Softball Preview: UTA Series

Games 23-25: No. 18 Louisiana (17-5, 0-0 Sun Belt) vs. UTA (15-10, 2-1 Sun Belt)
Saturday, Mar. 18 (DH) • 2 p.m. (CDT) • Lamson Park (2,790) • Lafayette, La.
Sunday, Mar. 19 • 1 p.m. (CDT) • Lamson Park (2,790) • Lafayette, La.

WEEKEND PROMOTIONS
Saturday – Lafayette General Health Day
• LGH staff will have door prizes, provide health tips and conduct free screenings at booths located in the main concourse
Sunday – Super Sunday
• Celebrating local superheroes, focusing on health professionals and first responders, and super seniors ages 55 and over
• Doctors, nurses, firefighters, police officers and EMT professionals with proper identification will receive half-priced general admission tickets
• Buy one, get one free general admission tickets for senior citizens ages 55 and over, plus $6 concession package consisting of a hot dog, chips and small drink

Game Notes (PDF): Louisiana | UTA
Radio: ESPN 1420-AM • Talent: Steve Peloquin, PxP
TV: None
Live Stats: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
Live Video (FREE): Ragin' Cajuns All-Access
Rosters: Louisiana | UTA
Schedules: Louisiana | UTA
Season Stats: Louisiana | UTA
Ragin' Cajuns Twitter: @ULRaginCajuns | @RaginCajunsSB
Opponents Twitter: @UTASoftball

THE COACHES
Louisiana: Michael Lotief (Louisiana, 1985)
Career Record: 701-173-1 (15th season) Record at Louisiana: Same

UTA: Kristie Fox (Arizona, 2007)
Career Record: 117-119 (5th season) Record at UTA: Same

5 THINGS TO KNOW
1 - After having their scheduled Sun Belt opener at App State canceled by weather last weekend, the Ragin' Cajuns officially begin league play March 18-19 vs. UTA at Lamson Park.

2 - The UTA series closes out what will now be a season-opening 25-game homestand for Louisiana. The Ragin' Cajuns will play their first road games of the season next weekend in Mobile, Ala., at South Alabama (March 25-26).

3 - Louisiana seeks to extend its school and Sun Belt record streak of 29 consecutive league series won. The streak dates back to March 2013.

4 - Haley Hayden currently ranks fifth in program history with 213 career runs scored. She is six runs shy of passing Holly Tankersley (218 runs) for third place.

5 - The Ragin' Cajuns pitching staff has held opponents to five runs or less in all 22 games. The staff's 1.90 ERA ranks No. 32 in the NCAA statistical rankings.

FOR STARTERS
18th-ranked Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Softball opens Sun Belt Conference play Saturday-Sunday, March 18-19 at Lamson Park hosting UTA. The Ragin' Cajuns and Mavericks are scheduled to play a 2 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday and a 1 p.m. single game on Sunday. The Ragin' Cajuns are beginning their 17th season of competition in the Sun Belt Conference. League play opened last weekend, but Louisiana's start was delayed when severe weather concerns canceled the squad's trip to Appalachian State.

AN ALTERED WEEK
It was a weather-shortened week for the Ragin' Cajuns last week. Rain canceled a scheduled doubleheader with Baylor on Tuesday, which was rescheduled to a single game Thursday that the Bears won 5-4. Louisiana was scheduled to begin Sun Belt play at Appalachian State over the weekend, but severe weather concerns canceled the trip.

COMFORTS OF HOME
Last Thursday's single game vs. Baylor was Louisiana's 22nd straight home game to start the 2017 season. With the Sun Belt-opening series at App State canceled, the season-opening homestand now stretches to 25 games.

RAGIN' CAJUNS IN SUN BELT OPENERS
Louisiana won its Sun Belt opening series 12 times in the previous 16 seasons. The Ragin' Cajuns have claimed their Sun Belt-opening series each of the last three years, last falling in 2013 (1-2 at South Alabama). Louisiana is 39-12 all-time in Sun Belt opening series.

SUN BELT SERIES STREAK
Louisiana has won 29 consecutive Sun Belt Conference series (school and SBC record streak). The streak began in March 2013 with a three-game sweep of FIU.

RISING TO THE TOP
Boosted by explosive numbers over the last two tournaments, the Ragin' Cajuns offense has climbed to No. 1 in home runs per game (1.64), No. 2 in scoring (8.45), No. 7 in on base percentage (.452) and slugging percentage (.569) and No. 24 in batting average (.329) in the latest NCAA stats rankings.

FINDING RHYTHM
Three home runs vs. Baylor marked the eighth straight game with multiple home runs. The Ragin' Cajuns have produced 29 home runs since Feb. 23 (span of 13 games).

FIGHT TO THE FINISH
The Ragin' Cajuns four runs vs. Baylor came over the final two innings. The clutch at bats late in the game have been common as Louisiana holds a 48-17 advantage in runs scored over the sixth and seventh innings. Earlier this season, the Cajuns posted late-game rallies for wins over DePaul (walkoff after 3-1 deficit in 7th) and Ball State (trailed 3-1 entering 6th) in the Louisiana Classics.

QUIETLY DOING THEIR JOB
While much attention entering the season was focused on how the offense would replace the lost power and run production – and the group has made recent leaps and bounds – it shouldn't go unnoticed the precision and performance that the Ragin' Cajuns pitching staff has displayed. The pitching unit has yielded no more than five runs in a single game through the first 22 games, tossed seven shutouts and ranks 32nd nationally with a 1.90 ERA (one of only 36 staffs with a sub-2.00 ERA). The opposition has surpassed five hits just seven times and obtained more than two walks only seven times (only once since Feb. 23).

TRAFFIC CONTROL
The Ragin' Cajuns pitching staff has limited foes to 100 hits and surrendered only 39 walks through 136 innings pitched. Opponents are batting a mere .201 off of the Cajuns' hurlers.

THE POWER OF "US"
All nine of the starters in the Ragin' Cajuns batting order have posted at least 15 hits and eight of the nine had already generated double digit RBI totals by the fourth weekend of the season.

HUMMING ALONG
Senior first baseman Haley Hayden has been the Ragin' Cajuns most consistent hitter throughout her career, reaching 60-plus hits all three years. She's presently tied for the team lead with 25 hits, putting her on pace for a potential fourth season of 60-plus hits. Hayden is nearing the program's all-time Top 5 career hits list. With 234 career hits she stands 42 shy of fifth place (Jana Mower, 276).

SIZZLING SANDERS
DJ Sanders has quickly put a slow start to the season behind her and is steadily building a player of the year resume. Starting with the Alabama series (Feb. 18-19), Sanders pieced together three consecutive strong weekends hitting 20-for-44 (.455) with 25 runs scored, nine home runs and 17 RBI. She's tied for the team lead in hits (25), ranks second in RBI (23) and leads in home runs (11).

PREMIER SLUGGER
The hot streak DJ Sanders has ridden over the past four weeks has moved her to No. 3 nationally in home runs (11), elevated her season slugging percentage to .928 (15th amongst all Division I players), and upped her total base count to 64 which is 12th-most in the nation.

DANIELLA'S DRIVE
Junior transfer Daniella Chavez has been brining her teammates home at a rapid pace. She produced 18 RBI over the last two weekends of tournament play. Chavez now leads Louisiana in RBI with 24 on the young season. She's also the Sun Belt's leader in the category and ranks No. 51 in the NCAA stats rankings in RBI per game (1.09). Being a run producer is nothing new for the Kansas transfer, as she piled up 122 RBI over her two-year stay with the Jayhawks.

LOUISIANA-UTA SERIES
Series Record: Louisiana leads 21-5
Sun Belt Games: Louisiana leads 8-1
In Lafayette: Louisiana leads 8-2
In Arlington, Texas: Louisiana leads 8-1
Neutral Site: Louisiana lead 5-2
Current Streak: UTA won 1
Last Meeting: 3/20/16 in Arlington, Texas
(UTA 3, Louisiana 1)

Last 10 Series Meetings
3/22/90         LA 1, UTA 0   Lamson Park
4/26/14         LA 7, UTA 0               Arlington, Texas
4/26/14         LA 13, UTA 0 (5)       Arlington, Texas
4/27/14         LA 8, UTA 0               Arlington, Texas
3/13/15         LA 18, UTA 0 (5)       Lamson Park
3/14/15         LA 4, UTA 1   Lamson Park
3/14/15         LA 8, UTA 0 (6)         Lamson Park
3/19/16         LA 13, UTA 0 (5)       Arlington, Texas
3/19/16         LA 16, UTA 0 (5)       Arlington, Texas
3/20/16         UTA 3, LA 1               Arlington, Texas

Series Notes
Fourth Sun Belt series overall between the Ragin' Cajuns and Mavericks (second at Lamson Park)...Louisiana swept the lone prior Sun Belt series at Lamson Park held in March 2015, outscoring UTA 30-1...Mavericks ended Cajuns' 13-game series win streak with a 3-1 win in series finale last year in Arlington...Louisiana has outscored UTA 88-4 and posted seven shutouts in the previous nine Sun Belt matchups...Programs first met as Southland Conference foes from 1983-87...Series resumed when UTA joined Sun Belt in 2014 and the teams met in the initial SBC series in Arlington in April 2014 – hadn't met since March 1990 doubleheader at Lamson.

Last Series (March 19-20, 2016 - Arlington, Texas)
Louisiana hit multiple home runs and produced double digit hit totals in both games of the Saturday doubleheader and swept by scores of 13-0, 16-0. A first-inning grand slam by DJ Sanders sparked a five-run first inning as the Ragin' Cajuns took control early in Game 1. Lexie Elkins capped off the scoring in the fifth inning with a three-run home run which was the 72nd of her career giving her sole possession of second place in school history. An RBI single by Kelsey Vincent gave the Cajuns the lead in their first at bat of Game 2. Haley Hayden broke open the game in the fourth inning with a grand slam that stretched the lead to 7-0. Aleah Craighton homered twice and finished with six RBI. In the finale on Sunday, a two-run home run from Kacey Everett gave UTA the lead in the third inning and Samantha Clakley, who scattered six hits and struck out seven, made the lead stand.

Last Series at Lamson Park (March 13-14, 2015)
Kelsey Vincent hit a school-record tying three home runs and Lexie Elkins added two of her own while posting a game-high six RBI as Louisiana won the series opener 18-0 (5 inn.). The Cajuns batted around in each of their final three at bats to pull away after a scoreless first inning. Jordan Wallace fanned a season-high 16 and yielded only one hit as the Cajuns won 4-1 in the first game of the Saturday doubleheader. Christina Hamilton fanned six UTA batters in the nightcap and a bases loaded, pinch-hit single by Sara Corbello sparked a three spot in the fourth inning that broke open a 1-0 game (Cajuns won 8-0 in six innings).

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
8 - Louisiana has hit multiple home runs in eight consecutive games (dates back to Feb. 26 vs. MVSU)

18 - Daniella Chavez produced 18 RBI over the last two weekends of tournament play. That upped her season total to a team-and Sun Belt-leading 24 RBI

21-1 - Alex Stewart's career Sun Belt Conference record. The reigning SBC Pitcher of the Year posted a 16-1 record and 0.66 ERA in league play in 2016

.382 - The Ragin' Cajuns team batting average since Feb. 23

90.7% - Louisiana has won over 90 percent of its games at Lamson Park dating back to 2010. The Ragin' Cajuns record at the facility since 2010 is 200-20-1 (.907)

134 - Louisiana has drawn 134 walks which ranks second nationally. Only Auburn (142) has coerced more walks than the Ragin' Cajuns

GREMILLION'S GRIP
As the lone freshman with a starting position in 2016, Kara Gremillion took advantage and laid claim to the third base bag. She started all 55 games and had only four errors in 152 chances (60 PO, 88 A, 4 E). This season, she's picked up right where she left off making it a doomsday scenario for anyone hitting the ball to the left side of the infield. Gremillion has committed only two errors through her first 85 chances (30 PO, 53 A, 2 E, .976 FLD%).

SPARKPLUG
Kelli Martinez is not your typical nine-hole hitter. The junior left fielder has posted six multiple-hit games, totaled 23 base hits and collected 10 RBI through the season's first five weeks.

STIRRING THE OFFENSE
Slap hitters Kassidy Zeringue and Kelli Martinez, who bat No. 8 and No. 9 in the lineup respectively, have provided the desired result of turning the lineup over. It was clearly evident during the Ragin' Cajuns Invitational (March 3-5) as the duo combined to go 16-for-30 at the plate, combined to reach base 21 times and even combined to produce seven RBI. For the season, the Cajuns table setters have combined for 42 base hits and 16 RBI. Zeringue tops the squad with a .422 average, while Martinez is second at .377.

CRAIGHTON ON TRACK
Junior outfielder Aleah Craighton carries an active seven-game hitting streak into the Sun Belt opener with UTA. She's homered in two of the past four outings and is hitting .391 (9-for-23) during the streak. The recent performance raised her season average to .316. She may be hitting her stride at the right time – last season Craighton led the Sun Belt Conference in slugging percentage (1.069), on base percentage (.593), runs (33) and home runs (11) during league play.

COMEAUX'S COMFORT ZONE
With each passing weekend, Lexie Comeaux is becoming more comfortable in her role as the Ragin' Cajuns new starting catcher. Starting with the Alabama series, she's caught the vast majority of the innings, is moving quicker behind the plate and has become more agressive. She's helped control the opponents on the base path, with only 12 attempted steals and five runners thrown out. She's also made huge gains offensively and now ranks fourth on the team with a .347 average.

THE COMEAUX CRUSH
Lexie Comeaux hit six home runs and posted 15 RBI as part of a personal offensive explosion during the Ragin' Cajuns Invitational. Comeaux collected an RBI all six games notching a trio of four-RBI performances along the way. She closed the weekend with a home run in five straight games, capped off by her first career multi-homer game in the finale vs. Alcorn.

INFIELD ROADBLOCK
Ragin' Cajuns pitchers are backed up by one of the nation's stingiest infield defense. There's the quick speed of Haley Hayden (first base) and Kassidy Zeringue (second base) on the right side and the exceptional range of motion by DJ Sanders (shortstop) and quick reflexes of Kara Gremillion (third base) on the left side that make it tough for opposing hitters to get ground balls out of the infield. The group has committed only nine errors through 369 total chances.

HITTING ALL ANGLES
Given the amount of home run production lost from 2016, it stood to reason that the Ragin' Cajuns would have to find the gaps in the outfield to keep its offense efficient. So far, the squad has as collected 24 doubles, launched 36 home runs and has legged out five triples.

STEWART'S STEADY
All-American pitcher Alex Stewart has surrendered five hits or less in all but one of her eight starts. She's allowed just 12 earned runs through 39-1/3 innings pitched. Free bases continue to be rare for the senior hurler, with only 11 walks issued overall and just five in her last 21-1/3 innings of work.

DANDY DENHAM
Freshman pitcher Alyssa Denham showed in February that she's going to be a dependable arm for the Ragin' Cajuns in the circle. Denham worked 38 innings in the circle over the season's first month, limiting foes to 10 runs (seven earned), 21 hits and a .159 average. The highlight was a complete game, two-hit shutout of No. 4 Alabama that secured the series win for the Ragin' Cajuns and earned her USA Softball National Player of the Week honors.

THE 700 CLUB
Head coach Michael Lotief captured his 700th career win on Sunday, March 5 in Louisiana's 18-0 (5 inn.) win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Now in his 15th season as the Ragin' Cajuns head coach, his career record stands at 701-173-1 (.802). He joins a list of college softball coaching greats to surpass 700 career wins including Michigan's Carol Hutchins, Arizona's Mike Candrea, former Cajuns coach Yvette Girouard, Oklahoma's Patty Gasso, Alabama's Pat Murphy, UCLA's Sue Enquist, Baylor's Glenn Moore and select others.

THE FORCE BEHIND "US"
Lamson Park has long been the site of large crowds making it a tough venue for the opposition – and this season has been no different. Louisiana has drawn above 2,000 in attendance at Lamson Park seven times and has seen over 1,700 for all 13 playing dates. The current total attendance is 26,209, which is within striking distance of the school record 31,261 drawn in 2016. The current average of 2,016 has the Ragin' Cajuns on pace to top the record of 1,736 set last season.

THE CORE FOUR
Despite losing a heralded group of sluggers from the 2016 team– namely Sara Corbello, Lexie Elkins, Shellie Landry and Kelsey Vincent – to graduation, the Ragin' Cajuns returned the majority of their everyday starters including career .360-hitter Haley Hayden, home run threats Aleah Craighton and DJ Sanders who both clubbed 18 home runs last season and Kara Gremillion, who finished the 2016 season as one of the team's hottest hitters (hit .457 in May).

A PROVEN MEASURE
Lexie Comeaux – who was slotted for first or second base – filling the spot at catcher is a similar situation to former Ragin' Cajuns catchers Joy Webre who was a shortstop and Lana Bowers who was an outfielder before being converted to the position. Webre and Bowers turned out to be four-year starters for Louisiana. Comeaux's arrival at the position was spurned by a season-ending knee injury suffered by Miranda Grotenhuis who had worked her way into the spot during the fall season.

FITTED FOR THE ROLE
Kara Gremillion, last year's nine-hole hitter, has moved to the leadoff spot in the batting order for the 2017 season. Given last season's performance at the plate, it seems like a natural fit. As a freshman in 2016, Gremillion displayed poise at the plate, with 30 walks against 11 strikeouts in 173 plate appearances (.480 on base percentage).

MRS. VERSATILITY
Haley Hayden's move to first base marks the third position she's played in a Ragin' Cajuns uniform. The senior from West Monroe patrolled center field as a freshman in 2014 and covered second base the past two seasons.

THE DYNAMIC DUO
A year ago, the rise of Aleah Craighton and DJ Sanders as prolific hitters was on display as they both hit 18 home runs. Now it's their turn to be the force in the heart of the lineup. Craighton has tallied 20-plus extra base hits the first two years of her career. Of her 109 career base hits, over 50 percent (58) have produced extra bases. Sanders saw a significant increase in power (from four home runs as a freshman to 18) and run production (from 27 RBI as a freshman to 58) during the 2016 season.

DIAMOND NOTES
#EyesOnThePrize: For the remainder of the regular season, Louisiana will play Sun Belt Conference series during the weekends. The Ragin' Cajuns have won three straight SBC titles and 14 of the previous 16 since regular season competition began in 2001.

#TwoGrandTallies: Haley Hayden scored 16 runs in February, upping her career total to 205 and added eight more during the Ragin' Cajuns Invitational. Now at 213 career runs, Hayden is closing in on the school's all-time career record of 243 scored by Nerissa Myers from 2010-13. The odds are in her favor: in her previous three seasons she reached 60 runs.

#LivingOnTheBases: Aleah Craighton has already drawn 28 walks over 87 plate appearances. She's already surpassed her personal single-season high walks total (27 in 2016) and may challenge the school's single-season record 61 set by Lacey Bertucci (2007) and Gabriele Bridges (2011).

#PatienceIsAVirtue: The Ragin' Cajuns hitters have turned patience and strong plate discipline into 134 walks, a tally which ranks second nationally trailing only Auburn's 142. Louisiana has drawn five or more walks in 15 of 22 games.

#NationsBest: Louisiana has an active streak of 59 consecutive weeks ranked in the national polls dating back to April 2013 and has finished ranked in one of the national polls each of the past nine seasons (2008-16) and 24 times in the past 27 seasons (1990-2016).

#EveryoneLovesLamson: Due in large part to the softball savvy fan base and the "joie de vivre" (exuberant enjoyment of life) of the Cajun culture, Lamson Park leaves a lasting impression on visitors. That was affirmed in a recent poll conducted by FloSoftball.com which ranked the facility No. 1 in college softball.

#FamilyTies: Sisters Kara and Kourtney Gremillion are following in the footsteps of their aunts, Stacie Gremillion and Sandy Percle, who donned the Cajuns uniform in the mid-1980s. Chelsea Lotief, daughter of head coach Michael Lotief, is suiting up for the Ragin' Cajuns like her mother, Stefni (Whitton) Lotief, did from 1987-90.

#SisterAct: Alyssa Denham is the fourth daughter of Steven and Kathy Denhman to play collegiate softball. All three of her elder sisters played softball at McNeese and were All-Southland Conference selections: Stephenie (shortstop, 2001-03), Jessica (pitcher, 2003-06) and Tiffany (pitcher, 2009-12).

#GeauxCajuns

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Players Mentioned

Lexie Comeaux

Sara Corbello

Aleah Craighton

Alyssa Denham

Lexie Elkins

Kara Gremillion

Kourtney Gremillion

Miranda Grotenhuis

Haley Hayden

Shellie Landry

Chelsea Lotief

Kelli Martinez

DJ Sanders

Alex Stewart

Kelsey Vincent

Kassidy Zeringue

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