University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Louisiana UnLimited: Ragin' Cajuns Baseball Has Been Waiting For This ...
2/22/2022 3:27:00 PM | Baseball, Louisiana UnLimited
There's no fault to be cast out, no responsibility to fall on any shoulders … unless you want to blame life itself, or karma, or the ravages that have befallen UL's baseball program over the last two seasons.
The shocking and untimely death of an icon, a season cut off at the knees just when it was beginning to heat up, and a second season of pandemic trials and tribulations that squeezed all the emotions out of last spring. It was almost too much to bear for the Ragin' Cajun baseball team and its passionate following.
Matt Deggs certainly didn't deserve all that. God knows he's been through enough in his life, and had emerged from one of the worst tunnels of despair imaginable only to be hit with an all-new set of challenges.
That's why he couldn't wait for Opening Weekend. His Ragin' Cajun team had two years of pent-up emotions waiting to bubble over, and all it needed was for someone to strike a match.
In this case, a lot of matches.
In 45 hours, 12,795 fans returned to M. L. "Tigue" Moore Field at Russo Park for a season-opening three-game series, and that group had passions building for two years and waiting to be unleashed. Over 4,000 were on hand at all three games as UL couldn't hold an early lead on Friday, but rallied back to take 7-4 and 5-3 wins on Saturday and Sunday over a UC Irvine team ranked in the top 20 in every national college baseball poll.
"We can't thank the fans enough," said outfielder-turned-first baseman Carson Roccaforte, who knocked in a run in all three games. "They were electric this weekend and really drove us. We'd been working on finishing, and we really wanted to do that for them."
"Let's be honest, this is what we've all been waiting for since I got back here," Deggs said. "We've been waiting two and a half years for that type of performance and play and style, that's what Cajun Nation is accustomed to and is used to, and no question they were our best player all weekend.
"Our guys are a bunch of hams, they like the lights and the stage and this weekend suited them to a T. When they get behind us and adrenalize us like that, they have the ability to slingshot you to the finish line."
That was graphically shown on Sunday, when the Cajuns trailed the 14th-ranked (Collegiate Baseball magazine) Anteaters 3-2 entering the eighth inning. UL had only one hit since the second inning when the Cajuns took a 2-0 lead, and UCI brought on returning All-America closer Jacob King – who struck out two and got a weak popup in the ninth two nights earlier to secure a 7-4 win.
Deggs had the entire team out in front of the dugout in the middle of the eighth.
"I told them let's settle in and focus," he said. "Focus over enthusiasm right now, a little less enthusiasm and a little more focus. I knew it was happening in the seventh when we had loud outs, three in a row, boom boom boom, and nothing to show for it, but it was all really good approaches."
Junior Texas Tech transfer and likely season-long leadoff hitter Max Marusak sent King's first pitch up the middle, reaching base for the sixth time on the weekend, and promptly stole second before Tyler Robertson drew a walk. Highly-regarded freshman Kyle DeBarge missed a swinging third strike but Marusak and Robertson both moved up on the swing.
Connor Kimple, who had already homered in all three weekend games on his way to Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week honors, was intentionally walked to bring Roccaforte to the plate.
"Knowing how hot he was, I figured they'd go ahead and put him on," Roccaforte said. "I was looking for that spot after Max got that huge leadoff hit, that started us rolling downhill."
Roccaforte delivered a single to right field for the tying and go-ahead runs, and C. J. Willis followed one out later with an RBI single that provided the final score and gave sophomore transfer Bo Bonds some breathing room. Not that he needed it, since he easily sat down the final three of his 10 in a row retired to end the game.
"My adrenaline's still going, I'm shaking bad," Bonds said 15 minutes after a final Anteater foul pop-up was gathered in front of the Cajun dugout. "I throw with a lot of emotion. You just have to think you're better than everybody, and I think that's what our team has and I think we're really good at it. We have a lot of confidence."
That confidence confirmed to Deggs that the short game wasn't called for late Sunday.
"We bunt to create, we don't bunt to finish," he said. "We didn't work as hard as we did to tie somebody. I trust our guys and I trust their approach at the plate. We'll short-game to start stuff and there's a place for that, but not against that team. They're too skilled. We were going to have to go win that game."
It was only the first three games of a 56-game schedule, and there will be ups and down. Even the absolute elite in baseball will experience slumps. UL's 2014 team, which never lost two straight games until the final two games of the Super Regional when it was one win away from the College World Series, came as close as any college team in recent history to playing at an elite level every night in a 58-10 season with Deggs as an assistant coach.
But there were a lot of things to like in that first weekend. UL committed one error, that when a throw on a UCI bunt attempt pulled Roccaforte off the bag at first base. Cajun catchers allowed one stolen base to an Anteater team that looks on running as second nature (starting catcher Julian Brock was 2-for-2 on throw-outs). The top four in UL's lineup reached base 22 times in 48 chances over the three games. UL hit five home runs (it took eight games to reach that total last season), with Kimple's trio enough to tie him for second nationally.
Ten different Cajuns saw mound time – nobody more than once – and five had significant innings pitched and didn't allow a run, while holding a team that hit .300 last year 60 points below that figure. The three pitchers that finished the three games combined for 9 2/3 innings pitched with no runs, four hits and 14 strikeouts.
"This team's worked as hard as any team I've ever had, and that's saying something," Deggs said after the Sunday win that locked up a series that was unexpected outside of the UL locker room. "Not everybody can play for us, and you can take that to the bank. It takes a passionate kid that's willing to sacrifice and be a great team guy and clap until it's his turn, and do whatever's asked of him.
"If you saw them in red today (the red Sunday jerseys), they checked that box. That's Cajun baseball, and that's not for everybody. That's a select club that truly wants it."
Many of the same things could be said of Deggs and his staff, after he took over the program in the most difficult situation possible when legendary coach Tony Robichaux lost his battle with a heart attack in July of 2019. The battle with COVID followed shortly, a battle that continues but one that's starting to struggle to keep its hitting streak alive.
"Since I got back here, when Coach passed and as tough as that's been, and then what the whole world has gone through, it's kind of put things in perspective," Deggs said. "We've missed our best player. Cajun Nation is our best player. We drew 13,000 hungry Cajuns in here, and that was great to see."
The shocking and untimely death of an icon, a season cut off at the knees just when it was beginning to heat up, and a second season of pandemic trials and tribulations that squeezed all the emotions out of last spring. It was almost too much to bear for the Ragin' Cajun baseball team and its passionate following.
Matt Deggs certainly didn't deserve all that. God knows he's been through enough in his life, and had emerged from one of the worst tunnels of despair imaginable only to be hit with an all-new set of challenges.
That's why he couldn't wait for Opening Weekend. His Ragin' Cajun team had two years of pent-up emotions waiting to bubble over, and all it needed was for someone to strike a match.
In this case, a lot of matches.
In 45 hours, 12,795 fans returned to M. L. "Tigue" Moore Field at Russo Park for a season-opening three-game series, and that group had passions building for two years and waiting to be unleashed. Over 4,000 were on hand at all three games as UL couldn't hold an early lead on Friday, but rallied back to take 7-4 and 5-3 wins on Saturday and Sunday over a UC Irvine team ranked in the top 20 in every national college baseball poll.
"We can't thank the fans enough," said outfielder-turned-first baseman Carson Roccaforte, who knocked in a run in all three games. "They were electric this weekend and really drove us. We'd been working on finishing, and we really wanted to do that for them."
"Let's be honest, this is what we've all been waiting for since I got back here," Deggs said. "We've been waiting two and a half years for that type of performance and play and style, that's what Cajun Nation is accustomed to and is used to, and no question they were our best player all weekend.
"Our guys are a bunch of hams, they like the lights and the stage and this weekend suited them to a T. When they get behind us and adrenalize us like that, they have the ability to slingshot you to the finish line."
That was graphically shown on Sunday, when the Cajuns trailed the 14th-ranked (Collegiate Baseball magazine) Anteaters 3-2 entering the eighth inning. UL had only one hit since the second inning when the Cajuns took a 2-0 lead, and UCI brought on returning All-America closer Jacob King – who struck out two and got a weak popup in the ninth two nights earlier to secure a 7-4 win.
Deggs had the entire team out in front of the dugout in the middle of the eighth.
"I told them let's settle in and focus," he said. "Focus over enthusiasm right now, a little less enthusiasm and a little more focus. I knew it was happening in the seventh when we had loud outs, three in a row, boom boom boom, and nothing to show for it, but it was all really good approaches."
Junior Texas Tech transfer and likely season-long leadoff hitter Max Marusak sent King's first pitch up the middle, reaching base for the sixth time on the weekend, and promptly stole second before Tyler Robertson drew a walk. Highly-regarded freshman Kyle DeBarge missed a swinging third strike but Marusak and Robertson both moved up on the swing.
Connor Kimple, who had already homered in all three weekend games on his way to Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week honors, was intentionally walked to bring Roccaforte to the plate.
"Knowing how hot he was, I figured they'd go ahead and put him on," Roccaforte said. "I was looking for that spot after Max got that huge leadoff hit, that started us rolling downhill."
Roccaforte delivered a single to right field for the tying and go-ahead runs, and C. J. Willis followed one out later with an RBI single that provided the final score and gave sophomore transfer Bo Bonds some breathing room. Not that he needed it, since he easily sat down the final three of his 10 in a row retired to end the game.
"My adrenaline's still going, I'm shaking bad," Bonds said 15 minutes after a final Anteater foul pop-up was gathered in front of the Cajun dugout. "I throw with a lot of emotion. You just have to think you're better than everybody, and I think that's what our team has and I think we're really good at it. We have a lot of confidence."
That confidence confirmed to Deggs that the short game wasn't called for late Sunday.
"We bunt to create, we don't bunt to finish," he said. "We didn't work as hard as we did to tie somebody. I trust our guys and I trust their approach at the plate. We'll short-game to start stuff and there's a place for that, but not against that team. They're too skilled. We were going to have to go win that game."
It was only the first three games of a 56-game schedule, and there will be ups and down. Even the absolute elite in baseball will experience slumps. UL's 2014 team, which never lost two straight games until the final two games of the Super Regional when it was one win away from the College World Series, came as close as any college team in recent history to playing at an elite level every night in a 58-10 season with Deggs as an assistant coach.
But there were a lot of things to like in that first weekend. UL committed one error, that when a throw on a UCI bunt attempt pulled Roccaforte off the bag at first base. Cajun catchers allowed one stolen base to an Anteater team that looks on running as second nature (starting catcher Julian Brock was 2-for-2 on throw-outs). The top four in UL's lineup reached base 22 times in 48 chances over the three games. UL hit five home runs (it took eight games to reach that total last season), with Kimple's trio enough to tie him for second nationally.
Ten different Cajuns saw mound time – nobody more than once – and five had significant innings pitched and didn't allow a run, while holding a team that hit .300 last year 60 points below that figure. The three pitchers that finished the three games combined for 9 2/3 innings pitched with no runs, four hits and 14 strikeouts.
"This team's worked as hard as any team I've ever had, and that's saying something," Deggs said after the Sunday win that locked up a series that was unexpected outside of the UL locker room. "Not everybody can play for us, and you can take that to the bank. It takes a passionate kid that's willing to sacrifice and be a great team guy and clap until it's his turn, and do whatever's asked of him.
"If you saw them in red today (the red Sunday jerseys), they checked that box. That's Cajun baseball, and that's not for everybody. That's a select club that truly wants it."
Many of the same things could be said of Deggs and his staff, after he took over the program in the most difficult situation possible when legendary coach Tony Robichaux lost his battle with a heart attack in July of 2019. The battle with COVID followed shortly, a battle that continues but one that's starting to struggle to keep its hitting streak alive.
"Since I got back here, when Coach passed and as tough as that's been, and then what the whole world has gone through, it's kind of put things in perspective," Deggs said. "We've missed our best player. Cajun Nation is our best player. We drew 13,000 hungry Cajuns in here, and that was great to see."
Players Mentioned
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