University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
* Western Kentucky (DH)
Cajuns Split Crucial Series Opener at WKU, Remain On Track for SBC Title
5/3/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Saturday, May 3, 2003
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Senior All-American third baseman and 2003 Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year candidate Becky McMurtry ripped a two-out, RBI-single up the middle of the infield to score pinch runner Tiffany Hebert with the game-winning run and helped the 22nd-ranked Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns softball team salvage a split with host Western Kentucky here Saturday afternoon at the WKU Softball Field in a pair of eight-inning contests.
Western Kentucky pulled off the 3-2 upset win in the opener on a Kristalyn Smith two-out RBI-double in the bottom of the eighth inning while the Cajuns rebounded with the 1-0 win in the nightcap behind the arm of redshirt freshman Afton Thoms who threw a complete-game two-hitter of the Toppers.
With the 1-0 win in the nightcap, UL Lafayette (38-8, 11-3 Sun Belt) remained on track to claim its third straight undisputed SBC regular season championship and the No. 1 seed for the upcoming conference tournament to be held in Bowling Green May 8-10.
The win also ended the Cajuns school-record, three-game Sun Belt Conference losing streak. The loss in game one was the Cajuns first-ever at the WKU Softball Field.
Thanks to a Middle Tennessee 2-0 win over Florida International, the Cajuns remain one game in front of FIU for the league lead and will wrap up the title with a sweep in Sunday's twinbill which begins and noon. If FIU sweeps MT, the Cajuns must sweep. If FIU splits, then the Cajuns would just need a split. Whatever FIU does, the Cajuns must do the same.
The Cajuns and Hilltoppers were locked in a picture-perfect pitcher's duel in the nightcap before Summar Lapeyrouse jump started the Cajuns rally in the eighth inning with a leadoff double. She was replaced by Tiffany Hebert at second base.
Hebert would move over to third base on a fly out by Crystal George and then score the winning run two batters later on McMurtry's game-winning hit. For McMurtry it was her fourth game-winning hit in the Cajuns last six outings.
Thoms picked up the win for the Cajuns – without a doubt the biggest of her young career. The Baton Rouge native was in cruise control and limited the Toppers to just two hits all night. She improved to 11-2 on the season and lowered her ERA to 1.52.
WKU's Allison Silver took the loss and began to lose control in the eighth. Silver went the distance as well surrendering just three hits while striking out eight batters. She falls to 14-14 on the season.
In game one, WKU rallied from a 2-1 fifth inning deficit to pull off the come-from-behind upset victory over the Cajuns and hand UL Lafayette its third straight Sun Belt Conference defeat – the longest losing streak in conference play since the league formed in 2001. Entering the 2003 season, the Cajuns had just lost two SBC games in two previous seasons.
With two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, Kristalyn Smith, who was 0-for-3 going into the at bat, lifted a towering double off of the left center field fence that allowed Brandy Hawkins to round third base with the game-winning run and a 3-2 final score.
The Cajuns had rallied back from an early 1-0 deficit with a two-out, 2-RBI single from freshman Danyele Gomez in the top of the fifth inning to take a 2-1 lead. Gomez increased her team- and Sun Belt-leading RBI total to 52 with that single.
WKU tied the game in the bottom half of the sixth inning when Renita Pennington singled home Hawkins, who had led off the inning with a double down the left field line, to tie the game 2-2.
UL Lafayette had its chances in the top of the seventh inning to bring home the winning run but faltered in leaving the bases loaded. Gomez singled and Webre and Bryant walked with two outs before Lauren Castle flied out to center field to end the threat.
The loss spoiled yet another brilliant pitching performance by sophomore ace Brooke Mitchell who went 7 2/3 innings, struck out 11 and allowed just one earned run. The offense stranded her in the disappointing loss going 4-for-28 at the plate.
The 11 strikeouts were the seventh double-digit strikeout performance from Mitchell (19-6).
With the loss, the Cajuns fell to 0-2 this season in extra innings. The other extra-inning affair came on Feb. 28 in an 8-5 loss to Notre Dame in the 17th Annual Louisiana Classics.
Adrienne Lathrop picked up the win for the Hilltoppers and improved to 14-9 on the season.
WKU hit four doubles in the contest led by two from Hawkins. Of the Toppers seven hits four went for extra bases.
The Cajuns stranded 10 runners on base compared to just four for WKU.
The two teams will conclude their four-game series Sunday in a noon doubleheader. It will also wrap up the 2003 regular season for both squads.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
