University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
La.-Monroe
Home Win Streak Snapped by Warhawks
3/19/2011 2:00:00 AM | Baseball
Louisiana saw its seven game win streak at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field snapped on Friday as La.-Monroe rode the arm of Drew Granier to a 2-1 win in the 2011 Sun Belt Conference opener.
Granier went the distance on a career-high 133 pitches and held the Cajuns (8-9, 0-1 Sun Belt) hitless until the ninth inning.
Jordan Poirrier tripled to lead off the Cajuns half of the ninth inning and scored on a Greg Fontenot sacrifice fly. That would have tied the game, but fortunately for the Warhawks (11-5, 1-0 Sun Belt) they had pushed across an insurance run on a Caleb Clowers sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth inning allowing them hold on to the lead.
Granier retired the final two Cajuns hitters to finish off the complete game victory and give La.-Monroe a 1-0 lead in the Sun Belt opening series.
The two teams will square off in the middle game of the series at 2 p.m., on Saturday. Louisiana will send Jordan Nicholson (1-1, 2.25 ERA) to the mound and La.-Monroe will start Randy Zeigler (1-1, 5.23 ERA). The game will be broadcast live on MyKLAF.
Taylor Hubbell had to take a hard-luck loss for the Cajuns. He scattered six hits and posted a career-best eight strikeouts in six innings of work. Hubbell's previous career stirkeout mark was set earlier this season at Southern Miss on March 6, as he struck out seven through 5.1 innings en route to his third win of the season.
Hubbell escaped an early jam after giving up two hits to open the second inning. He then forced a pop up and two strikeouts to leave two Warhawks stranded.
In the third inning Louisiana loaded the bases, but failed to cash in on what turned out to be the squad's best scoring opportunity of the evening. Grainer forced a pair of fly outs to end the threat.
La.-Monroe's Caleb Knox opened the seventh with a ground rule double down the left field line. Joey Satriano relieved Hubbell then two at bats later, Matt Laird sliced a single into right field scoring Knox to end a scoreless battle between the two rivals.
In the bottom of the seventh, Brian Bowman pinch ran and stole third for the Cajuns with one out. Jordan Bourque struck out looking and Ryan Leonards flied out to right field stranding Bowman at third base.
Clowers' sacrifice fly in the ninth inning upped the Warhawks' lead to two runs and proved to be the difference maker.
BASES NOTED: Despite the loss, the Cajuns held the opposition below five runs for the 13th time in 17 games this season and held an opposing team to single digits runs for the 49th consecutive game dating back to April 6, 2010...UL fell to 61-46 overall vs. La.-Monroe and 7-6 in Sun Belt games...For the first time since 2007 the Cajuns opened Sun Belt play against a team not named Arkansas State...UL and ASU had opened league play from 2008-10...UL opened its 20th season of Sun Belt play...Jordan Poirrier's triple off the right field wall in the ninth inning broke up Drew Granier's no-hitter and saved the Cajuns from being no-hit for the first time since 1983...Matt Goulas was hit for a team-leading seventh time on Friday...With being dinged 41 times in his career, Goulas is just seven hit away from tying the school career record for most hit by pitches (Jefferies Tatford, 48)...Time of the game was 2 hours, 29 minutes marking the 11th time this season UL has played a game in under 2 hours, 30 minutes.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
