Long Ball Lifts Cajuns over WKU

LAFAYETTE-Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns baseball team collected 10 hits including seven extra base hits en route to an 8-2 victory over Western Kentucky on Friday night at M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field.

The Cajuns (25-6, 10-3 Sun Belt) hit four homeruns on the night and added a pair of doubles and a triple.

Nolan Gisclair led the way for UL. The junior finished the game 3-for-4 with a pair of homeruns. He collected five RBI on the night and scored three of the Cajuns runs.

Also adding homeruns for the Cajuns were Jonathan Lucroy and Jefferies Tatford.

Scott Hawkins hit the triple for the Ragin' Cajuns, while Justin Robichaux added a pair of doubles.

Defensively, the Cajuns received 8.0 stellar innings of work from starting pitcher Buddy Glass (6-1). The junior hurler collected seven strikeouts on the night while scattering eight hits.

Danny Farquhar pitched a perfect ninth inning in relief of Glass. Farquhar retired all three batters he faced, striking out the first two.

The Ragin' Cajuns were the first team on the scoreboard. Josh Logan led off the game with a single on the first pitch he saw. Gisclair followed Logan with his seventh homerun of the year. The two-run blast gave the Cajuns a quick 2-0 lead after one inning of play.

The Hilltoppers didn't waste much time cutting into the UL lead. WKU's Wade Gaynor hit a solo homer of his own to trim the lead to 2-1 after one and a half inning of play.

The Ragin' Cajuns added a pair of runs in the bottom of the third. Gisclair collected his second hit of the night as he singled through the left side of the infield. He moved to third on a failed pick off attempt. He came around to score as Tatford hit a towering shot to right field. The homerun was Tatford's fifth of the season and extended the Cajuns lead to 4-1.

The Cajuns used a three-run fourth inning to pad their lead. With one out, Robichaux doubled to left field. After a deep fly ball, Logan drew a four pitch walk to give UL a runner on second and third. Gisclair followed with his second homerun of the night. The three-run homer was his eighth of the season and marked the second time this season that Gisclair had two homeruns in one game.

The Toppers got one back in the top of the fifth inning. A double just out of reach of a diving Devon Bourque led off the inning for Western Kentucky. An infield single to first base gave the Hilltoppers runners at the corners. A double to centerfield plated a runner and left Western Kentucky with runners at second and third with no outs. Glass retired the next three batters in order. He struck out the first batter, induced a ground ball and finished off the inning by striking out the final batter.

Leading 7-2, the Cajuns added an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh inning. With one out, Lucroy hit his team leading 10^th homerun of the season to increase the Cajuns lead to 8-2?the final margin of victory.

The Ragin' Cajuns and Hilltoppers will look to conclude the series on Saturday. The two teams will attempt to bypass some inclement weather that is slated to hit the Lafayette area late Saturday night by playing a doubleheader on Saturday. The twin bill will start at 2:05 p.m. and game one will be broadcast on My KLAF in Lafayette.

-Ragin' Cajuns-

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