Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns softball filled up the win column in the fifth week of the season, the final week before conference play. The team went 4–1 over the weekend at the Bubly Invitational at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium in Gainesville, Florida, hosted by the Florida Gators.
In their first game of the invitational on Friday, March 10, the No. 24-ranked Cajuns recorded their sixth shutout of the year behind Kandra Lamb’s strong outing in a 3–0 win over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.
Lamb didn’t start the contest, but carried the load on the mound throwing five and two-thirds innings and giving up just three hits while striking out five. She earned her second win of the season.
Infielder Laney Credeur provided all the Cajuns’ scoring, with center fielder Mihyia Davis scoring off a wild pitch in the first. Credeur laced an RBI single to left field in the first and an RBI double to left center her next time up in the third, bringing the score to 3–0.
Louisiana followed one shutout with another, blanking twelfth-ranked Florida 1–0. Picking up her sixth win, tied with Sam Landry for the team lead, senior Meghan Schorman pitched a complete game, allowing three hits and punching out six.
After a scoreless tie through four innings, second baseman Alexa Langeliers wasted no time in the top of the fifth sending a 2-1-count Lexie Delbrey offering over the center-field wall for her fifth home run this year.
In the second game of a Saturday doubleheader, the Cajuns pitched their third consecutive shutout and eighth of the season in a 5–0 win against Rutgers in their second meeting of the weekend.
Karly Heath received the start and earned her second win after striking out five and surrendering a couple hits over five scoreless innings. In relief of Heath, Landry struck out three in two hitless, scoreless innings of her own.
Louisiana scored in each of the first four innings. Heath delivered an RBI single in the first while first baseman Lauren Allred plated two more with a double in the second.
Davis drove in a run via sacrifice fly in the fourth and stole a couple bases on the afternoon. Louisiana’s leadoff hitter finished the weekend with five stolen bases, giving her 25 on the year, most on the team by far.
The Ragin’ Cajuns squeaked out a tight 3–2 win over the Mercer Bears in the first game of an early Sunday morning doubleheader.
Allred continued her productive weekend with a two-run single up the middle with the bases loaded in the third.
Both Mercer runs were unearned, as Landry, Riassetto and Lamb combined for only four hits surrendered and 11 total punchouts.
Louisiana fell one victory short of sweeping the competition in Gainesville, falling 11–2 in a mercy-rule-shortened five-inning game to the same Gators team the Cajuns had shut out a day prior.
Schorman could not find the same success she had in her first outing against Florida, giving up four runs, two earned, on three hits and three walks in an inning and a third. Louisiana committed two errors and issued six free passes to Florida hitters. Seven of Florida’s 11 runs were unearned.
Allred once again provided a bit of offense with her solo shot to center in the top of the fourth, her eighth blast of the season and fifth run driven in during the invitational.
Louisiana’s record improves to 18–9 on the year as the Ragin’ Cajuns are set to begin conference play this Friday, March 17 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi against the Southern Miss Golden Eagles.