University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana Headed to Baton Rouge Regional
5/27/2013 12:20:00 PM | Baseball
Contact: Matt Hebert
LAFAYETTE – The Ragin' Cajuns baseball team received their postseason assignment on Monday as it was revealed during the NCAA Baseball Selection Show that the squad was awarded an at-large berth into the NCAA Regionals for the Baton Rouge Regional at Alex Box Stadium.
Louisiana (41-18, 19-11 Sun Belt) is set to appear in the NCAA Baseball Championship for the 13th time overall and first time since participating in the 2010 Austin (TX) Regional.
For head coach Tony Robichaux, it will be his ninth time leading the Ragin' Cajuns into the NCAA Championship.
Louisiana is one of the record four Sun Belt Conference schools appearing in the NCAA Baseball Championship. They join SBC regular season co-champions Troy (at large) and South Alabama (at large) and conference tournament winner Florida Atlantic (automatic bid) in the regional round.
The NCAA Selection committee has sent the Ragin' Cajuns, as the No. 2 seed, to the Baton Rouge Regional to face Southland Conference regular season champion Sam Houston State (37-20, 20-7 SLC), who received the No. 3 seed as an at large bid. Also in the Baton Rouge Regional will be host LSU (No. 1 seed) and Jackson State (No. 4 seed).
Louisiana begins play in the Baton Rouge Regional on Friday, May 31 at 7 p.m., against Sam Houston at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge. Host-LSU (52-9, 23-7 SEC) and Jackson State (34-20, 19-5 SWAC) begin the four-team, double-elimination regional meeting at 2 p.m., on Friday.
Should the Cajuns win their opening round contest they play Saturday, June 1 at 7 p.m. A loss would put the Cajuns into a 2 p.m., elimination game on Saturday.
The Ragin' Cajuns bring one of the nation's top offensive units into the Baton Rouge regional. Louisiana ranks Top 10 nationally in average, runs, hits, doubles, home runs and slugging percentage and is hitting .352 and slugging .587 since May 1 scoring five-plus runs each game during the timeframe.
Louisiana has won 15 of its last 20 contests and has secured the program's first 40-win season since 2007. The 18-win improvement from last season (went 23-30 in 2012) is tying the 1997 squad for the largest win improvement in the Robichaux era (increased from 25 wins in 1996 to 43 in 1997).
The Ragin' Cajuns are making their fifth appearance in an NCAA Regional in Baton Rouge and first since 2002.
More information regarding the Baton Rouge Regional, including ticket information, will be posted at RaginCajuns.com later today. Check back for more details.
BASES NOTED: Louisiana's all-time NCAA Baseball Championship record is 20-25 and includes Super Regional appearances in 1999 and 2000 and a College World Series berth in 2000…The Cajuns record in the regional round is 15-20…Louisiana has won its first round contest in the regional round the last two appearances (College Sation and Austin)…This is the first NCAA Championship appearance for all members of the Cajuns roster except Chase Traffica who was a freshman on the 2010 squad…The Cajuns enter the Baton regional winners of seven of their last eight games…Dex Kjerstad is the team's hottest hitter with a 13-game hitting streak intact and a team-and Sun Belt-best .398 average…Kjerstad has accrued 94 base hits which leaves him seven hits shy of the school record 101 recorded by Nathan Nelson in 2000…Michael Strentz will get a crack and the single-season record for doubles during the NCAA postseason as his 23 doubles leaves him two shy of the record 25 by Kevin Meyers in 1989…Louisiana has no prior NCAA history with Sam Houston State or Jackson State…The Ragin' Cauns and LSU Tigers have met six times in NCAA Regionals action with the Tigers holding a 5-1 edge…In the 2002 NCAA Regional trip to Baton Rouge the Cajuns defeated LSU 5-0 in the winner's bracket final, but dropped identical 12-2 decisions to the LSU on Championship Sunday.
NCAA BATON ROUGE REGIONAL SCHEDULE (All times Central)
Friday, May 31
Game 1: No. 1 LSU vs. No. 4 Jackson State – 2 p.m.
Game 2: No. 2 Louisiana vs. No. 3 Sam Houston State – 7 p.m.
Saturday, June 1
Game 3: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser – 2 p.m.
Game 4: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner – 7 p.m.
Sunday, June 2
Game 5: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 loser – 2 p.m.
Game 6: Regional Championship Game: Game 5 winner vs. Game 4 winner – 7 p.m.
Monday, June 3 (if necessary)
Game 7: Second Regional Championship Game: Game 6 winner vs. Game 6 loser – 7 p.m.
RAGIN' CAJUNS BASEBALL ALL-TIME NCAA REGIONAL ROUND APPEARANCES
1988 – NCAA Midwest Regional (Stillwater, Okla.)
1990 – NCAA South I Regional (Baton Rouge, La.)
1991 – NCAA South II Regional (Baton Rouge, La.)
1992 – NCAA Central Regional (Austin, Texas)
1997 – NCAA Mideast Regional (Starkville, Miss.)
1998 – NCAA South II Regional (Baton Rouge, La.)
1999 – NCAA Houston Regional (Houston, Texas)
2000 – NCAA Lafayette Regional (Lafayette, La.)
2002 – NCAA Baton Rouge Regional (Baton Rouge, La.)
2005 – NCAA New Orleans Regional at Tulane (New Orleans, La.)
2007 – NCAA College Station Regional (College Station, Texas)
2010 – NCAA Austin Regional (Austin, Texas)
2013 – NCAAA Baton Rouge Regional (Baton Rouge, La.)
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