University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
Western Kentucky
Cormier, Draheim Shine in Sweep
4/30/2011 11:15:00 PM | Softball
The 23rd ranked Ragin' Cajuns remained atop the Sun Belt standings as they swept a doubleheader from Western Kentucky at Lamson Park on Saturday afternoon.
The Cajuns (41-9, 15-5) became the first team in the Sun Belt with 40 wins this season as they took game one, 3-2, in walk-off fashion thanks to Sarah Draheim and game two in run-rule fashion, 10-2, thanks in large part to Paige Cormier.
The wins over the Lady Toppers (26-24, 7-14) pushed the Cajuns to 25-1 at Lamson Park this season as they prepare to close out their home regular season schedule on Sunday with Senior Day at 12:00 p.m.
GAME ONE- Louisiana 3, Western Kentcuky 2
The Cajuns won their first game of the season via a walk-off as Cormier and Draheim provided the fireworks in the bottom of the seventh inning in a 3-2 UL win.
Ashley Brignac (24-5) went the distance for the Cajuns, giving up two runs on seven hits with six strikeouts.
Nerissa Myers was the only Cajun with two hits in the game as UL posted seven hits as a team. The Ragin' Cajuns took advantage of four WKU errors.
The Lady Toppers would get on the board first with a single score in the first inning. Leadoff hitter Kelsie Mattox would reach on a ball-four illegal pitch and advance to second on a sacrifice bunt. Mattox would then score on an RBI single by Karavin Dew to give Western Kentucky the early lead.
The Cajuns would get the run back in the second inning thanks to two WKU errors. Natalie Fernandez led off the inning by reaching first base on an error. Next up was Megan Granger who attempted to put down a sacrifice bunt. The bunt was placed perfectly down the first-base line and Granger beat out the throw for an infield single.
However, on the play, WKU first baseman Megan Johnson dropped the throw and allowed Fernandez to score all the way from first base, tying the game up at 1-1.
The Cajuns would tack on another unearned run in the third to take a 2-1 lead. Myers reached on a single and stole second, then scored on an error by the Toppers first baseman on a Cormier ground ball.
Western Kentucky would tie things up with a single score in the fifth inning. After a bloop double put Mattox on second and a ground out moved her to third, a sacrifice fly by Ciara Garcia plated Mattox to bring the score to 2-2.
Brignac would fight through the next two innings, striking out three while the Toppers stranded three but didn't score and the game went into the bottom of the seventh inning tied at 2-2.
Sulaski (11-8) would retire the Bayou Bombers to begin the inning, however Cormier kept the inning alive with a two-out double down the right field line, and the Cajuns sophomore catcher, Draheim, put the game away with a walk-off single to the left centerfield gap.
GAME TWO - Louisiana 10, Western Kentucky 2 (6 innings)
The Cajuns bats came to life in game two as they plated ten runs for the 14th time in 2011 in a 10-2, six-inning win.
Cormier and Orgeron each had two hits for the Cajuns who posted eight as a team. Cormier also posted a career-high four RBI.
Christina Hamilton (10-2) went the distance for the Cajuns, giving up two runs on just four hits.
This time the Cajuns would score first as they plated one run in the first inning. Christi Orgeron got things started with a one-out double and moved to third on two walks, including an intentional pass to Gabriele Bridges. With two-out Orgeron would score on a wild pitch to give UL the early 1-0 lead.
UL would add two more runs in the second inning without the benefit of a hit. Granger and Fernandez led off the inning with a walk and a hit by pitch, chasing WKU starter Birttanie Albright (3-2) after just one inning pitched. Both runnerswould advance into scoring position on a groundout and Granger would score on an RBI groundout by Myers.
With Fernandez standing on third, Orgeron walked and the Cajuns then executed a double steal take a 3-0 lead.
The Lady Toppers would close the gap to 3-2 with two runs in the fourth inning. A Karavin Dew single followed by a Sulaski double would put runners on second and third with one out. A Cajun error on a ground ball would allow Dew to score and put runners on the corners with one out.
Western Kentucky would then plate their second run on a double steal that brought Sulaski home and cut the Cajuns lead to one run.
The Cajuns would get the runs back in the bottom of the inning, plating five runs to extend their lead to six. Smith and Myers got things started with one-out singles and the Cajuns had runners on the corners when Orgeron bounced into a fielder's choice. WKU would load the bases by intentionally walking Bridges setting the stage for Cormier.
The junior second baseman then delivered a two-RBI single to give the Cajuns a 5-2 lead. Draheim would then plate two runs with a two-RBI double and Taryn Broussard would plate another with an RBI single. When the dust settled, the Cajuns had sent nine batters to the plate and recorded five hits to take an 8-2 lead.
The Cajuns would put the game away in the bottom of the sixth inning when Orgeron led off with a double and Cormier plated the final two runs with a two-run home run over the left field fence. The homer was the fourth of the season for Cormier and the first of her career at Lamson Park.
The Cajuns and Toppers will close out the series with a single game on Sunday. First pitch is set for 12:00 p.m. as the Cajuns lone senior, Gabriele Bridges, will be honored before the game.
-- Ragin' Cajuns --
