University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Friday, May 9
Hattiesburg, Miss.
7 p.m.
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
25-25, 15-10
3
at
11
Southern Miss
36-13, 19-6
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Louisiana
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
3
3
Southern Miss
1
2
0
3
1
2
0
2
X
11
15
1
Cajuns Fall To Middleton, Golden Eagles, 11-3
5/9/2025 11:30:00 PM | Baseball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – JB Middleton struck out 10 batters and did not allow a hit after the second inning and No. 21-ranked Southern Miss scored 10 unanswered runs to rally past Louisiana, 11-3, in the opening game of a three-game Sun Belt Conference series on Friday at Pete Taylor Park/Hill Denson Field.
The series resumes on Saturday in a 3 p.m. contest. The game will be available on ESPN+ with fans able to listen to the game in the Lafayette area on KPEL-FM (96.5) and worldwide on the Varsity Network app.
Ozzie Pratt and Joey Urban each homered as USM (36-13, 19-6 SBC) recorded 15 hits and won its 10th straight game. Louisiana (25-25, 15-10 SBC), which entered the game winners of eight of its last 10 games, had its three-game win streak snapped.
Louisiana trailed 1-0 in the first inning when Carson Paetow's RBI single scored Nick Monistere. The Ragin' Cajuns got their first two runners on base in the second when Conor Higgs was hit by a pitch and Lee Amedee drew a walk.
Caleb Stelly tied the game at 1-1 when he singled through the right side to plate Higgs before Owen Galt drove in a pair of runs on a suicide squeeze bunt up the first-base line.
Middleton (9-1) allowed a two-out single to Maddox Mandino but would get out of the inning with a strikeout before Galt was thrown out at third on an attempted steal. The right-hander would retire the next seven batters before allowing three base runners (two walks, fielder's choice) in a dominant 8.0-inning performance.
Pratt belted a two-run homer to right in the second to tie the game at 3-3 before USM scored three runs in the fourth to take the lead for good.
The Golden Eagles loaded the bases on a walk and a pair of bunt singles to chase Louisiana starter Andrew Herrmann (3-4) before Monistere's two-run single off reliever Tate Hess gave USM a 5-3 lead.
Matthew Russo added a fielder's choice to give USM a 6-3 lead before Urban led off the fifth with a solo homer.
Ben Higdon added an RBI single in the sixth with Tucker Stockman driving in runs with RBI singles in the sixth and eighth innings.
Mandino recorded two of Louisiana's season-low three hits and stole a pair of bases. Stelly finished 1-for-4 with a stolen base for the Ragin' Cajuns.
Herrmann, who replaced scheduled starter Chase Morgan in a late scratch, allowed seven hits and six runs in 3.0 innings.
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.
The series resumes on Saturday in a 3 p.m. contest. The game will be available on ESPN+ with fans able to listen to the game in the Lafayette area on KPEL-FM (96.5) and worldwide on the Varsity Network app.
Ozzie Pratt and Joey Urban each homered as USM (36-13, 19-6 SBC) recorded 15 hits and won its 10th straight game. Louisiana (25-25, 15-10 SBC), which entered the game winners of eight of its last 10 games, had its three-game win streak snapped.
Louisiana trailed 1-0 in the first inning when Carson Paetow's RBI single scored Nick Monistere. The Ragin' Cajuns got their first two runners on base in the second when Conor Higgs was hit by a pitch and Lee Amedee drew a walk.
Caleb Stelly tied the game at 1-1 when he singled through the right side to plate Higgs before Owen Galt drove in a pair of runs on a suicide squeeze bunt up the first-base line.
Middleton (9-1) allowed a two-out single to Maddox Mandino but would get out of the inning with a strikeout before Galt was thrown out at third on an attempted steal. The right-hander would retire the next seven batters before allowing three base runners (two walks, fielder's choice) in a dominant 8.0-inning performance.
Pratt belted a two-run homer to right in the second to tie the game at 3-3 before USM scored three runs in the fourth to take the lead for good.
The Golden Eagles loaded the bases on a walk and a pair of bunt singles to chase Louisiana starter Andrew Herrmann (3-4) before Monistere's two-run single off reliever Tate Hess gave USM a 5-3 lead.
Matthew Russo added a fielder's choice to give USM a 6-3 lead before Urban led off the fifth with a solo homer.
Ben Higdon added an RBI single in the sixth with Tucker Stockman driving in runs with RBI singles in the sixth and eighth innings.
Mandino recorded two of Louisiana's season-low three hits and stole a pair of bases. Stelly finished 1-for-4 with a stolen base for the Ragin' Cajuns.
Herrmann, who replaced scheduled starter Chase Morgan in a late scratch, allowed seven hits and six runs in 3.0 innings.
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.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Middleton, JB (9-1)
L: Herrmann, Andrew (3-4)
Batting:
RBI: Stelly, Caleb 1 ; Galt, Owen 2
SH: Galt, Owen 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Higgs, Conor 1 ; Amedee, Lee 1 ; Stelly, Caleb 1
SB: Mandino, Maddox 2 ; Stelly, Caleb 1
CS: Galt, Owen 1
HBP: Higgs, Conor 1
Batting:
2B: Urban, Joey 1
HR: Urban, Joey 1 ; Pratt, Ozzie 1
RBI: Monistere, Nick 2 ; Russo, Matthew 1 ; Paetow, Carson 1 ; Higdon, Ben 1 ; Urban, Joey 2 ; Stockman, Tucker 2 ; Pratt, Ozzie 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Cook, Jake 1 ; Monistere, Nick 1 ; Paetow, Carson 1 ; Higdon, Ben 2 ; Urban, Joey 3 ; Stockman, Tucker 1 ; Pratt, Ozzie 2
HBP: Monistere, Nick 1 ; Russo, Matthew 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
AB
4
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
IF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ BaseballOF/LHP
/ Baseball
LHP
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