Softball Preview: at Troy

Games 25-27: No. 5 Louisiana (22-2, 4-1 Sun Belt) at Troy Trojans (21-7, 4-2 Sun Belt)
Friday, Mar. 25 (DH) • 3 p.m. (CDT) • Troy Softball Complex (800) • Troy, Ala.
Saturday, Mar. 26 • 12 p.m. (CDT) • Troy Softball Complex (800) • Troy, Ala.

Game Notes (PDF): Louisiana | Troy
Radio: ESPN 1420-AM • Talent: Steve Peloquin, PxP
TV: None
Live Stats
Live Video
Rosters: Louisiana | Troy
Schedules: Louisiana | Troy
2016 Stats: Louisiana | Troy
Ragin' Cajuns Twitter: @ULRaginCajuns | @RaginCajunSB
Opponents' Twitter: @TroyTrojansSB

THE COACHES
Louisiana: Michael Lotief (Louisiana, 1985)
Record at Louisiana: 660-161-1 (14th season) Career Record: Same

Troy: Beth Mullins (UAB, 2004)
Record at Troy: 53-30 (2nd season) Career Record: Same

TRAVELS TAKE THE RAGIN' CAJUNS TO TROY
No. 5 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns softball (22-2, 4-1 Sun Belt) continues an eight-game road trip that began last weekend in Arlington, Texas, by traveling to Troy, Ala., for a Sun Belt series with the Troy Trojans (21-7, 4-2 Sun Belt) set for Friday-Saturday, March 25-26. The teams are scheduled to play a 3 p.m. doubleheader on Friday and 12 p.m. single game on Saturday at the Troy Softball Complex.

CAJUNS AIM TO PROTECT SUN BELT LEAD
The No. 5-nationally ranked Ragin' Cajuns (4-1 Sun Belt) enter the series in Troy with a half-game lead over the homestanding Trojans (4-2 Sun Belt).

WINNING THE WEEKEND
Louisiana is 2-for-2 in collecting Sun Belt series victories this season (USA, UTA). The Ragin' Cajuns have won their last 23 Sun Belt series dating back to March 2013. The last SBC series loss: March 16-17, 2013 at South Alabama.

SUN BELT SLUGGERS
Two of the top power hitters in the Sun Belt Conference will be on the field in the Louisiana-Troy series. Ragin' Cajuns catcher and two-time All-American/Sun Belt Player of the Year Lexie Elkins presently leads the nation with 16 home runs and a 1.304 slugging percentage. Troy's Hannah Day ranks third nationally with 13 home runs and tops the nation in RBI (48).

TRACKING ELKINS' RECORD PURSUIT
Lexie Elkins took hold of second place in career home runs in Ragin' Cajuns history after belting the 72nd of her career in the fifth inning of Game 1 last Saturday at UTA. She passed Holly Tankersley (71 HR from 2004, 06-08) into second, leaving only Danyele Gomez's 83 left to top.

RAGIN' CAJUNS SOFTBALL CAREER HOME RUNS CHART
1.    83    Danyele Gomez (2003-06)
2.    72    Lexie Elkins (2014-present)
3.    71    Holly Tankersley (2004, 2006-08)
4.    70    Christi Orgeron (2009-12)
5.    66    Gabriele Bridges (2008-11)

ELKINS NEARING NCAA CAREER TOP 10 LIST
Lexie Elkins (72 career home runs) sits four home runs shy of entering the NCAA's career home run Top 10 list. She presently ranks 13th on the list.

NCAA CAREER HOME RUNS TOP 10
1.         95       Lauren Chamberlain, Oklahoma
2.         90       Stacey Nuveman, UCLA
3.         87       Stacie Chambers, Arizona
4.         85       Leah Braatz, Arizona
            85       Laura Espinoza, Arizona
6.         84       Shelby Pendley, Oklahoma
7.         83       Danyele Gomez, Louisiana
8.         79       Kristen Rivera, Washington
9.         76       Megan Baltzell, Longwood
            76       Jenny Dalton, Arizona
---------
T13.    72       Lexie Elkins, Louisiana

MIGHTY BATS
The Ragin' Cajuns have hit at least one home run in 18 of 24 games, tallying multiple home runs 13 times. A season-high six home runs were hit March 5 at Southern Miss. The five home runs in Game 2 at UTA last Saturday marked the fourth time reaching the tally in a game this season (2/12 vs. UAB; 3/5 at USM Gm 1; 3/5 at USM Gm 2; 3/19 at UTA).

TOP-TO-BOTTOM PRODUCTION
All nine of the starters in the Cajuns batting order have produced at least 12 base hits. While the top four in the lineup (Hayden, Landry, Elkins, Vincent) have combined for 113 RBI, the remaining four non-slap hitters (Craighton, Sanders, Corbello, Gremillion) have generated 74 RBI.

CRAIGHTON CRANKS 'EM OUT
Aleah Craighton homered in both games of last Saturday's UT Arlington doubleheader - the third straight weekend she hit a home run in both games of a DH (3/5 at USM; 3/13 vs. USA). Both homers in the South Alabama serieswere key - forged a tie in Game 1 and created a four-run (10-6) lead in Game 2. She's hit at least one home run in six of the past nine games.

THE GOLD STANDARD
The Ragin' Cajuns have belted 51 home runs in 24 contests for an average of 2.13 per game, which leads the nation. In 2015, UL produced a nation-best 2.15 home runs per game.

ROAD WARRIOR
Haley Hayden has posted a series-high total of seven RBI in each of the Ragin' Cajuns last two road trips (3/5-6 at USM; 3/19-20 at UTA). The West Monroe product is hitting .500 (10-for-20) with three home runs and 14 RBI on opposing teams' fields this season.

STOPPING 'EM IN THEIR TRACKS
Kylee Jo Trahan has held the opposition to just 26 hits in 50-2/3 innings pitched in her 12 appearances (nine starts). Foes are hitting a meager .150 off of the sophomore hurler. She's tossed two perfect games and a total of three no-hitters.

STOPPING 'EM IN THEIR TRACKS (Part 2)
The Cajuns' pitching staff has held foes to two runs or less in 17 of 24 games (17-0 record). Opponents have scored five-plus runs only twice (Feb. 19 vs. Oregon; March 13 vs. South Alabama).

A BAND OF HEROES
Lexie Elkins hit five home runs in the season-opening weekend in Gulf Shores. Kelsey Vincent tallied 12 RBI the weekend of Feb. 25-28. DJ Sanders hit four home runs and posted a series-high seven RBI at Southern Miss. Aleah Craighton hit key home runs in the South Alabama sweep, the second straight weekend she homered twice in both games of a doubleheader. Shellie Landry had a game-winning RBI and momentum-shifting single vs. South Alabama. And, Taylor Terrio slapped a walk-off single into left field to secure a 5-4 win in nine innings over McNeese State. All proof that the Ragin' Cajuns squad can have any one given player deliver key performances.

A TOUGH OUT
Ragin' Cajuns hitters have struck out only 82 times - and drawn 106 walks - in 768 plate appearances through the season's first 24 games.

CHART YOUR COURSE CAREFULLY
The No. 1-6 hitters in the Cajuns lineup pose a stern test for opposing pitchers. Four of the first five hitters (Hayden, Elkins, Vincent, Craighton) are hitting above .370. Four of the six have posted at least five home runs, led by the nation-leading 16 from Lexie Elkins. While Elkins (16 HR, 38 RBI) and Kelsey Vincent (6 HR, 25 RBI) pack a punch at No. 3-4, five-hole hitter Aleah Craighton (9 HR, 31 RBI) and six-hole hitter DJ Sanders (9 HR, 27 RBI) provide a solid backup.

ANSWERING THE CALL
The Ragin' Cajuns pitching staff, spearheaded by Alex Stewart and Kylee Jo Trahan, has left little doubt they are ready to carry the torch after the graduation of Jordan Wallace and Christina Hamilton. The group - which also includes Victoria Brown, Alison Deville and Macey Smith - has combined for 10 shutouts and surrendered two runs or fewer in 17 of 24 games thus far. Of the 112 hits allowed in 145 innings, only 23 have gone for extra bases.

UP NEXT
The No. 5-ranked Ragin' Cajuns close their current eight-game road trip in Waco, Texas on Tuesday, March 29 facing No. 20 Baylor in a 5 p.m. doubleheader at Getterman Stadium. The squad then returns to Lamson Park Saturday-Sunday, April 2-3 for a Sun Belt series vs. Texas State.

LOUISIANA-TROY SERIES
Series Record: Louisiana leads 28-5
Sun Belt Games: Louisiana leads 23-5
In Lafayette: Louisiana leads 16-2
In Troy, Ala.: Louisiana leads 10-3
Neutral: Louisiana leads 2-0
Current Streak: Louisiana won 2
Last Meeting: 3/22/15 at Lamson Park
(Louisiana 12, Troy 2 - 5 inn.)

Series Notes
First met in a doubleheader at Lamson Park on April 18, 1997 (then-USL won 12-0, 5-4)...Series resumed when Troy joined the Sun Belt in 2006...Met for the Sun Belt Tournament title in Mobile in 2010 (UL won 8-0)...Ragin' Cajuns have won nine of the last 10 meetings since 2012...Louisiana had a seven-game series win streak halted after Troy rallied to win the 2015 series opener at Lamson Park... Louisiana holds a 10-3 edge in meetings at the Troy Softball Complex, having won the last four (dates back to second game of March 24, 2012 doubleheader)...Second straight trip to Troy on Easter Weekend for Louisiana (2014 series was Easter weekend)...Cajuns and Trojans are meeting in their 11th Sun Belt series, overall, and sixth in Troy...Louisiana claimed the series victory each of the previous 10 occurrences.

Last Series (March 21-22, 2015 at Lamson Park)
The visiting Trojans used a five-run, sixth inning in the series opener to rally and take a 9-5 win, snapping both Louisiana's 27-game win streak at Lamson Park and seven-game series win streak. Hannah Day's bases loaded single with two outs gave Troy a 6-5 lead that reliever Jaycee Affeldt held on to. Christina Hamilton retired 15 of the final 18 batters she faced after play resumed following a weather delay in Game 2 as the Cajuns rallied for a 6-3 win. Ashley Rainey gave Troy a 2-0 lead in Top 1st with a home run, then Shellie Landry answered in Bottom 1st with a two-run homer of her own - the first of five runs for UL in the frame. A 1 hour, 35 minute rain delay began before the second inning started, then Hamilton settled in. On Sunday, Kelli Martinez sparked a seven-run first inning with a two-run triple and the Cajuns pounded out 10 hits off three Troy pitchers in a 12-2 five-inning victory.

Last Series in Troy (April 18-19, 2014)
Weather forced a delay in the start of the series, and because it was Easter Weekend the series was shortened to a two-game set with a Saturday doubleheader. Shellie Landry hit a grand slam in the opener and followed up with three RBI in Game 2. Christina Hamilton tossed 13 shutout innings, to lead Louisiana to a 5-0, 9-0 sweep.

DIAMOND NOTES
#CatchMeIfYouCan: Louisiana is 18-0 when scoring first. In those 18 wins, the Ragin' Cajuns have relinquished the lead only once (4th inning of Game 1 vs. Texas Tech).

#DefenseBacksThemUp: The Ragin' Cajuns pitching staff doesn't have to pile up impressive strikeout numbers as a veteran defense plays behind them. Seven of the nine starters in the field have at least two years experience at their respective position. The defense has committed only 14 errors in 594 chances and had multiple errors only twice in 21 games. The unit played error-free at UTA has fielded cleanly in seven of the last nine games.

#KsForKylee: Kylee Jo Trahan has posted at least eight strikeouts in five of her seven starts that she pitched at least five innings. She tied her career-high of 10 vs. Rutgers (Feb. 26).

#SteadyAlex: Alex Stewart began the season with 35 2/3 consecutive walk-free innings. She's yielded only 11 walks in 72 innings pitched through her first 14 appearances (12 starts).

#SendThemInSanders: DJ Sanders has posted three-plus RBI five times, piling up 27 RBI (matching 2015 season total). Her next RBI establishes her personal season-best total.

#GrowingUpFast: Freshman Kara Gremillion has displayed poise at the plate and the results have backed that up. Gremillion posted five doubles through her first seven collegiate hits, one of which broke open a scoreless game vs. No. 5 Oregon on Feb. 19. She's shined on defense as well, fielding all but two of 62 chances cleanly (27 PO, 33 A, 2 E, .968 FLD%) and carries a string of 13 straight error-free games into the Troy series.

#FabulousFive: Louisiana remained No. 5 in both national polls this week - the third straight week inside the Top 5 of both of the rankings.

#EliteCompany: Dating back to the start of the 2015 season, Louisiana has been in the Top 10 of the NFCA rankings in 18 of the past 21 polls and Top 10 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll in 17 of the past 21 polls.

#FamilyTies: Being members of the Ragin' Cajuns softball team has added meaning for three families. Sisters Shellie Landry and Jaime Landry are competing together collegiately for the first time (Jaime redshirted in 2015). Kara Gremillion is following in the footsteps of her aunts, Stacie Gremillion and Sandy Percle, who donned the Cajuns uniform in the mid-1980s. And, Chelsea Lotief joins her father, head coach Michael Lotief, in the dugout while suiting up for the Ragin' Cajuns like her mother, Stefni (Whitton) Lotief, did from 1987-90.

#GeauxCajuns

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Players Mentioned

Victoria Brown

Aleah Craighton

Alison Deville

Lexie Elkins

Kara Gremillion

Christina Hamilton

Haley Hayden

Jaime Landry

Shellie Landry

Chelsea Lotief

Kelli Martinez

DJ Sanders

Macey Smith

Alex Stewart

Taylor Terrio

Kylee Jo Trahan

Kelsey Vincent

Jordan Wallace

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