2025 Baseball Preview: The Troy Series

LAFAYETTE – The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Baseball team officially opens its 30-game Sun Belt Conference schedule beginning Friday when it plays host to No. 21-ranked Troy in a three-game series at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field at Russo Park.

First pitch for Friday's opener is set for 6 p.m. The series will resume on Saturday at 2 p.m. and conclude on Sunday at 1 p.m. All three games will be streamed live on ESPN+ with fans able to listen to all games in the Lafayette area on KPEL-FM (96.5) and worldwide on the Varsity Network app.

Louisiana (8-10) looks to defend its 2024 SBC regular-season title beginning with an opening series against Troy (13-4). The Ragin' Cajuns face their fourth straight nationally-ranked opponent in a weekend series after facing Nebraska, UC Irvine and Dallas Baptist.

Freshman Brooks Wright (.308-0-10), senior Jose Torres (.302-1-6) and Conor Higgs (.293-4-6) enter as the top hitters for Louisiana. As a team, the Ragin' Cajuns average .246 at the plate while leading all Division I schools in sacrifice bunts (21) and the Sun Belt Conference in stolen bases (31).

Louisiana will send senior Matthew Holzhammer (0-1, 4.50 ERA) to the mound for his second career start in Friday's opener. Starters for the remaining two games for the Ragin' Cajuns are to be determined.

Troy, ranked No. 21 by D1Baseball, took two of three games last weekend at USC Upstate and is 11-1 in its four weekend series. Old Dominion transfer Steven Meier (.419-3-14) leads Troy at the plate with Blake Cavill (.396-2-22), Sean Darnell (.328-3-22) and Brooks Bryan (.318-4-28) part of an offense which averages .308 at the plate and is second in the Sun Belt Conference in scoring (8.8 runs per game).

Right-hander Garrett Gainous (2-0, 4.42 ERA) will start in Friday's opener for Troy with right-hander Noah Edders (2-0, 4.50 ERA) slated to pitch on Saturday. The Trojans will send southpaw Drew Nelson (3-0, 2.08 ERA) to the mound in Sunday's finale.

Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Baseball season and single-game tickets are available for purchase online at RaginCajuns.com/tickets or by calling the Louisiana Athletics Ticket Office at (337) 482-GoUL (4685). Fans can also support the baseball student athletes, and invest in the program's future, through the Krewe Allons NIL Collective (click here).

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.

For the latest updates on Ragin' Cajuns baseball, follow on Facebook (RaginCajunsBaseball), Twitter (@RaginCajunsBSB) and Instagram (@RaginCajunsBSB) or check RaginCajuns.com.

GAMES 19-21 PREVIEW
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns (8-10) vs. Troy Trojans (13-4)

DATE/TIMES (dates and times are subject to change)
Friday (March 14) – 6 p.m.
Saturday (March 15) – 2 p.m.
Sunday (March 16) – 1 p.m.

LOCATION/SITE
M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field at Russo Park (6,015) | Lafayette, La.

PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUPS
FRIDAY – 6 p.m.
LOUISIANA – RH Matthew Holzhammer (6-4, 210, Sr., Wister, Okla.)
'25 Stats: 0-1, 4.50 ERA, 10.0 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 10 K

TROY – RH Garrett Gainous (6-4, 220, Sr., Cairo, Ga.)
'25 Stats: 2-0, 4.42 ERA, 18.1 IP, 20 H, 10 R, 9 ER, 7 BB, 17 K

SATURDAY – 2 p.m.
LOUISIANA – TBA

TROY – RH Noah Edders (6-4, 232, JR., Woodridge, Ill.)
'25 Stats: 2-0, 4.50 ERA, 20.0 IP, 15 H, 11 R, 10 ER, 6 BB, 20 K

SUNDAY – 1 p.m.
LOUISIANA – TBA

TROY – LH Drew Nelson (5-11, 210, Jr., Troy, Ala.)
'25 Stats: 3-0, 2.08 ERA, 21.2 IP, 17 H, 10 R, 5 ER, 9 BB, 18 K

TICKETS
• Tickets for Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Baseball are available for purchase on-line at RaginCajuns.com/tickets or by calling the Louisiana Athletics Ticket Office at (337) 482-GoUL (4685).
• Group tickets are also available by contacting the Louisiana Athletics Ticket Office by email at Tickets@louisiana.edu.

PROMOTIONS
All Weekend
• Jersey Silent Auction – The Cajuns will be auctioning off their limited edition green jerseys. All proceeds will benefit Louisiana Baseball

Friday (Sponsored by CRUMBL Cookie)
• Arrive early for FREE cookie vouchers, courtesy of Crumbl Cookie
• Pie Day - In honor of the holiday, fans who participate in any promotions during the game may or may not get pied!
• Baseball Bingo

Sunday (Sponsored by Gibson Law Partners)
• Kid's Day (Anthem Buddies, Junior Announcer & Kids Run the Bases Postgame)
• Arrive early for free t-shirts and fans from Gibson Law Partners
• St. Patrick's Day Giveaway – One lucky fan will win a Cajuns Shamrock Hat
Details on how to win will be released on social channels Sunday morning

RANKINGS
Louisiana – Unranked
Troy – No. 21 (D1Baseball); No. 18 (NCBWA); No. 22 (USA Today Coaches' Poll)

RADIO/TV/LIVE STATISTICS
RADIO (Pregame Show starts 30 minutes prior to first pitch)
Station – KPEL-FM 96.5 / The Varsity Network App
Talent – Jay Walker (pxp); Brad Topham (color)

TV/STREAMING (ESPN+)
Talent – Dan McDonald (pxp), Brennan Breaux (color), Eric Mouton (color)

LIVE STATS
CajunStats.com

SERIES RECORD
Overall – Louisiana leads, 38-28
In Lafayette – Louisiana leads, 21-13
In Troy – Louisiana leads, 15-14
Neutral Sites – Tied, 1-1
Last 10 – Troy, 7-3
Streak – Louisiana +1

ON DECK
• Louisiana faces its fourth consecutive nationally-ranked program in a weekend series when it faces Troy (No. 21 – D1Baseball; No. 18 – NCBWA; No. 22 – USA Today Coaches') in a three-game series at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field at Russo Park.
• The series against Troy ends the first of two nine-game homestands for Louisiana.
• The Trojans have won seven of the last 10 meetings in the series with Louisiana leading the all-time series, 38-28.
• Louisiana claimed a wild, 14-13, 10-inning contest in last season's series finale at Riddle-Pace Field.
• Senior Matthew Holzhammer will make his second career start on the mound for Louisiana.
• Louisiana's strength of schedule is ranked No. 25 by WarrenNolan.com.
• Louisiana's non-conference opponents have recorded an 85-57 (.598) record
• Louisiana leads all Division I schools in sacrifice bunts (21) and leads the Sun Belt Conference in stolen bases (31).
• James Trimble's nine appearances on the season out of the bullpen are second among SBC pitchers and 12^th nationally.
• True freshmen Matt Osteen (2.1 IP) and Aidan Grab (2.0 IP) each made their second career appearances in Wednesday's midweek game against McNeese State.
• Freshman Brooks Wright has hit safely in his last five games.
• Wright's 3-for-5 performance against McNeese marked his second three-hit game of the season.
• Conor Higgs has reached base safely in 10 straight games.

UP NEXT
• Louisiana will head out on a five-game road trip beginning in Hammond on Wednesday (March 19) at in-state opponent Southeastern Louisiana.
• The Ragin' Cajuns will continue east with a three-game series beginning Friday (March 21) at South Alabama before concluding the road swing on Tuesday (March 25) at No. 1-ranked LSU.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Aidan Grab

Conor Higgs

Matthew Holzhammer

Matt Osteen

Jose Torres

James Trimble

Brooks Wright

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