-Lafayette dropped the first game of the twinbill 2-0 to FIU. In UL Lafayette's last visit to Miami, the Cajuns dropped the first game of Sunday's doubleheader 3-0 and went on to gain the split with a 6-3 win the second game.
With the loss in the second game, it marked the first time in Sun Belt history that the Cajuns had been swept in a doubleheader. It's the Cajuns first time being swept in any twinbill since Feb. 14, 2001 when UL Monroe posted a pair of 4-0 wins at Lady Cajun Park.
The losses ended UL Lafayette's season-best 18-game winning streak and its 24-game Sun Belt winning streak. The Cajuns have lost just three SBC games all-time and two of the losses have come at University Park.
This is UL Lafayette's first-ever Sun Belt Conference losing streak and the two teams split their weekend four-game set.
The Cajuns win streak tied for the third-best in program history with a similar 18-game win streak during the 1999 season.
Sunday's losses also snapped the Cajuns streak of 15 straight doubleheader sweeps.
With the losses, the Cajuns will now have two wait until its weekend series at Western Kentucky May 3-4 to have an opportunity to clinch at least a share of the regular season championship and the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament.
FIU was able to complete the sweep of the Cajuns by winning the battle of the short game in the fifth inning of the second game.
The Cajuns used a pair of bunt singles in the top of the fifth to break a scoreless tie. Tiffany Hebert led off with a bunt single and was moved over to second base on a sacrifice bunt from Summar Lapeyrouse.
Natalie Hamby followed with a bunt single to shallow third base and reached safely as no one was covering first to put runners on the corners.
Hebert scored the Cajuns lone run of the game, and of the afternoon, on a squeeze bunt by Jill Robertson.
FIU recaptured the lead in their half of the fifth. After a leadoff double from Stephanie Wolter, Nicole Dubovik laid down the sacrifice bunt to move Wolter over to third base. Jennifer Owens tied the game at 1-1 with an RBI single to center field on the next at bat and advanced to second on the throw.
The Golden Panthers reclaimed the lead for good on the next batter when Cynthia Turek laced a double to left field off of Cajuns starter Afton Thoms for a 2-1 lead.
FIU starting pitcher Amanda Nealer and ace reliever Nicole Barrett made the lead stand as the two combined to hold the Cajuns to just four hits in the second game. Nealer improved to 17-7 on the season and Barrett collected her ninth save of the season and second of the day.
Thoms suffered the loss for the Cajuns as she dropped to 10-2 on the season. She went six innings and surrendered 10 hits.
In game one, FIU's Kendra Laminack and Barrett combined for the five-hit shutout of the Cajuns. Louisiana-Lafayette didn't help its own cause by stranding seven runners on base and having its top three hitters combine to go 1-for-8.
For the second straight day, the Golden Panthers touched up UL Lafayette ace Brooke Mitchell – this time for eight hits and a loss. Mitchell ended the weekend 1-1 with 15 hits allowed and four earned runs allowed.
FIU got its first run of the day in the first inning.
Dubovik picked up the Panthers first hit of the day with a one-out single into left field. After Jennifer Owens struck out swinging, Dubovik stole her 30th base of the season to advance to second.
Dubovik was brought home in the next at bat when Cynthia Turek lifted a blooper to shallow right field that Natalie Hamby was unable to get to in time and dropped in for an RBI-single and a 1-0 lead.
Laminack (10-9) kept the Cajuns off the basepath in the first two innings as she retired UL Lafayette in order. The Cajuns picked up their first hit of the afternoon in the third inning when Lapeyrouse hit a single through the left side of the infield.
The Cajuns would get another runner onboard when Hamby looped a single into left field. Both were stranded as Robertson hit a deep fly ball to center field for the third out.
In the fourth inning, UL Lafayette wasted a leadoff walk from Danyele Gomez and a Joy Webre. Crystal George struck out looking, Brittany Bryant grounded to short to advance the runners to second and third, but Tiffany Hebert struck out swinging to end the Cajuns threat.
UL Lafayette would strand two runners for the third straight inning in the top of the fifth. Robertson delivered a two-out single up the middle. FIU would then make the pitching switch going to Barrett for the save situation.
All-American Becky McMurtry drew a walk as Barrett's first batter. However, Danyele Gomez's weekend struggles continued as she grounded out to second base to end another Cajuns scoring opportunity.
FIU added an insurance run in its half of the fifth inning to take a 2-0 lead.
Stephanie Wolter reached base on a one-out error at second base by Hebert. Dubovik laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance Wolter over to second base on what should have been the third out of the inning.
Owens would make the Cajuns pay on the next at bat as she drove an RBI-single into the left field gap.
The Cajuns went down in order in the sixth inning and stranded Lapeyrouse on the basepath in the seventh as Robertson grounded out to shortstop to end the game and five FIU the upset victory.
Laminack took the win for the Golden Panthers as she improved to 10-9 on the season. Barrett went 2 1/3 innings in relief allowing just one hit for her eighth save of the season.
Mitchell took the hard-luck loss for the Cajuns as her personal nine-game winning streak came to a close. The Pasadena, Texas, native went six innings striking out nine batters and walking none but was stranded by her offense. For Mitchell it was the third time this season she suffered a loss in a shutout.
Lapeyrouse was 2-for-3 in the game as she upped her season average to .222.
Owens and Turek each had RBI for the Golden Panthers with Owens ending the game 2-for-3. Owens ended the weekend 5-for-7 against Mitchell.
Louisiana-Lafayette will be back in action on Thursday, April 24 in a 5 p.m. doubleheader against in-state rival Northwestern State in Natchitoches. The Cajuns will take a break from Sun Belt action next weekend and return to conference play May 3-4 at Western Kentucky.
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