University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Thursday, March 3
Lafayette
6:00 p.m.
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
vs
LSU
Softball Starts Crossover Event Thursday Night Hosting LSU at Lamson Park
3/2/2022 8:27:00 PM | Softball
Ragin' Cajuns and Tigers also set to meet Saturday evening in Baton Rouge
No. 20 Louisiana (10-2) in Louisiana/LSU Invitational
Dates: Thursday-Saturday, Mar. 3-5, 2022
Lamson Park Schedule:
      Thurs., Mar. 3 – vs. #21 LSU, 6:00 p.m. (CST) // ESPN+
        Fri., Mar. 4 – vs. Central Connecticut State, 2:30 p.m. (CST) // ESPN+
      Fri., Mar. 4 – vs. Louisiana Tech, 5:00 p.m. (CST) // ESPN+
Tiger Park Schedule:
      Sat, Mar. 5 – at #21 LSU, 6:00 p.m. (CST) // SEC Network Plus
MEDIA INFORMATION
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: Lamson Park | Tiger Park
Season Stats: Louisiana | LSU | Central Connecticut State | Louisiana Tech
Rosters: Louisiana | LSU | Central Connecticut State | Louisiana Tech
Television (at Lamson Park): ESPN+ • Talent: Dan MDonald, PxP; Yvette Girouard, analyst
Radio:Â ESPN Lafayette |Â Talent: Steve Peloquin, PxP; Bobby Neveaux, analyst
Live Coverage: Radio | Video |  Stats
Twitter Updates:Â @RaginCajunsSB
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THE BASICS
>> Louisiana and LSU, the co-hosts of the Louisiana/LSU Invitational taking place from Thursday-Sunday, March 3-6 between Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park and Tiger Park in Baton Rouge, begin play in the weekend tournament facing each other on Thursday, March 3 at 6 p.m. at Lamson Park.
 >> The Ragin' Cajuns continue tournament play on Friday, March 4 at Lamson Park facing Central Connecticut State at 2:30 p.m. followed by up 5 p.m. meeting with Louisiana Tech. On Saturday, March 5, Louisiana travels to Baton Rouge for another matchup with the Tigers at 6 p.m. that closes out the team's participation in the event.
 >> It's the third straight year that the Ragin' Cajuns and Tigers co-host the weekend crossover event, continuing a series of regular season meetings between the I-10 neighbors. LSU holds a 3-1 edge in head-to-head matchups since the start of the tournament.
 >> LSU is the second ranked team that Louisiana faces in as many weeks. Last week, the Ragin' Cajuns hosted No. 2 Alabama on Thursday, Feb. 24 at Lamson Park then again on Sunday, Feb. 27 at the Youngsville Sports Complex's Mardi Gras Mambo.
 >> The Louisiana/LSU Invitational marks the final non-conference weekend of the 2022 season for the Ragin' Cajuns. Beginning the weekend of March 11-13 (vs. Georgia State), it's Sun Belt Conference play each weekend until the postseason in May.
 >> The Ragin' Cajuns return to action for the first time since a 4-1 run through the Youngsville Sports Complex's Mardi Gras Mambo from Feb. 25-27. Louisiana's return to play was delayed a few days after the team's scheduled Mardi Gras day trip to Nacogdoches, Texas to face SFA in a doubleheader was postponed due to issues with field conditions at the SFA Softball Field.
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NUMBERS TO KNEAUX
0: Kandra Lamb held No. 2 Alabama hitless over the first three innings during the Sunday matchup at the Youngsville Mardi Gras Mambo.Â
3: Of the 21-1/3 innings pitched she's pitched in, the opposition has scored in only three off of freshman pitcher Sam Landry.
3.17: Louisiana entered the week ranked No. 3 nationally averaging 3.17 stolen bases per game (38 swipes in 12 games).
5: The five consecutive shutouts tossed by the pitching staff to start the season is a new school record (previous was four in 2019, 2015, 2010, 1995).
11: The number of games in length that the active hitting streak for Stormy Kotzelnick and reached base streak for Laney Credeur currently stands at.
22: Total number of strikeouts Sam Landry recorded in 10-2/3 innings of work at the Youngsville Mardi Gras Mambo.
30-2/3: Louisiana's pitching staff started the 2022 season with 30-2/3 consecutive scoreless innings pitched.
37: Louisiana is scheduled to play 37 games this season within the state of Louisiana's borders.
.406: Batting average for the Ragin' Cajuns offense after the season's first 12 games.
42/31: The Ragin' Cajuns offense has drawn more walks (42) than they have struck out (31).
100: Raina O'Neal picked up her 100th hit as a Ragin' Cajun on her RBI double in the second inning vs. St. Thomas on Friday, Feb. 25 in Youngsville.
124: Consecutive editions of the Top 25 polls that Louisiana has appeared in – a streak which dates back to April 2013.
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A QUICK LOOK AT THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Infield: Ready to be Louisiana's next primary catcher, Sophie Piskos is back with her infectious energy and enthusiasm and is ready to build upon last season's strong finish (hit .429 from April 20 onward). Back from injury, Taylor Roman made a strong case for covering the first base bag after turning in three triples, a home run and eight RBI on Opening Weekend. With an active 11-game hitting streak and a .500-plus average, Stormy Kotzelnick has penciled herself into the lineup at second base having started there the past eight games. Power 5 transfer Jourdyn Campbell (Texas A&M) entered the season as the front runner at third base and has held her spot. At shortstop, freshman Alexa Langeliers was the Opening Day starter and was there the entire weekend due to an impressive.429 showing at the plate which included a pair of home runs vs. UAB. Melissa Mayeux provides Louisiana with the flexibility to play all infield positions, and even serve as backup catcher for Piskos.
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Outfield: The Ragin' Cajuns have their "rock" back in center field in Raina O'Neal. O'Neal, who missed the final three months of the 2021 season due to injury, provides a tremendous boost defensively and offensively (has hit .300-plus and slugged .500-plus all three previous seasons with Louisiana). Freshman Maddie Hayden, the younger sister of four-time All-Sun Belt and All-Central Region performer Haley Hayden, has used her speed and recent hot streak at the plate to emerge as Louisiana's patrolman in left field. Hayden is hitting .619 over the past eight games since Feb. 13, with three doubles, two triples and five stolen bases. Senior Jenna Kean is the team's primary speed option in the stolen base department and is the veteran of a rotation in right field that includes freshmen Kramer Eschete, Kayla Falterman and Samantha Graeter. In recent games the freshman trio has alternated starts, with Kean replacing them defensively following a pinch-running situation.
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Pitchers: The coaches expect a true "pitching staff" in the circle to be the norm throughout the season. Kandra Lamb, who pitched a three-hit shutout of LSU in her final start of the 2021 season, is ready to take her turn as the leader. Kentucky-transfer Meghan Schorman and freshman Sam Landry are expected to round out the rotation of "starters" with Lamb. Schorman was off to a 7-1 start with a 1.30 ERA before the COVID-19 shutdown in 2020, while Landry was the No. 4-rated recruit by Extra Inning Softball and shined in last summer's Premier Girls Fastpitch (PGF) High School Senior All-American Game. Vanessa Foreman and Karly Heath should play a role in relief assignments to further deepen the staff approach.
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DIAMOND NOTES
ABOUT LOUISIANA
During the 2021 season, the Ragin' Cajuns reached the 40-win mark for the 22nd consecutive completed season, closing out the regular season winning 25 of the final 29 games, and advanced to Championship Sunday of the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional. Louisiana repeated as Sun Belt Conference regular season and tournament champions highlighted by an 11-1 record, regular season and tournament combined, against the league's other three NCAA Tournament participants (Texas State, Troy and South Alabama).
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Moving forward into the 2022 season, Louisiana is armed with the nation's No. 1-ranked recruiting class of the 2021 recruits by Extra Inning Softball including the No. 4-rated recruit in pitcher Sam Landry and No. 15-rated recruit in outfielder Maddie Hayden, has first team All-Sun Belt performer Kandra Lamb back in the circle seeking to pick up where Summer Ellyson left off, and welcomes back Raina O'Neal and Taylor Roman and their power bats back to the lineup.
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FOLLOW THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Follow the Ragin' Cajuns on Facebook (/RaginCajunsSB), Twitter (@RaginCajunsSB) and Instagram (@Louisiana.SB) to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Louisiana Softball.
Fans are encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
Â
Dates: Thursday-Saturday, Mar. 3-5, 2022
Lamson Park Schedule:
      Thurs., Mar. 3 – vs. #21 LSU, 6:00 p.m. (CST) // ESPN+
        Fri., Mar. 4 – vs. Central Connecticut State, 2:30 p.m. (CST) // ESPN+
      Fri., Mar. 4 – vs. Louisiana Tech, 5:00 p.m. (CST) // ESPN+
Tiger Park Schedule:
      Sat, Mar. 5 – at #21 LSU, 6:00 p.m. (CST) // SEC Network Plus
MEDIA INFORMATION
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: Lamson Park | Tiger Park
Season Stats: Louisiana | LSU | Central Connecticut State | Louisiana Tech
Rosters: Louisiana | LSU | Central Connecticut State | Louisiana Tech
Television (at Lamson Park): ESPN+ • Talent: Dan MDonald, PxP; Yvette Girouard, analyst
Radio:Â ESPN Lafayette |Â Talent: Steve Peloquin, PxP; Bobby Neveaux, analyst
Live Coverage: Radio | Video |  Stats
Twitter Updates:Â @RaginCajunsSB
Â
THE BASICS
>> Louisiana and LSU, the co-hosts of the Louisiana/LSU Invitational taking place from Thursday-Sunday, March 3-6 between Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park and Tiger Park in Baton Rouge, begin play in the weekend tournament facing each other on Thursday, March 3 at 6 p.m. at Lamson Park.
 >> The Ragin' Cajuns continue tournament play on Friday, March 4 at Lamson Park facing Central Connecticut State at 2:30 p.m. followed by up 5 p.m. meeting with Louisiana Tech. On Saturday, March 5, Louisiana travels to Baton Rouge for another matchup with the Tigers at 6 p.m. that closes out the team's participation in the event.
 >> It's the third straight year that the Ragin' Cajuns and Tigers co-host the weekend crossover event, continuing a series of regular season meetings between the I-10 neighbors. LSU holds a 3-1 edge in head-to-head matchups since the start of the tournament.
 >> LSU is the second ranked team that Louisiana faces in as many weeks. Last week, the Ragin' Cajuns hosted No. 2 Alabama on Thursday, Feb. 24 at Lamson Park then again on Sunday, Feb. 27 at the Youngsville Sports Complex's Mardi Gras Mambo.
 >> The Louisiana/LSU Invitational marks the final non-conference weekend of the 2022 season for the Ragin' Cajuns. Beginning the weekend of March 11-13 (vs. Georgia State), it's Sun Belt Conference play each weekend until the postseason in May.
 >> The Ragin' Cajuns return to action for the first time since a 4-1 run through the Youngsville Sports Complex's Mardi Gras Mambo from Feb. 25-27. Louisiana's return to play was delayed a few days after the team's scheduled Mardi Gras day trip to Nacogdoches, Texas to face SFA in a doubleheader was postponed due to issues with field conditions at the SFA Softball Field.
Â
NUMBERS TO KNEAUX
0: Kandra Lamb held No. 2 Alabama hitless over the first three innings during the Sunday matchup at the Youngsville Mardi Gras Mambo.Â
3: Of the 21-1/3 innings pitched she's pitched in, the opposition has scored in only three off of freshman pitcher Sam Landry.
3.17: Louisiana entered the week ranked No. 3 nationally averaging 3.17 stolen bases per game (38 swipes in 12 games).
5: The five consecutive shutouts tossed by the pitching staff to start the season is a new school record (previous was four in 2019, 2015, 2010, 1995).
11: The number of games in length that the active hitting streak for Stormy Kotzelnick and reached base streak for Laney Credeur currently stands at.
22: Total number of strikeouts Sam Landry recorded in 10-2/3 innings of work at the Youngsville Mardi Gras Mambo.
30-2/3: Louisiana's pitching staff started the 2022 season with 30-2/3 consecutive scoreless innings pitched.
37: Louisiana is scheduled to play 37 games this season within the state of Louisiana's borders.
.406: Batting average for the Ragin' Cajuns offense after the season's first 12 games.
42/31: The Ragin' Cajuns offense has drawn more walks (42) than they have struck out (31).
100: Raina O'Neal picked up her 100th hit as a Ragin' Cajun on her RBI double in the second inning vs. St. Thomas on Friday, Feb. 25 in Youngsville.
124: Consecutive editions of the Top 25 polls that Louisiana has appeared in – a streak which dates back to April 2013.
Â
A QUICK LOOK AT THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Infield: Ready to be Louisiana's next primary catcher, Sophie Piskos is back with her infectious energy and enthusiasm and is ready to build upon last season's strong finish (hit .429 from April 20 onward). Back from injury, Taylor Roman made a strong case for covering the first base bag after turning in three triples, a home run and eight RBI on Opening Weekend. With an active 11-game hitting streak and a .500-plus average, Stormy Kotzelnick has penciled herself into the lineup at second base having started there the past eight games. Power 5 transfer Jourdyn Campbell (Texas A&M) entered the season as the front runner at third base and has held her spot. At shortstop, freshman Alexa Langeliers was the Opening Day starter and was there the entire weekend due to an impressive.429 showing at the plate which included a pair of home runs vs. UAB. Melissa Mayeux provides Louisiana with the flexibility to play all infield positions, and even serve as backup catcher for Piskos.
Â
Outfield: The Ragin' Cajuns have their "rock" back in center field in Raina O'Neal. O'Neal, who missed the final three months of the 2021 season due to injury, provides a tremendous boost defensively and offensively (has hit .300-plus and slugged .500-plus all three previous seasons with Louisiana). Freshman Maddie Hayden, the younger sister of four-time All-Sun Belt and All-Central Region performer Haley Hayden, has used her speed and recent hot streak at the plate to emerge as Louisiana's patrolman in left field. Hayden is hitting .619 over the past eight games since Feb. 13, with three doubles, two triples and five stolen bases. Senior Jenna Kean is the team's primary speed option in the stolen base department and is the veteran of a rotation in right field that includes freshmen Kramer Eschete, Kayla Falterman and Samantha Graeter. In recent games the freshman trio has alternated starts, with Kean replacing them defensively following a pinch-running situation.
Â
Pitchers: The coaches expect a true "pitching staff" in the circle to be the norm throughout the season. Kandra Lamb, who pitched a three-hit shutout of LSU in her final start of the 2021 season, is ready to take her turn as the leader. Kentucky-transfer Meghan Schorman and freshman Sam Landry are expected to round out the rotation of "starters" with Lamb. Schorman was off to a 7-1 start with a 1.30 ERA before the COVID-19 shutdown in 2020, while Landry was the No. 4-rated recruit by Extra Inning Softball and shined in last summer's Premier Girls Fastpitch (PGF) High School Senior All-American Game. Vanessa Foreman and Karly Heath should play a role in relief assignments to further deepen the staff approach.
Â
DIAMOND NOTES
- Louisiana was preseason ranked in all four major national polls: No. 19 in Softball America, No. 22 in D1Softball and No. 23 in the ESPN/USA Softball poll.
- Louisiana, the two-time defending Sun Belt regular-season and tournament champion, was selected as the favorite to win the 2022 Sun Belt Conference softball title in a vote of the league's 10 head coaches.
- Kandra Lamb, Raina O'Neal and Sophie Piskos were voted onto the 2022 Sun Belt Conference Softball Preseason All-Conference Team.
- Kandra Lamb represented Louisiana Softball on the Extra Inning Softball Elite 100 list and Sam Landry was named on of D1Softball's Top 75 Impact Freshman. The duo was ranked among D1Softball's Top 150 Players.
- With the exception of Sophie Piskos at catcher, Raina O'Neal returning in center field and Taylor Roman at first base, the Ragin' Cajuns are using a new starter at every other position.
- For Gerry Glasco, his fifth season in Louisiana has a different look and feel: the team largely consists of players he recruited and went from being one of the oldest in the nation to one of the youngest. The Ragin' Cajuns went from a roster in 2021 that was predominantly sixth-year and fifth-year players to a group in 2022 that includes eight freshmen and 12 total newcomers.
- Louisiana is in a transition year in the pitching circle following the departure of former All-American and two-time Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year Summer Ellyson. After working alongside Ellyson last season to lead the Ragin' Cajuns to repeat champions in the Sun Belt, Kandra Lamb takes her turn as the pitching staff's leader.
- The 2022 season has brought the much-anticipated debut for Louisiana's 2021 recruiting class, which was ranked No. 1 by Extra Inning Softball and includes the No. 4-rated recruit in pitcher Sam Landry and the No. 15-ranked prospect in Louisiana native Maddie Hayden.
ABOUT LOUISIANA
During the 2021 season, the Ragin' Cajuns reached the 40-win mark for the 22nd consecutive completed season, closing out the regular season winning 25 of the final 29 games, and advanced to Championship Sunday of the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional. Louisiana repeated as Sun Belt Conference regular season and tournament champions highlighted by an 11-1 record, regular season and tournament combined, against the league's other three NCAA Tournament participants (Texas State, Troy and South Alabama).
Â
Moving forward into the 2022 season, Louisiana is armed with the nation's No. 1-ranked recruiting class of the 2021 recruits by Extra Inning Softball including the No. 4-rated recruit in pitcher Sam Landry and No. 15-rated recruit in outfielder Maddie Hayden, has first team All-Sun Belt performer Kandra Lamb back in the circle seeking to pick up where Summer Ellyson left off, and welcomes back Raina O'Neal and Taylor Roman and their power bats back to the lineup.
Â
FOLLOW THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Follow the Ragin' Cajuns on Facebook (/RaginCajunsSB), Twitter (@RaginCajunsSB) and Instagram (@Louisiana.SB) to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Louisiana Softball.
Fans are encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
Â
-- RaginCajuns.com --
Players Mentioned
IF
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IF
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P
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OF
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OF
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P
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OF
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OF
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P/OF
/ Softball
OF
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IF
/ Softball
P
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P
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IF
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UTL
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
C/IF
/ Softball
1B/OF
/ Softball
P
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