University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Cajuns Open KIA Klassic 1-1
3/17/2005 12:00:00 AM | Softball
FULLERTON – No. 7 Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns fell victim to the hottest softball team in the country, losing their opening game of the Kia Klassic by a final score of 7-3 to No. 8 Oklahoma.
The Sooners have won 27 straight games, the nation's longest winning streak.
UL (21-3) got three runs off OU (29-4) ace Kami Keiter, marking the first earned runs allowed by Keiter in 79 innings, but Cajuns ace Brooke Mitchell was tagged for seven runs in two and two-thirds innings.
Mitchell has allowed 20 earned runs on 22 hits over her last three starts against Oklahoma.
The Cajuns fell behind 1-0 in the top of the second. Heather Scaglione hit a 3-2 pitch from Mitchell over the left-center field fence. It was the first home run allowed by Mitchell in 340 batters faced this season.
No. 9 hitter and Lafayette native Tayl'r Hollis hit another shot off Mitchell over the left-center field fence to start a scoring barrage by OU in the third.
Back-to-back singles preceded a walk to load the bases with just one out for Scaglione. Scaglione singled to score a pair of runs with the help of a fielding error by Danyele Gomez. The Sooners plated another run on a fielder's choice groundout. Heather Bobbitt replaced Mitchell, but allowed a two run single, giving OU a 7-0 lead.
Keiter held the Cajuns hitless for three innings until Louisiana responded in the fourth.
Brittany Bryant walked to start the inning before consecutive singles by Joy Webre and Lacey Bertucci loaded the bases with no outs. UL then did their damage with two out, as Crystal George walked to score Bryant. Pinch hitter Desi Chapman cut the Cajuns deficit to 7-3 with a bloop single to right field scoring two runners.
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Louisiana (22-3) turned around to face Syracuse (9-7) 30 minutes later.
Mitchell returned to the circle and threw a 13-strikeout, two-hitter to help the Cajuns top the Orange 1-0. She improves to 17-3 on the season.
Mitchell allowed a pair of one-out singles in the top of the first, but any threat was eliminated after Webre picked off the lead runner at second base.
Jill Robertson started the Cajuns third with a triple to right-center. She scored on a Webre single to give UL their only run.
The Orange nearly scored in the fourth, putting a pair of runners on with one out. Tiffany Hebert saved a run with a terrific diving stop up the middle to cancel a runner at second for the second out. Mitchell hit the next batter to load the bases, but induced her sixth strikeout to end the inning.
Robertson and Gomez began the Cajuns fifth with singles up the middle, but both were stranded.
The Cajuns will play only one game on Friday, weather permitting, at 3:30pm (CT) against Arizona State. Heavy rains are forecast for Southern California for most of the weekend.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
