UL Softball Completes Play In Blazer Classic With Two Wins
The 10th-ranked Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns recorded two more big non-conference victories on Sunday afternoon in the final day of play in the UAB Blazer Classic in Birmingham, Alabama.
Louisiana defeated the Ole Miss Rebels, 8-1, in their first game of the day, before downing the UAB Blazers, 7-4, in their second game, to move to 11-3 on the season.
Coupled with their wins over Oklahoma St. (3-2) and Ole Miss (5-3) on Saturday, UL extended their current win streak to four games.
Those four wins, along with their 1-0 setback to Oklahoma St. on Friday helped the Cajuns finish the tournament with a 4-1 record, the top record in the event.
In their first game, Louisiana jumped on top in the top half of the first inning, scoring three runs on four hits, including a run-scoring single by Bailey Curry and a two-run double off the bat of Sarah Hudek, to give them a quick 3-0 lead.
The Cajuns added to their advantage in the top half of the second inning, when Kaitlyn Alderink walked and later stole home, before Julie Rawls walked, and later scored on a run-scoring single by Hudek, to widen their lead to 5-0.
UL put up yet another run in the top half of the third inning, when Taylor Roman was hit by a pitch, before later scoring on a sacrifice fly by Kendall Talley, to extend their lead to 6-0.
Ole Miss scored their first and only run of the game in the bottom half of the fourth inning when Jessica Puk belted a solo home run, her second of the season, to trim the deficit to 6-1.
Louisiana put the game away in the top half of the fifth inning, scoring twice more, courtesy of an RBI double by Melissa Mayeux, followed by a run-scoring single from Alderink, to make it 8-1.
That turned out to be all the scoring in the contest, as UL went on to the 8-1 triumph.
Louisiana, who outhit Ole Miss, 9-3, was led at the plate by Alderink, Rawls, and Hudek, who collected two hits apiece, while Hudek drove in three runs6
Summer Ellyson (6-0) recorded the win in the circle for the Cajuns, allowing only one run on three hits while striking out five batters.
Anna Borgen (2-1) suffered the loss for the Rebels, allowing three runs on four hits over 0.1 innings of work.
With the victory, Louisiana improved to 10-3, while Ole Miss fell to 5-10.
In their second game, Louisiana fell behind early, as UAB scored an unearned in the bottom half of the first opening, courtesy of two UL errors, giving them a quick 1-0 lead.
The Cajuns took the lead in the top half of the third inning, scoring two unearned runs, including a two-out RBI single off the bat of Hudek, to give them a 2-1 edge.
Louisiana added another run in the top half of the fifth inning when Mayeux opened the frame with a double, before later scoring on a single off the bat of Alderink, to make it 3-1.
The Blazers grabbed the lead in the bottom half of the fifth inning, scoring three runs on three hits, including RBI singles by Dylinn Stancil and Analyse Petree, as well as a sacrifice fly off the bat of Sierra Frazier, to give them a 4-3 advantage.
The Cajuns answered right back in the top half of the 6th inning, however, plating two runs on three hits, courtesy of an RBI triple by Rawls and a run-scoring single by Taylor Roman, to give them a 5-4 lead, an advantage they would not relinquish.
Louisiana added two insurance runs in the top half of the 7th inning when Hudek crushed a two-run homer, her third of the season, to make it 7-4.
That turned out to be all the scoring in the game, as UL went on to the 7-4 triumph, their second victory of the day and fourth of the tournament.
Louisiana, who outhit UAB, 10-5, was paced at the plate by O'Neal and Alderink, who each collected two hits, while Hudek homered and drove home three runs..
Ellyson (7-0) picked up the win in the circle for the Cajuns, tossing 2.2 innings of scoreless relief, picking up her second win of the day.
Amy Woodham (3-3) got hit with the loss for the Blazers, allowing two runs on four hits over 1.0 inning of relief work.
With the victory, Louisiana improved to 11-3, while UAB dropped to 8-7.
The Cajuns return to action on Tuesday, when they travel to Austin, Texas to take on the Texas Longhorns in a non-conference doubleheader.