University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Saturday, May 3
Lafayette
2:00 p.m.
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
28-24, 14-10
4
vs
2
Southern Miss
23-28, 10-13
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Southern Miss
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
2
5
1
Louisiana
0
0
0
1
3
0
X
4
8
1
Louisiana Completes Series Sweep of Southern Miss
5/3/2025 6:07:00 PM | Softball
Ragin’ Cajuns responded after facing first deficit of the series to punctuate strong regular season finish
LAFAYETTE – A fifth inning answer back lifted the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Softball team to a 4-2 win over Southern Miss on Saturday, May 3 at Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park, completing a three-game Sun Belt Conference series sweep.
The win was the ninth in the last 10 SBC games for Louisiana (28-24, 14-10 SBC) to close the regular season – the team rising from 11th in the league on April 12 to a finish in third place.
Trailing 2-1 heading to the bottom of the fifth after the Golden Eagles (23-28, 10-13 SBC) scratched their first runs of the weekend off of Mallory Wheeler, singles from Gabbie Stutes (1-for-3, run) and Maddie Hayden (3-for-3, run) had the Ragin' Cajuns quickly threatening.
A misplay of a Dayzja Williams' comebacker to USM relief pitcher Jana Lee allowed Stutes to score the equalizing run. Williams took second on the fielder's choice and Hayden, who had previously stolen second, moved to third.
With two runners in scoring position Emily Smith (1-for-2, 2 RBI) went after a pitch and looped a single into shallow center field allowing Hayden and Williams to cross home plate and provide the Cajuns with the lead again at 4-2.
Wheeler (6.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 3 K) recorded the all-important scoreless frame after reclaiming the lead, retiring USM in order in the sixth. She made it five straight retired by getting the first two batters in the seventh.
Tyra Clary entered in relief to collect the final out and the save on Senior Day.
The contest had a similar feel to the previous two in the series, Wheeler and USM starting pitcher Kayla Giardina trading scoreless frames through the first three innings.
Wheeler held the Golden Eagles hitless for the first four innings to extend her no-hit performance in the series to 11 innings. USM wouldn't tally its first hit off of her until a one-out single in the fifth.
The Ragin' Cajuns were the first to jump on the board after loading the bases in the bottom of the fourth. Laney Credeur placed a ground ball where no play could be made for a two-out RBI that put UL ahead 1-0.
Southern Miss strung together three straight two-out singles in the fifth inning to claim its first runs of the series. Stutes' leadoff single in the bottom half sparked the Ragin' Cajuns response.
Smith's game-winning hit increased her team-best conference play RBI total to 24, while her overall season total grew to 43 RBI. She'll head to the SBC Championship Tournament on a seven-game hitting streak, the longest active on the squad.
Hayden added three more hits to her series total to finish 7-of-8 at the plate. She had a multiple-hit game in all three games and now has 20 multiple-hit games on the season (one shy of her career-best total).
Wheeler added another strong performance to the no-hitter that she began the series with. In two starts against USM, Wheeler yielded only two runs and four hits over 13-2/3 innings pitched.
Louisiana remained perfect (9-0) against Southern Miss in the SBC era of the series.
The Ragin' Cajuns closed the regular season with a seven-game winning streak at Lamson Park, sweeping the final two weekend series (USA, USM) along the way.
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
The Sun Belt Conference Softball Championship Tournament is set to take place from Wednesday, May 7 through Saturday, May 10 at the Troy Softball Complex in Troy, Alabama.
With a third place finish in the standings, Louisiana will begin play in the tournament in the quarterfinal round on Thursday, May 8.
The official SBC Championship Tournament bracket is being announced after the completion of league play on Saturday, May 3. Fans can purchase tickets by visiting TroyTrojans.com/Tickets.
Live television coverage of the tournament through the semifinals is available on ESPN+ with the championship game set to air on ESPN2. Fans can hear an audio broadcast on the Ragin' Cajuns Radio Network (The Goat 103.3 FM/1420 AM and Varsity Sports app) and track live stats at CajunStats.com.
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 also encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
Louisiana Softball 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 softball student athletes, and invest in the program's future, through the Krewe Allons NIL Collective (click here).
The win was the ninth in the last 10 SBC games for Louisiana (28-24, 14-10 SBC) to close the regular season – the team rising from 11th in the league on April 12 to a finish in third place.
Trailing 2-1 heading to the bottom of the fifth after the Golden Eagles (23-28, 10-13 SBC) scratched their first runs of the weekend off of Mallory Wheeler, singles from Gabbie Stutes (1-for-3, run) and Maddie Hayden (3-for-3, run) had the Ragin' Cajuns quickly threatening.
A misplay of a Dayzja Williams' comebacker to USM relief pitcher Jana Lee allowed Stutes to score the equalizing run. Williams took second on the fielder's choice and Hayden, who had previously stolen second, moved to third.
With two runners in scoring position Emily Smith (1-for-2, 2 RBI) went after a pitch and looped a single into shallow center field allowing Hayden and Williams to cross home plate and provide the Cajuns with the lead again at 4-2.
Wheeler (6.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 3 K) recorded the all-important scoreless frame after reclaiming the lead, retiring USM in order in the sixth. She made it five straight retired by getting the first two batters in the seventh.
Tyra Clary entered in relief to collect the final out and the save on Senior Day.
The contest had a similar feel to the previous two in the series, Wheeler and USM starting pitcher Kayla Giardina trading scoreless frames through the first three innings.
Wheeler held the Golden Eagles hitless for the first four innings to extend her no-hit performance in the series to 11 innings. USM wouldn't tally its first hit off of her until a one-out single in the fifth.
The Ragin' Cajuns were the first to jump on the board after loading the bases in the bottom of the fourth. Laney Credeur placed a ground ball where no play could be made for a two-out RBI that put UL ahead 1-0.
Southern Miss strung together three straight two-out singles in the fifth inning to claim its first runs of the series. Stutes' leadoff single in the bottom half sparked the Ragin' Cajuns response.
Smith's game-winning hit increased her team-best conference play RBI total to 24, while her overall season total grew to 43 RBI. She'll head to the SBC Championship Tournament on a seven-game hitting streak, the longest active on the squad.
Hayden added three more hits to her series total to finish 7-of-8 at the plate. She had a multiple-hit game in all three games and now has 20 multiple-hit games on the season (one shy of her career-best total).
Wheeler added another strong performance to the no-hitter that she began the series with. In two starts against USM, Wheeler yielded only two runs and four hits over 13-2/3 innings pitched.
Louisiana remained perfect (9-0) against Southern Miss in the SBC era of the series.
The Ragin' Cajuns closed the regular season with a seven-game winning streak at Lamson Park, sweeping the final two weekend series (USA, USM) along the way.
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
The Sun Belt Conference Softball Championship Tournament is set to take place from Wednesday, May 7 through Saturday, May 10 at the Troy Softball Complex in Troy, Alabama.
With a third place finish in the standings, Louisiana will begin play in the tournament in the quarterfinal round on Thursday, May 8.
The official SBC Championship Tournament bracket is being announced after the completion of league play on Saturday, May 3. Fans can purchase tickets by visiting TroyTrojans.com/Tickets.
Live television coverage of the tournament through the semifinals is available on ESPN+ with the championship game set to air on ESPN2. Fans can hear an audio broadcast on the Ragin' Cajuns Radio Network (The Goat 103.3 FM/1420 AM and Varsity Sports app) and track live stats at CajunStats.com.
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 also encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
Louisiana Softball 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 softball student athletes, and invest in the program's future, through the Krewe Allons NIL Collective (click here).
- www.RaginCajuns.com -
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Wheeler, Mallory (12-8)
L: Kayla Giardina (7-7)
S: Clary, Tyra (2)
Batting:
RBI: Hannah Christian 1 ; Carrie Green 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Natalie Taylor 1 ; Madison Moak 1
SB: Carrie Green 1
CS: Hannah Christian 1
Batting:
RBI: Smith, Emily 2 ; Credeur, Laney 1
SH: Liscano, Mia 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Hayden, Maddie 1 ; Williams, Dayzja 2 ; Stutes, Gabbie 1
SB: Hayden, Maddie 2 ; Williams, Dayzja 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
1
H
3
RBI
0
AB
3
R
2
H
1
RBI
0
AB
2
R
0
H
1
RBI
2
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
P
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballIF
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballAlyson Habetz Media Availability (May 4, 2025)
Monday, May 05
Alyson Habetz, Mia Norwood, and Dayzja Williams Media Availability (April 28, 2025)
Monday, April 28
Alyson Habetz Media Availability (April 21, 2025)
Monday, April 21
Alyson Habetz, Emily Smith, And Mallory Wheeler Media Availability (April 14, 2025)
Monday, April 14
