Cajuns Conclude Non-Conference Play Tuesday at Houston

Contact: Matt Hebert

Game Notes

THE MIDWEEK GAME
Date: Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Location: Houston, Texas
Site: Cougar Field (3,500)
Time: 6:30 p.m
Opponent: Houston (17-30-1)
Radio: SportsRadio ESPN 1420 AM (KPEL)
Television: None
Internet Broadcast Link: www.espn1420.com
Live Stats/Video: www.UHCougars.com

PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
RHP Joe Zimmermann (UL) vs. LHP Matt Hernandez (UH)

The Traveling Cajuns: Coming off a week that featured four games on the road, Louisiana makes one more stop before returning to “The Tigue”. The Ragin' Cajuns play their final regular season road game on Tuesday, May 15 when they travel to Houston to meet the Cougars in the final midweek game of the season. First pitch at Cougar Field is set for 6:30 p.m.

What's On Tap: Louisiana returns home for the season's final Sun Belt series against La.-Monroe at M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field. The Cajuns and Warhawks are scheduled to meet Thursday-Saturday, May 17-19 with all games beginning at 6 p.m.

Timely Explosion: With the season on the line following the series-opening loss to Middle Tennessee, the Cajuns bats delivered a knockout performance that has kept the 2012 season alive. The Cajuns piled up 24 runs on 33 hits during Saturday's doubleheader sweep, with eight different players posting multiple-hit efforts.

Moving in on a Legend: Freshman Dylan Butler picked up four RBI on Saturday, increasing his season total to 45 RBI which is the most by a Cajuns freshman since current Milwaukee Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy tallied 48 in 2005.

A Mere Formality: Dylan Butler is a lock to become the first true freshman to lead the Ragin' Cajuns in RBI since the program moved to Division I status in 1972. His 45 RBI are well ahead of the next nearest tally of 25 (Chase Compton).

Nearing 900: Head coach Tony Robichaux is six wins shy of 900 career wins (presently 894-613-1 in his 26th season as a Division I head coach).

Series Streak Snapped: Louisiana collected its first Sun Belt series victory since Easter weekend (April 6-8) with the doubleheader sweep of Middle Tennessee on Saturday. UL ended a string of four consecutive series losses (FIU, USA, UALR, Troy).

Looking for a Sweep: The Ragin' Cajuns look to make it a season sweep of Houston. UL posted a 3-1 victory at “The Tigue” on March 6 in the season's earlier meeting. Dylan Butler produced all three runs for Louisiana and 5 2/3 innings of combined scoreless relief from Cord Cockrell and Caleb Kellogg shut the door on the Cougars.

The Houston Series (UH Leads 36-12-1): Teams complete a home-and-home series with UL's trip on Tuesday. The Cougars visited “The Tigue” on March 6 with the Cajuns claiming a 3-1 victory. This year's meetings marked the first time the two programs met since a home-and-home in 2009. Home team has won the last seven meetings. UL's last win over the Cougars in Houston came on May 30, 1999, a 19-8 victory in the NCAA Houston Regional championship game. The Cajuns-Cougars series dates back to 1948, a time before Louisiana joined Division I (joined in 1972). The only decade the programs haven't met since that time was the 1960s.

Putting the “Student” in Athlete: Spring 2012 commencement was held at UL on Saturday and six current Cajuns received their bachelor's degrees – Brian Bowman (Finance), Tyler Frederick (Finance), Daniel Nichols (General Studies), Jordan Nicholson (General Studies), Chris Sinclair (General Studies), Joe Zimmermann (General Studies). Two former Cajuns, Alex Fuselier (biology) and Michael Cook (civil engineering), also received their degrees on Saturday.

Making Dad Proud: Freshman Austin Robichaux picked up his first career Sun Belt victory in the series clincher over MT, tossing a complete game, three-hit shutout. Robichaux retired 13 of the final 14 Blue Raiders he faced. Austin, the youngest son of head coach Tony Robichaux, made his first career road start in Sun Belt play. For his efforts, Austin was named Sun Belt Conference Pitcher of the Week.

Returning to Form: After allowing six runs or more in seven straight games prior to the MT series, the Cajuns pitching staff returned to its dominant ways. The staff held the Blue Raiders below five runs all three outings and surrendered just five earned runs over 24 innings of work. The pitching staff has held the opposition to five runs or less in 28 of 50 games (18-10 record) and single digits in 48 of 50 games.

Three-Run Inning is the Key: The Cajuns offense produced four three-run innings in the series finale at Middle Tennessee. UL's offense has now produced a three-run inning 30 times in 2012. The squad is 15-5 in contests that the offense produces at least one three-run inning.

-- Ragin' Cajuns --

Cajuns Conclude Non-Conference Play Tuesday at Houston

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