University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Weekly Notebook: Cajuns Get First Taste of Life on the Road at Prestigious NFCA Leadoff Classic
2/23/2005 12:00:00 AM | Softball
2005 SEASON QUICK FACTS...
Overall record:
12-1
Sun
Belt Record:
0-0
Record
Last 10 Games:
9-1
Current Streak:
Won 1 (Feb. 20-present)
Home
Record:
12-1
Away
Record:
0-0
Neutral Record:
0-0
Record
vs.
Midwest
Region:
5-1
Record
vs. Ranked Teams:
0-0
Current Rankings:
No. 6 (NFCA); No. 6 (ESPN/USA Softball)
NOW BATTING…
The sixth-ranked Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns softball team makes its 2005 road debut at the nation's most prestigious softball tournament – the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga. The tournament runs Friday-Sunday, Feb. 25-27, 2005, at South Commons Stadium and Complex (site of the 1996 Olympic softball games).
There the Ragin' Cajuns (12-1) will be joined by 10 other ranked teams with Louisiana-Lafayette being the highest ranked team in the event.
Twenty of the 24 teams in the field competed in NCAA regional tournaments last season, highlighted by Women's College World Series participants Florida State, Michigan, Oklahoma and defending Leadoff Classic champion LSU.
Historically, the Leadoff Classic champion has used the tournament title as a springboard to a successful season. Seven of the first nine Leadoff Classic champions — LSU (2004), Nebraska (2002), Stanford (2001), Washington (2000 and 1996), Michigan (1998) and South Carolina (1997) — went on to compete at the Women's College World Series the same year. A perfect example to show the prestige this tournament has carried over the years.
Louisiana-Lafayette is making its first Leadoff Classic appearance since the 2000 season and first-ever appearance under co-head coaches Stefni and Michael Lotief. The Ragin' Cajuns have fared well at the tournament before – taking the championship in 1999 – and sport an all-time Leadoff Classic record of 14-9.
The tournament will be the Cajuns first trip away from Ragin' Cajuns Softball Park and the state of Louisiana this season. Louisiana-Lafayette opened the 2005 season with three straight home tournaments that totaled 13 games.
This tournament is bound to give the Cajuns a preview of the NCAA Regionals. Joining Louisiana-Lafayette in the list of ranked and possible opponents are No. 7 Alabama, No.8 Michigan, No. 10 LSU, No. 13 Oklahoma, No. 15 Georgia Tech, No. 16 Georgia, No. 17 Nebraska, No. 18 Oregon, No. 21 Florida State and No. 25 Fresno State.
The Cajuns are coming off of a 4-1 weekend in the 19th Annual Louisiana Classics. Louisiana-Lafayette was shocked by Nicholls State on a passed ball in the bottom of the eighth inning for its lone loss of the season. The Cajuns rebounded by crushing the Big 10's Purdue 15-5 on Sunday in the championship game.
The Cajuns 12-1 start is the second-best under the coaches Lotief – the 2004 team opened the campaign 20-1.
The Cajuns offense will carry a .349 batting average in the Leadoff Classic led by both Lacey Bertucci and Danyele Gomez who each have a .450 average. Louisiana-Lafayette has already clubbed 42 extra base hits in just 13 games (23 doubles, 4 triples, 15 home runs). The team slugging percentage is .550 while the team on-base percentage is .450.
With Brooke Mitchell (9-1, 0.27 ERA, 86K, 51.1 IP) standing in the pitcher's circle, the Ragin' Cajuns have a chance to come away champions of the tournament. Mitchell has given up just 20 hits over 51 1/3 innings this season and has struck out 86 batters. The pitching staff, together, has held the opposition to just 40 hits over 84 1/3 innings and posted 140 total strikeouts.
This will be Louisiana-Lafayette's fifth (5th) appearance in the Leadoff Classic (previous appearances include 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000) and serves as the Ragin' Cajuns' fourth in-season tournament. Counting the 1999 and 2000 appearances, the Ragin' Cajuns have won 9 of their last 12 Leadoff Classic games.
THIS WEEKEND'S SCHEDULE (Louisiana-Lafayette games only)...
10TH
ANNUAL NFCA LEADOFF CLASSIC
Friday-Sunday,
Feb.
25-27, 2005
South
Commons Stadium and Complex – Columbus, Ga.
Friday, Feb. 25, 2005
1:30
p.m.
(CST) - #6 Louisiana-Lafayette vs. DePaul
4 p.m.
(CST) - #6 Louisiana-Lafayette vs.
San
Diego State
Saturday, Feb. 26, 2005
11:30
a.m.
(CST) - #6 Louisiana-Lafayette vs.
North
Carolina
3:30
p.m.
or
6 p.m.
(CST) – Bracket Play
Sunday, Feb. 27, 2005
TBA –
Bracket Play
ON DECK…
The Ragin' Cajuns will take two weeks off from tournament play beginning with next week's pair of doubleheaders.
No. 6 Louisiana-Lafayette is scheduled to visit Northwestern State on Wednesday, March 2 for a 5 p.m. twinbill. That will be followed by the Ragin' Cajuns' next home game which will take place on Saturday, March 5 at 1 p.m. against Louisiana Tech.
The Cajuns will finish their two-week tournament hiatus with another set of doubleheaders the following week. The Cajuns will visit McNeese State on Wednesday, March 9 in a 4 p.m. twinbill and then on Saturday, March 12 host Centenary College in a 1 p.m. doubleheader.
Following this weekend's NFCA Leadoff Classic, the Cajuns next tournament action will come from Fullerton, Calif., in the 2005 KIA Klassic hosted by Cal State-Fullerton March 17-20.
ABOUT THE 10TH ANNUAL NFCA LEADOFF CLASSIC…
The format will be the same as years past, with six pools consisting of four teams each.
The six pool winners, along with two at-large teams, will compete in the gold championship bracket. The remaining second place teams, along with four at-large teams will play in the silver championship bracket while the remaining eight teams will square off in the bronze championship bracket.
Bracket Play: After the end of play Saturday afternoon (after 12:30 p.m. games), the brackets will be developed based on pool play. However, an effort will be made to keep teams from playing their pool teams or conference opponents in the first game of bracket play.
Saturday bracket play will be at 3:30 p.m. (CST) and 6 p.m. (CST). Bracket play will continue Sunday at 8 a.m. (CST), 10 a.m. (CST) and 12 Noon (CST).
The international tie breaker will be used in each game, beginning in the 8th.
ALL-TIME SERIES vs. NFCA LEADOFF CLASSIC POOL 2 OPPONENTS…
DePaul (Cajuns lead 8-2) – Cajuns and Blue Demons have met twice before in the Leadoff Classic with Louisiana-Lafayette winning both times…Team met on Feb. 28, 1999, with a 2-1 Cajuns win giving then-USL the Leadoff Classic title. First time both teams are members of the same pool in the Leadoff Classic.
Cajuns won the last meeting, blasting DePaul 10-3 in the opening round of the 2004 KIA Klassic in Fullerton, Calif.
Louisiana-Lafayette is 1-0 vs. DePaul under co-head coaches Stefni and Michael Lotief.
In the early-1990's, the Blue Demons were a regular in the Louisiana Classics tournament held at Ragin' Cajuns Softball Park.
San Diego State (Cajuns lead 2-0) - Only other regular season meeting prior to Friday's first round encounter in the NFCA Leadoff Classic between the two schools took place on March 20, 1998 at the PONY Invitational in Fullerton, Calif. Then-USL took a 10-2 win to finish pool play 2-1.
The two teams crossed paths in the opening round of the 2003 NCAA Regional in Fullerton, Calif., with the Cajuns posting a 6-0 victory in a Brooke Mitchell no-hitter.
This will be the first meeting between the two schools outside of Fullerton, Calif. – site of two previous encounters at Cal State-Fullerton's softball complex.
North Carolina (Cajuns lead 10-0) – This will be the first meeting between the two programs since the 2000 season when UNC participated in the 14th Annual Louisiana Classics. Cajuns won that meeting on Feb. 26, 2000, by posting a 3-0 decision.
First-ever meeting between the two schools took place on April 16, 1988, at the Chattanooga Intercollegiate Tournament. Tar Heels made appearances in the 8th Annual and 9th Annual Louisiana Classics in addition to the 2000 event.
CAJUNS' ALL-TIME RESULTS IN THE NFCA LEADOFF CLASSIC…
1996
(bronze bracket champions)
March 1, 1996 – vs. Cal
State-Northridge L, 1-4
March 1, 1996 – vs.
Indiana L,
0-1
March 2, 1996 – vs.
Missouri L, 0-6
March 2, 1996 – vs. Hofstra
W, 15-1
March 3, 1996 – vs.
DePaul W, 6-4
March 3, 1996 – vs. Long Beach
State W, 4-1
1997
Feb. 28, 1997 – vs. Notre
Dame L, 2-4
March 1, 1997 – vs.
Massachusetts
W, 6-0
March 1, 1997 – vs. South Carolina
L, 0-3
March 2, 1997 – vs. Illinois
State L, 2-4
March 2, 1997 – vs. Texas
A&M W, 6-5
1999
(Leadoff Classic Champions)
Feb. 26, 1999 – vs. #5 Michigan
W, 5-4
Feb. 26, 1999 – vs. #23 Hofstra
W, 15-0 (5 innings)
Feb. 27, 1999 – vs. #18 Arizona
State L, 2-3 (9 innings)
Feb. 27, 1999 – vs. South Carolina
W, 1-0
Feb. 28, 1999 – vs. #11 Oklahoma
W, 4-0
Feb. 28, 1999 – vs. #11
DePaul W, 2-1
2000
March 3, 2000 – vs. Cal
State-Northridge L, 0-1
March 3, 2000 – vs. #23
Nebraska W, 7-6 (11
innings)
March 4, 2000 – vs. #24 Hofstra
W, 5-4 (8 innings)
March 4, 2000 – vs. #9
Stanford L, 1-2
March 5, 2000 – vs. Florida
State W, 9-1 (6
innings)
March 5, 2000 – vs.
Florida W,
3-2
WHAT HAPPENED LAST WEEKEND…
SUNDAY - No. 5 Louisiana-Lafayette (12-1) chased Purdue starter Diana LaRiva before an out was recorded in the first inning and wound up touching the Boilermakers pitching for 15 runs on 16 hits in producing a 15-5, five-inning run rule rout in game nine of the tournament.
The Ragin' Cajuns pushed across 13 runs in the third through fifth innings combined to runaway from Purdue after the score was 2-1 heading into the third inning.
Jill Robertson and Danyele Gomez, the Cajuns 1-2 hitters, each had three hits and combined to go 6-for-9 at the plate.
Crystal George hit two triples driving in a game-high five RBI – the first triple came in the third inning and increased the Cajuns lead to 5-1. George became the first Cajuns player since Lynn Britton on April 15, 1995, to post two triples in a single game.
Brooke Mitchell pitched three innings allowing just two hits and no earned runs as she collected the 100th victory of her career.
SATURDAY - The Cajuns got bit by the “runners left on base” bug in Saturday's finale losing 1-0 to Nicholls State on a passed ball on a squeeze play in the bottom of the eighth inning. The Cajuns left nine runners on base during the contest and could never muster any sort of an attack putting up fly ball after fly ball.
In Saturday's first game, the Ragin' Cajuns got a seventh-inning home run from Lacey Bertucci to top Purdue 3-1. Brooke Mitchell struck out 14 Boilermakers and the lone Purdue run was an unearned one scored off of a double steal.
FRIDAY - The Cajuns blasted Mississippi Valley for five runs in the first inning en route to an 8-0, five-inning rout.
In Friday's first game the Cajuns had to fight off Nicholls in 10 innings getting a Jill Robertson game-winning home run in the 8-6 win. The game was sent into extras when Nicholls scored five times in the bottom of the seventh inning off of Cajuns starter Heather Bobbitt.
CAJUNS SWEEP WEEKLY SUN BELT HONORS…
The fifth-ranked Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns softball team swept the weekly Sun Belt Conference honors as Jill Robertson and Brooke Mitchell were named Player and Pitcher of the Week respectively.
It marked the first time this season that a Cajuns player took home one of the weekly awards.
Robertson, earning the award for the first time in her career, went 7-for-15 (.467 average) at the plate with three stolen bases and three RBI during the 19th Annual Louisiana Classics. She had the game-winning home run in the top of the 10th inning against Nicholls State on Friday and a couple of timely hits against Purdue on Sunday.
The Cajuns center fielder finished the Louisiana Classics with a .733 slugging percentage (11 total bases in 15 at bats) and a .600 on-base percentage. Robertson drew five walks against one strikeout and ended the weekend with on strikeouts in her final 10 at bats.
Mitchell, named the Most Outstanding Player of the 19th Annual Louisiana Classics, picked up her 100th career victory in Sunday's 15-5 run rule rout of Purdue to improve to 100-21 in her career. She finished the weekend with a 3-1 record and 0.00 ERA and just five hits allowed over 20 1/3 innings.
The Pasadena, Texas, native fanned double-digits batters in both of her complete games including a 14-strikeout performance against Big 10-member Purdue in a one-hitter on Saturday. Combined with the Nicholls State game Saturday, she tossed 14 1/3 innings striking out 25 and allowing just three hits for the day.
Her 30 strikeouts over the weekend move her to 1,053 for her career which places her 23rd on the all-time NCAA Division I career strikeouts list. She recently moved past Arizona's Jennie Finch, Maryland's Kelly Shipman and Alabama's Shelley Laird.
Mitchell collected the Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week honor for the 12th time in her career.
The Ragin' Cajuns have now won 37 Sun Belt weekly honors in four-plus seasons under former Ragin' Cajuns All-American and current head coach Stefni Lotief.
CAJUNS IN THE POLLS (ESPN.COM & NFCA TOP 25 POLLS)…
Last Saturday's loss to Nicholls State, on a passed ball in the bottom of the eighth inning, cost Louisiana-Lafayette one spot in each of the softball polls.
The Ragin' Cajuns are listed at No. 6 this week in both the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 poll and National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Top 25 poll.
Louisiana-Lafayette was ranked No. 5 in each of the two previous weeks.
This week's ranking marks the fourth straight week in the Top 10.
MOVING UP THE CAREER VICTORIES LIST…
Brooke Mitchell is just five (5) wins shy of becoming the Ragin' Cajuns softball program's all-time winningest pitcher – a feat which possibly could happen this weekend at the NFCA Leadoff Classic.
Former All-American Kyla Hall (1991-94) currently holds the record with 104 wins; Mitchell starts this weekend with 100 career triumphs.
Mitchell enters the 10th Annual NFCA Leadoff Classic with an overall career record of 100-21 (.826) which includes a 28-4 mark in the month of February.
Louisiana-Lafayette Career Victories Top 5
1.
104 Kyla Hall (1991-94)
2. 100
Brooke Mitchell (2002-present)
3. 84
Melissa Coronado (1999-02)
4. 78 Stefni Whitton (1987-90)
5. 76 Jennifer Clendenin (1993-97)
ANOTHER CAREER MILESTONE FOR BROOKE MITCELL – 100 career wins…
Last Sunday's 15-5 win over Purdue clinched the 100th win in Brooke Mitchell's remarkable career. She joined former Ragin' Cajuns All-American Kyla Hall (current University of Houston head coach) as the lone pitcher's in program history to reach 100 career victories.
She is the lone ACTIVE Division I pitcher with 100 career victories.
Mitchell became the 39th player in NCAA Division I history to reach the career milestone joining the likes of Courtney Blades (151 wins), Britni Sneed (120 wins), Sarah Dawson (120 wins) and Jennie Finch (109 wins).
Mitchell needs 20 more wins to tie Sneed and Dawson for the second-most victories by a pitcher from a Louisiana school. Debbie Nichols (Louisiana Tech) is the all-time winningest pitcher from a Louisiana program with 149 wins.
Should Mitchell re-create her season from 2004 this year, she would finish in the Top 5 on the all-time NCAA Division I wins list.
With 16 more wins this season (still 40-plus games left plus the NCAA Regionals) she will crack the Top 10.
MITCHELL MOVING UP THE NCAA CAREER STRIKEOUTS LIST…
Last weekend, Brooke Mitchell rung up 30 batters en route to increasing her career strikeout total to 1,053 – a tally which currently ranks her 23rd on the all-time NCAA Division I career strikeout list.
She would need at least 37 strikeouts this weekend to crack the Top 20. Currently at No. 20 is Megan Matthews of South Carolina with 1,090 career strikeouts.
MUSICAL POSITIONS…
Pay careful attention to three positions in the field for the Ragin' Cajuns as players may be swapped in and out between innings.
First base, third base and left field feature the “musical chairs” theory.
Lacey Bertucci, Ashley Evans and Tara Hamilton each rotate at first base. Evans and Hamilton swap out at third base with Hamilton going to DP and Evans to third or Evans to first base and Hamilton to third base. When Hamilton or Evans takes over at first base, Bertucci is slid into the DP slot.
Out if left field, Crystal George and Hillary Guidry are sharing duties. Occasionally they will change defensively between innings and both will get a turn in the batting order. George has started five games while Guidry has taken three starts.
MAKING THEM PAY FOR THEIR MISTAKES…
The 7-2 win over Mississippi State on Saturday, Feb. 12, proved that Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns softball team will punish you if you give them an “extra out” by committing an error in an inning.
Mississippi State found out the hard way – a throwing error by second baseman Callye Williams kept the fourth inning alive for the Ragin' Cajuns. On the very next at bat, Jill Robertson delivered the first of two, two-run homers for the Cajuns when she ripped a line drive home run over the center field fence for a 4-0 lead. Two batters later, after Danyele Gomez singed up the middle, Brittany Bryant extended her career-best hitting streak to eight games with a two-run job of her own which stretched the Louisiana-Lafayette lead to 6-0.
Those four RBI came with two outs. This season, the Cajuns have collected 39 two-out RBI proving that the Cajuns don't mail it in when there is two outs on the scoreboard.
Last Sunday against Purdue, the Cajuns scored nine of their 15 runs when there were two outs on the scoreboard.
HAVING NO MERCY ON THEM…
The Ragin' Cajuns have already posted six (6) mercy-rule decisions through 13 games this season.
Louisiana-Lafayette topped Northwestern State 12-0 in five innings, Prairie View A&M 15-0 in five innings and Sam Houston State 8-0 in six innings during the Mardi Gras Classics and downed McNeese State 10-0 in six innings last Friday in the Ragin' Cajuns Invitational. Last weekend in the 19th Annual Louisiana Classic, the Ragin' Cajuns run ruled Mississippi Valley 8-0 (five innings) and Purdue 15-5 (five innings).
LAYING THE (GOOSE) EGGS…
Louisiana-Lafayette's pitching staff has posted seven shutouts this season through 13 games played. The Cajuns have allowed just 11 earned runs in 84 1/3 innings to start the season and the pitching staff has a microscopic ERA of 0.91.
Junior ace hurler Brooke Mitchell has crafted one (1) complete-game shutout and has combined for three more. Mitchell shut down Ole Miss 3-0 in the season opener striking out 14 Rebel batters. Heather Bobbitt and Ashley Kirchberg combined on a no-hitter in a 6-0 win over McNeese State on Saturday, Feb. 12.
Last season (2004), the Cajuns pitching staff crafted 29 shutouts. Brooke Mitchell accounted for 14 of those shutouts (solo) while combining for 10 other shutouts.
EVERYONE GETS A CHANCE TO PLAY…
With the recent tear that the Ragin' Cajuns have been on, co-head coaches Stefni and Michael Lotief have been given plenty of opportunity to give playing time to several players on the bench.
A total of 16 players have seen action in at least nine games this season. Counting pitchers Brooke Mitchell, Ashley Kirchberg and Heather Bobbitt, then that number climbs to 19 out of a possible 22 players.
These experiences should help the Cajuns when it comes to crunch time and the bench needs to be a deciding factor.
THE MIDDLE INNINGS IS WHEN THEY WARM THE ENGINE UP…
Over the past four seasons under the coaches Lotief, the Ragin' Cajuns have been a team this is quick to start. For instance, last season Louisiana-Lafayette outscored opponents 169-44 in the first three innings.
This season, the Cajuns are taking a liking to the middle innings. In the third and fourth innings combined Louisiana-Lafayette is outscoring its opposition 50-3.
SCORING FIRST USUALLY MEANS A VICTORY FOR THE CAJUNS…
Louisiana-Lafayette is 189-9 (.954) under co-head coaches Stefni and Michael Lotief when scoring first. This season, the Ragin' Cajuns are 12-0 when scoring first.
CAJUNS VS. MIDWEST REGION TEAMS…
Louisiana-Lafayette is off to a 5-1 start this season against teams from the NCAA Midwest Region. The Midwest Region includes teams from the Big 12, Missouri Valley, Southland and Sun Belt Conferences.
Louisiana-Lafayette has 29 more games scheduled against Midwest Region teams following this weekend's NFCA Leadoff Classic.
Games against teams from the MW Region will go a long way in determining the Cajuns status for the NCAA Regionals, considering the fact that the Sun Belt has no automatic bid.
THIS N' THAT…
*** Top hitters on the team through 13 games include – Lacey Bertucci (.450, 18-for-40, 2 doubles, 5 homers, 16 RBI, 9 BB, .875 SLG%, .551 OB%); Danyele Gomez (.450, 18-for-40, 14 runs scored, 3 doubles, 1 homer, 8 RBI, 9 BB, .600 SLG%, .540 OB%); Brittany Bryant (.413, 19-for-46, 12 runs scored, 5 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homers, 12 RBI, .696 SLG%, .472 OB%); Jill Robertson (.381, 16-of-42, 12 runs scored, 3 doubles, 3 homers, 10 RBI, 7 BB, .667 SLG%, .481 OB%); Tara Hamilton (.333, 11-for-33, 8 runs scored, 2 doubles, 1 homer, 8 RBI, 9 BB, 4 K, .485 SLG%, .477 OB%).
*** For all intents and purposes Lacey Bertucci has picked up at least one hit in every game this season. The sophomore first baseman started the season with a nine-game hitting streak. Her hit streak was snapped in the Mississippi Valley game because she went 0-for-2, but was pulled out of the lineup after the second inning. Then last Sunday against Purdue, Bertucci went 0-for-0 with three walks against Purdue.
*** Brittany Bryant has at least one hit in all but two appearances. She too had a nine-game hitting streak going into the Mississippi Valley game before being pulled in the second inning. Bryant's only complete game without a single hit came in the 1-0 loss to Nicholls State last Saturday.
*** Hitting streaks going into this weekend's tournament include: Joy Webre (5 games), Lacey Bertucci (2 games), Crystal George (2 games) and Tara Hamilton (2 games).
*** The Cajuns offense has pounded out double-digit base hits in seven games this season. The 16 hits on Purdue were the second-most trailing only the 17 hits racked up on Prairie View A&M.
*** The Cajuns pitching staff has allowed just 40 hits over 84 1/3 innings – that's only one hit allowed every other inning.
*** The Cajuns pitching staff has surrendered just 11 earned runs over 84 1/3 innings of work this season. The staff ERA after three weekends of play is 0.91.
*** Not many teams have advanced runners to or past second base on the Cajuns this season. As a result, the opponents have had just 63 chances with runners in scoring position as opposed to 154 opportunities by the Cajuns.
*** Louisiana-Lafayette sports a .369 (48-for-130) team batting average when there are two outs on the scoreboard. Lacey Bertucci is 7-for-16 (.438) in two-out situations while Danyele Gomez is 9-for-15 (.600). As a team Louisiana-Lafayette has 48 two-out hits to just 16 for the opposition.
*** The Cajuns pitching staff has posted double-digit strikeouts in all but three games this season. Cajuns pitchers have fanned 140 opposing batters in 84 1/3 innings of play.
*** Continuing a trend from recent seasons, the Cajuns have already racked up 39 two-out RBI. Lacey Bertucci is leading the charge with 10 two-out RBI.
*** Cajuns pitching has held the opposition to a paltry 6-of-63 (.095) with runners in scoring position. Conversely, the Ragin' Cajuns are hitting 51-of-154 (.331) with runners in scoring position.
*** Lacey Bertucci, Brittany Bryant, Danyele Gomez and Joy Webre each have six base hits when runners are in scoring position. Gomez has a team-best .429 average with runners in scoring position.
*** Middle innings have been deadly for the Cajuns' opponents thus far. Louisiana-Lafayette has scored 50 of its 101 runs in the third and fourth innings combined.
*** Lacey Bertucci's five home runs are already halfway to her total in all of last season (9 in 68 appearances).
*** Last Sunday against Purdue, senior Crystal George became the first play since Lynn Britton on April 15, 1995, against Samford to post two triples in a single game. George, who hadn't hit a triple since her freshman season, doubled her career output in just one outing.
*** Brooke Mitchell will enter the NFCA Leadoff Classic carrying a string of 21 2/3 consecutive innings without an earned run allowed. She allowed two earned runs to Mississippi State on Saturday, Feb. 13 – the only two she has surrendered this season. Before giving up the two earned runs to MSU, Mitchell had begun the season with no earned runs allowed through 29 2/3 innings of action.
STARTING OFF IN THE TOP 10…
For the second straight season, Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns softball team began the regular season ranked in the Top 10 of the national polls.
Louisiana-Lafayette, the four-time defending Sun Belt Conference champion with All-American ace Brooke Mitchell returning in the pitching circle, entered the 2005 season ranked No. 7 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball preseason collegiate poll – the program's highest preseason ranking under the direction co-head coaches Stefni and Michael Lotief.
This season's pre-season ranking is the highest for the program in the poll which debuted in February 2003. Last season, the Cajuns debuted at No. 9.
The National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Top 25 listed the Ragin' Cajuns at No. 9, giving the Cajuns a Top 10 preseason ranking in both of the major softball polls.
SHE'S BACK…
All-American pitcher Brooke Mitchell (45-5, 0.82 ERA, 524 strikeouts in 2004) returns for her senior season in 2005.
She enters her senior season listed as one of the top players to watch during the 2005 NCAA Division I softball campaign.
Mitchell, who led the nation in victories (45) and shattered the Louisiana-Lafayette single-season and career strikeout marks with 524 strikeouts en route to first-team Louisville Slugger/National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-American honors, has been selected to the watch list for the fourth-annual USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year Award.
The Pasadena, Texas, native was a Top 10 finalist for the national award during the 2004 season, and is considered to be one of the Top 10 pitchers in the nation this season. Mitchell, the 2003 Sun Belt Conference and Louisiana Pitcher of the Year, was the only player from the Sun Belt named to the initial watch list.
Last season, Mitchell posted a 45-5 record - accounting for 75 percent of the Ragin' Cajuns 60 victories – and posted double-digit strikeouts in 29 outings on her way to the fourth-highest total in NCAA Division I history (524). The eight-time Sun Belt Pitcher of the Week, Mitchell also tossed five complete-game, no-hitters including one of Big 12-member Missouri, and had five complete-game one-hitters in 2004.
THE REST OF THE TEAM IS BACK TOO…
How many teams around the nation can claim that their entire roster from the previous season is back in uniform this season? Not many, but Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns can lay claim to that distinction.
Co-head coaches Stefni and Michael Lotief's 2005 Ragin' Cajuns softball squad returns 14 of 16 players which saw action in 2004, a total which includes eight out of a possible nine position starters plus their ace pitcher - this from a team that won a school-record 60 games during the 2004 season and clubbed a school-record 88 home runs.
The only missing pieces that would have kept the entire 2004 team intact are Holly Tankersley (being redshirted in 2005) and Christine Collins (left for personal reasons). Tankersley, who set a school record with 21 home runs last season, will be the more noticeable of the two losses.
Louisiana-Lafayette returns 66 of its school-record 88 homers from a year ago, 74 of 89 doubles and 310 of its 379 runs scored.
Add in a crew of eight quality newcomers and the 2005 Ragin' Cajuns softball roster includes 22 names and faces.
HOMETOWN HERO BACK FOR A FINAL HURRAH…
After sitting out the 2004 season with a torn ACL, redshirt senior Jill Robertson is back in a Cajuns uniform for the 2005 season.
Robertson, a two-time All-Sun Belt standout, will only make an already potent offense stronger. Before last season's season-ending mishap, the Lafayette native had back-to-back seasons of double digit home runs and was always good for 50-plus runs scored.
Robertson, a two-year starter at second base and one-year starter at shortstop, will likely be tried in the outfield this season. The coaching staff has her penciled in with Hillary Guidry in the center field slot.
BROOKE MITCHELL REACHES HISTORIC MILESTONE – ONE THOUSAND NO-NO'S…
Senior ace hurler Brooke Mitchell picked up the 1,000th strikeout of her career in the bottom of the first inning against Sam Houston State on Sunday, Feb. 6 when she struck out Erin Lindsey swinging to end the inning.
Mitchell, who entered the game with 998 career strikeouts, became the first player in the history of the Ragin' Cajuns softball program to reach 1,000 career strikeouts and became the 28th player in NCAA Division I history to reach the milestone.
Mitchell is the career strikeouts leader at Louisiana-Lafayette after breaking Kyla Hall's previous school record of 820 on April 14, 2004, last season.
BACK TO WHERE SHE STARTED…
With the absence of Holly Tankersley, junior Danyele Gomez is returning back to the outfield after spending the 2004 season at third base.
Gomez spent her freshman season in right field and proceeded to hit a then-school record 20 home runs. The Metairie native will once again be roaming out in right field as she is going to take Tankersley's place.
CAJUNS PICKED AS SUN BELT FAVORITES ONCE MORE…
With one of the best pitchers in the country returning, Louisiana-Lafayette was a unanimous pick to win the Sun Belt Conference softball title according to a coach's poll.
The Cajuns, who came within one win of making their second straight trip to the Women's College World Series last year, received all six first-place votes from the Sun Belt softball head coaches.
The reason was pretty simple: Not only will the Cajun return a powerful offense, but they also bring back two-time Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year Brooke Mitchell.
Mitchell, a first-team All-American last year, went an astounding 45-5 with a 0.82 earned run average last season. Backing up Mitchell will be a potentially explosive lineup.
Position players returning include 2003 All-American Danyele Gomez (13 home runs, 43 RBIs last year) and Jill Robertson, a two-time All-Sun Belt standout who missed last season with a knee injury.
SUN
BELT CONFERENCE SOFTBALL COACHES POLL
As
voted on by the league's 6 head coaches
** First-place votes in parentheses
Team Pts.
1. Louisiana-Lafayette (6) 36
2. Florida International 25
3. Middle Tennessee 24
4. North Texas 15
5. New Mexico State 14
6. Western Kentucky 12
THE SUN BELT'S DYNASTY…
Like the Chicago Bulls of the early and late 1990s or Tennessee and Connecticut in women's basketball, Louisiana-Lafayette is quickly becoming the dynasty of the Sun Belt Conference's softball league.
Since the league began play in 2001, the Ragin' Cajuns have won the regular season and tournament titles each year – the only champion that the league has ever known.
Louisiana-Lafayette is 65-5 (.929) all-time in Sun Belt play and has posted a 16-0 record in the league's postseason tournament.
The Ragin' Cajuns have participated in 17 Sun Belt series since joining the league and have never lost one. The only time UL Lafayette failed to win a series was when the Cajuns split a four-game set at FIU during the 2003 season.
Last season, the Cajuns became the first team in league history to march through the regular season schedule undefeated. Louisiana-Lafayette finished the 2004 SBC slate at 18-0.
The Ragin' Cajuns will enter the 2005 season riding a 21-game regular season winning streak in Sun Belt games – the last conference loss coming on May 3, 2003 at Western Kentucky (L, 2-3 in 8 innings).
LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE YEAR-BY-YEAR SUN BELT RECORDS
2001 19-1
2002 15-1
2003 13-3
2004 18-0
Overall
65-5
MITCHELL DONNED THE RED, WHITE AND BLUE LAST SUMMER…
Louisiana-Lafayette senior ace pitcher was a member of the 2004 USA Softball Elite Team, participating with the squad over the summer months in the Canada Cup and Champions Cup.
In the two tournaments combined, Mitchell went 3-1 with a 0.91 ERA against some of the top talent in the world.
She made seven appearances, striking out 33 batters over 23 innings. She had the lowest ERA among the regulars, besting Arizona's Alicia Hollowell who had a 0.96 ERA.
Mitchell joins former Cajuns All-American shortstop Alana Addison as the only two players in program history to participate with the USA Elite Team in the Canada and Champions Cup.
A MODEL OF CONSISTENCY...
When it comes to the NCAA Division I Women's Softball Championships, Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns softball program has been a fixture over the past decade.
In 2004, the Cajuns made their sixth straight NCAA Regionals appearance and 14th in the last 15 years. Since 1990, UL Lafayette has missed the “Field of 64” only once (1998).
A “SPECIAL” SENIOR CLASS…
The 2005 senior class – Crystal George, Tiffany Hebert, Brooke Mitchell, Jill Robertson and Joy Webre – will always have a special place in the hearts of co-head coaches Stefni and Michael Lotief.
Four of the five (George, Hebert, Mitchell and Webre) were each a part of the Lotief's first recruiting class after the completion of the 2001 season. They will be a part of the first senior class to finish four seasons under the Lotief's.
Robertson wasn't a part of the 2002 class, but was recruited by the Lotief's prior to their debut season in 2001.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS - YOU DON'T WANT TO MISS THIS ONE…
Of all the games to be played at Ragin' Cajuns Softball Park this season, none will be more special than an Easter Weekend series with national power Arizona March 25-27.
The Wildcats, preseason ranked No. 2, and the Ragin' Cajuns will square off in a three-game series that should draw plenty of spectators to the Ragin' Cajuns Softball Park.
Last season, at the NCAA Regional in Tucson, Ariz., Louisiana-Lafayette posted a 5-0 victory in the semifinals of the tournament that eliminated Arizona from the Women's College World Series for the first time since the 1987 season snapping a string of 16 consecutive appearances by the Wildcats at the WCWS.
LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE VS. ARIZONA SERIES
Friday,
March 25 6 p.m.
Saturday, March 26 6 p.m.
Sunday, March 27 11 a.m.
DID YOU KNOW???
The Ragin' Cajuns softball team has appeared in the NCAA Regionals in 14 of the last 15 seasons and the last six straight (1999-present)…UL Lafayette appeared in the 1993, 1995, 1996 and 2003 Women's College World Series…The 2003 appearance in the WCWS marked the fourth in program history and first under head coach Stefni Lotief.
DID YOU KNOW???
The Louisiana-Lafayette softball program has produced 33 All-Americans and 14 Academic All-Americans since the 1989 season…Current head coach Stefni Lotief was the first All-American in Cajuns softball history and was the first first-team member as well…Last season, Brooke Mitchell was named a first team All-American marking the sixth straight season that the Cajuns have had at least one All-American and 15th in the last 16 seasons.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
