University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
San Francisco
Cajuns Shutout By Dons in Frisco Finale
3/13/2011 6:47:00 PM | Baseball
Louisiana was shutout for the first time in the 2011 season as eight strong innings from San Francisco starting pitcher Matt Hiserman carried the Dons to a 4-0 win over the Ragin' Cajuns Sunday morning in the Cal Baseball Classic at AT&T Park in San Francisco.
The Cajuns (7-8) completed their stay in San Francisco and the Cal Baseball Classic.
The squad returns home next week for a midweek game with Alcorn State on Tuesday, March 15 at 6 p.m., then the opening of Sun Belt Conference play Friday-Sunday, March 18-20 at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field.
Hiserman tossed eight innings of two-hit baseball to keep the Cajuns in check. T.J. Geith started for Louisiana and carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning. He wound up surrendering the lead in the fifth inning and finished with the loss after being charged with four runs (two earned) in five innings of work.
Matt Hicks and Chase Traffica continued the Cajuns solid bullpen work, combining to toss three innings of two-hit relief. The UL bullpen has now worked 57 innings this season and surrendered only nine runs and 41 base hits in 2011.
A no-hit battle between Geith and Hiserman covered the first two innings of the contest.
Louisiana picked up the first hit of the game when Chase Compton singled to lead off the third inning. He was moved to second on a Chris Sinclair sacrifice bunt, but stranded as a fly out and pop out followed.
Geith held the Dons hitless through four complete innings. Hiserman kept pace by stranding two Cajuns baserunners in the fourth inning and retiring the side in order in the fifth inning.
Geith lost his no-hitter in the fifth inning and the Cajuns fell behind as USF used three consecutive base hits to post the game's first runs. A leadoff single by Stephen Yarrow then back-to-back doubles from Adam Clear and Travis Higgs caused the damage in a two-run inning.
USF extended the lead as a UL error provided the Dons with an extra out and baserunner in the bottom of the sixth inning. Hicks relieved Geith after a Connor Bernatz single gave the Dons two aboard the basepath.
Hicks was greeted by an RBI single to left field by Pete Lavin which upped the lead to 3-0. Hicks would escape a bases loaded jam by inducing a double play ball, but an additional run was added due to the error at the top of the inning.
BASES NOTED: Sunday's game marked the first meeting between the Cajuns and Dons...The loss extended the Cajuns current losing streak to four games...UL falls to 6-9 all-time in Major League ballparks...Alex Fuselier did not post a base hit and saw his season-high, five-game hitting streak snapped...The shutout relief provided by Matt Hicks and Chase Traffica lowered the bullpen's season ERA to 1.42...UL recorded the 47th consecutive game of holding the opposition to single digit runs, a streak that dates back to April 6 of last season at Northwestern State...Cajuns pitching held the opponent below five runs for the 11th time in 15 games...UL played its final non-conference weekend game as next weekend begins Sun Belt play for the final 10 weekends of the 2011 season.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
