Softball Preview: Troy Series

Games 32-34: No. 16 Louisiana (26-5, 9-0 Sun Belt) vs. Troy (16-22, 4-9 Sun Belt)
Saturday, Apr. 8 (DH) • 2 p.m. (CDT) • Lamson Park (2,790) • Lafayette, La.
Sunday, Apr. 9 • 12 p.m. (CDT) • Lamson Park (2,790) • Lafayette, La.

WEEKEND PROMOTIONS
Saturday – Bike to the Ball Park
• Registration at 11:30 a.m. at entrance of Lamson Park. It's free to ride and all registrants will be entered for a chance to win a bike from Academy Sports.
• The bike ride, in memory of Mickey Shunick, will start at Noon at Lamson Park, follow a portion of Mickey's Loop to the memorial on St. Landry Street and return back to Lamson Park.
• Fans can bring their own bike or borrow one from the Geaux Velo bike share program located at the kiosk on the East side of Cajun Field (corner of Cajundome and Reinhardt). Visit GeauxVeloBikeShare.com to reserve a bike in advance.
• There will be a prize at the end of the route for all riders when they return to Lamson Park.
• Commemorative "In Memory of Mickey Shunick" t-shirts will be available for purchase inside Lamson Park. Cost of the t-shirts is $20. All proceeds, and any other donations, will be given to the Wild Cat Foundation (one of Mickey's favorite charities).
Sunday – Easter at Lamson Park
• Children should bring their Easter baskets with them to the game as there will be an Easter Egg hunt on the playing field after the conclusion of the game.
• Chance to win prizes such as candy, bookstore coupons, autographed softball items and concession bucks.
• Grand Rouge (Big Red) will be present for pictures with the children after the hunt is over.

Game Notes (PDF): Louisiana | Troy
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 | Troy
Schedules: Louisiana | Troy
Season Stats: Louisiana | Troy
Ragin' Cajuns Twitter: @ULRaginCajuns | @RaginCajunsSB
Opponents Twitter: @TroyTrojansSB

THE COACHES
Louisiana: Michael Lotief (Louisiana, 1985)
Career Record: 710-173-1 (15th season) Record at Louisiana: Same

Troy: Beth Mullins (UAB, 2004)
Career Record: 79-70 (3rd season) Record at Troy: Same

5 THINGS TO KNOW
1 - The Ragin' Cajuns begin the first of two remaining homestands this season, starting with the Troy series Saturday-Sunday, April 8-9 followed by a midweek contest vs. Southeastern Louisiana on Tuesday, April 11.

2 - Louisiana is expected to set a new total attendance record this weekend. The current season total attendance at Lamson Park in 2017 is 30,178 which is just shy of the school record 31,261 set in 2016.

3 - Louisiana seeks to extend its school and Sun Belt Conference record streak of 32 consecutive league series won. The streak dates back to March 2013.

4 - Alex Stewart improved to 5-0 in Sun Belt play with a pair of wins at Georgia Southern. She's picked up momentum the past two weekends, holding foes to four runs and 13 hits while striking out 23 over the past 18 innings of work.

5 - The Cajuns offense has consistently produced the past three weeks. The squad entered the UTA series with a .330 average and has maintained the figure since.

FOR STARTERS
16th-ranked Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Softball, coming off an undefeated six-game road trip after sweeps of South Alabama and Georgia Southern, returns to Lamson Park Saturday-Sunday, April 8-9 for a Sun Belt series with Troy. The Cajuns and Trojans will play a 2 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday and Noon single game on Sunday.

IN A GROOVE
The Ragin' Cajuns carry a season-high, nine-game win streak into the Troy series. During the streak, Louisiana is hitting .331 and averaging 8.33 runs per game.

SUN BELT SERIES STREAK
Louisiana has won 32 consecutive Sun Belt Conference series (school and SBC record streak). The streak began in March 2013 with a three-game sweep of FIU.

SIZZLING START
At 9-0 in Sun Belt play, the Ragin' Cajuns are off to their best start in league play since opening 10-0 during the 2014 campaign. The record best start is 18-0, accomplished in 2001 and 2004.

PREMIER SLUGGER
DJ Sanders enters the weekend as the nation's leader in home runs (17) and ranks second in slugging percentage (.980). Of her 38 hits, a total of 26 have gone for extra bases (9 doubles, 17 homers). She's one homer shy of equaling her career-best output (18) set just last season.

RELIABLE PERFORMANCE
The Ragin' Cajuns pitching staff has yielded no more than five runs in a single game through the first 31 games. The unit has kept the opposition two runs or less in 19 of 31 outings, tossed eight shutouts and ranks 25th nationally with a 1.94 ERA (one of only 27 staffs with a sub-2.00 ERA).

MAGIC NUMBER
Louisiana is undefeated (23-0) when scoring at least six runs. The Ragin' Cajuns have produced six runs or more in 23 of the season's 31 games.

STAND UP AND DELIVER
Daniella Chavez delivered an RBI in four of six plate appearances and finished with six RBI total in last Saturday's doubleheader at Georgia Southern. Earlier this season, the Kansas transfer provided 21 RBI over a span of 15 games from Feb. 23-Mar. 18.

SWITCH AT SEVEN
Corin Voinchè filled the No. 7 spot in the lineup at Georgia Southern. The senior infielder, who started at first base, hit .400 (4-of-10), drew a pair of walks and struck out only once. Voinchè previously saw time at the spot during the UTA series (Mar. 18-19). In Sun Belt play she's given Louisiana solid plate appearances, drawing four walks against one strikeout in 24 appearances.

ACE IN THE CIRCLE
As the Ragin' Cajuns make a push for a fourth straight Sun Belt regular season title, and 15th in 17 years overall, they have the luxury of a pitcher who has excelled near flawlessly in the league throughout her career. Alex Stewart, who is currently 5-0 in SBC play this season, sports a 26-1 career mark in Sun Belt Conference competition.

STEWART'S STEADY
All-American pitcher Alex Stewart has surrendered five hits or less in all but three of her 12 starts. She's allowed just 18 earned runs through 64-1/3 innings pitched, yielding more than two just once. She has an active streak of 10 straight starts allowing two earned runs or fewer.

HOLDING HER GROUND
Freshman pitcher Alyssa Denham proved again at Georgia Southern she can also master the relief role. She entered with no outs and the bases loaded in the sixth inning of the series finale in Statesboro and retired three straight to hold the Eagles in check. A week before in a relief appearance at South Alabama, Denham recorded a pair of full-count, bases-loaded strikeouts.

SPARKPLUGS
Slap hitters Kassidy Zeringue and Kelli Martinez, who bat No. 8 and No. 9 in the lineup respectively, continue to energize the offense. Zeringue delivered a three-hit effort for the second straight Saturday last weekend at Georgia Southern and Martinez recorded her second three-RBI game. For the season, the Cajuns table setters have combined for 56 base hits and 20 RBI.

YOU CAN COUNT ON COMEAUX
Catcher Lexie Comeaux has proven to be a reliable and steady bat in the Cajuns order. She ranks third with a .361 average, is slugging .778 and has a .484 on base percentage. She's been a tough out for opposing pitchers with 20 walks against nine strikeouts. Last week at Georgia Southern, she reached base eight times in 12 plate appearances and had four walks with no strikeouts.

SUPER-CHARGED OFFENSE
Louisiana stands at No. 1 in home runs per game (1.68), No. 1 in scoring (8.42), No. 1 in slugging percentage (.576), No. 4 in on base percentage (.453) and No. 15 in batting average (.330) in the latest NCAA statistical rankings. That efficiency has led to the Ragin' Cajuns putting up six runs or more in 23 of 31 games, reaching 10-plus runs 10 times.

LOUISIANA-TROY SERIES
Series Record: Louisiana leads 31-5
Sun Belt Games: Louisiana leads 26-5
In Lafayette: Louisiana leads 16-2
In Troy, Ala.: Louisiana leads 13-3
Neutral Site: Louisiana leads 2-0
Current Streak: Louisiana won 5
Last Meeting: 3/26/16 in Troy, Ala.
(Louisiana 8, Troy 0)

Last 10 Series Meetings
4/27/13         LA 6, TROY 0             Lamson Park
4/28/13         LA 7, TROY 2             Lamson Park
4/19/14         LA 5, TROY 0             Troy, Ala.
4/19/14         LA 9, TROY 0             Troy, Ala.
3/21/15         TROY 9, LA 5             Lamson Park
3/21/15         LA 6, TROY 3             Lamson Park
3/22/15         LA 12, TROY 2 (5)    Lamson Park
3/25/16         LA 11, TROY 0          Troy, Ala.
3/25/16         LA 8, TROY 1             Troy, Ala.
3/26/16         LA 8, TROY 0 (5)       Troy, Ala.

Series Notes
Louisiana leads the all-time series 31-5, which includes a 26-5 mark in Sun Belt regular season games...Cajuns and Trojans are meeting in their 12th Sun Belt series...Louisiana claimed the series victory each of the previous 11 occurrences...Cajuns have won 12 of the last 13 meetings since 2012...Louisiana's current five-game series win streak began after Troy rallied to win the 2015 series opener at Lamson Park and end a seven-game Cajuns win streak...The Cajuns hold a 16-2 edge in meetings played at Lamson Park...Two programs 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...Programs met for the SBC Tournament title in Mobile in 2010 (UL won 8-0).

Last Series (March 25-26, 2016 - Troy, Ala.)
Louisiana utilized a pair of 11-hit attacks to power past Troy 11-0, 8-1 in a Good Friday doubleheader. Shellie Landry provided the big bat, finishing the doubleheader 5-for-8 at the plate with three home runs and six RBI. Like Landry, Sara Corbello homered in both games to begin a streak of six consecutive SBC games with a home run. In the series finale on Saturday, an eight-run first inning carried the Ragin' Cajuns to a win that completed the series sweep. Twelve (12) batters went to the plate in the first-inning explosion that was plenty of support for starting pitcher Alex Stewart who posted her second shutout of the series.

Last Series at Lamson Park (March 21-22, 2015)
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. Christina Hamilton retired 15 of the final 18 batters she faced after play resumed following a 1 hour, 35 minute weather delay in Game 2, and the Cajuns rallied for a 6-3 win. 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.

DIAMOND NOTES
#WhatEverItTakes: Haley Hayden has shown she's willing to play whatever role necessary to see the Cajuns succeed. Each weekend in Sun Belt play, she's played at both her customary position of first base and in right field. Whether it is helping mentor the pitchers at first base or delivering an outfield assist, Hayden's versatility proves to be a valuable asset.

#PatienceIsAVirtue: The Ragin' Cajuns hitters have turned patience and strong plate discipline into 179 walks, a tally which ranks third nationally trailing only Auburn's 191 and Alabama's 182. Louisiana has drawn five or more walks in 20 of 31 games.

#RespectEarned: Aleah Craighton generated 58 extra base hits, of which 30 were home runs, in her first two seasons. Her RBI totals exceeded 40-plus both years. The previous seasons production has earned her the reputation as the Ragin' Cajuns most-feared hitter as evident by 36 walks she's been issued (23 alone in February), plus nine times being hit by a pitch.

#HummingAlong: With 36 hits to her credit, senior Haley Hayden is 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 245 career hits she stands 31 shy of fifth place (Jana Mower, 276).

#AmongTheBest: Louisiana has an active streak of 63 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 preseason 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 Denham 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

Kourtney Gremillion

Haley Hayden

Shellie Landry

Chelsea Lotief

Kelli Martinez

DJ Sanders

Alex Stewart

Kassidy Zeringue

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