Louisiana softball has faced another heartbreak after dropping its third Sun Belt Conference series of the season this past weekend.
The Ragin’ Cajuns (19-19, 5-7) were on the road last week versus Troy, fresh off a midweek victory over Louisiana Tech, in which they shut out the Bulldogs. They couldn’t carry that momentum over into the weekend, though, as small things led to big losses on Friday and Saturday.
“I still think we leave a lot on the table in the sense that there are games that we should win, could have won that we didn’t,” UL coach Alyson Habetz said. “It comes down to little things that we need to take care of and be better at.”
The Cajuns will look to mend their broken hearts on the road on Tuesday for a rematch with the Bulldogs. They return to Lamson Park for their next SBC series versus James Madison. Here are two things we learned about the Cajuns as they sit midway through the season and are hoping to get back into the top of the Sun Belt.
Freebies galore
Friday’s game was bittersweet for the Cajuns. After falling behind 4-2, they clawed their way back into the contest. Junior Cecilia Vasquez came through with a two-run double to tie the game up and push it to extra innings.
“I told Cis (Vasquez) like ‘Yes we didn’t win, but you have to take that and like run with it,’” Habetz said. “It has to make you feel good because you’re gonna have that opportunity again and you coming through in those moments are gonna be critical so continue to do that. Continue to have confidence in that moment to want to be up.”
Despite Vasquez getting out of her hitting slump with the double, it was enough to combat the error made at the end of the game on a throw to first base to lose them the game. Errors and freebies were a problem for the Cajuns all weekend, committing a total of 11 over the three games.
UL’s bullpen walked eight batters on the mound, eight more than Habetz and the pitching staff were hoping for. On the positive side, senior pitcher Sam Ryan had two quality outings, recording her first shutout of the season against LA Tech and pitching solid in Saturday’s loss versus the Trojans in game one of the doubleheader.
Trying to get over the hump
The Cajuns have been oh so close to winning games, not only this past weekend but also in the 2-1 series loss against Coastal Carolina the week before. From stranding runners on base to walking that one batter, the ...
