The Cajuns were sharp in all phases as they cruised to an 8-0 victory over App State. The win was the home opener for the Sun Belt portion of the schedule, and Louisiana moved to 22-9 overall with the victory.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Louisiana started senior utility player Karly Heath in the circle. Heath was effective, holding the App State lineup at bay. She worked four scoreless innings, allowing only three hits while striking out five Mountaineer hitters. Heath was followed by Kandra Lamb, who pitched one scoreless inning in relief.
Offensively, the Cajuns sputtered early. However, they got things going in the third inning. A couple of walks and a double steal set up Maddie Hayden, who grounded to the pitcher. A throwing error on the play allowed two runs to score. Another throwing error eventually allowed Hayden to score. RBI singles from Laney Credeur and Jourdyn Campbell followed by an RBI sacrifice fly from Sophie Piskos allowed Louisiana to extend the lead to 6-0.
Louisiana would get another run in the fifth thanks to a solo home run for Stormy Kotzelnick. They then invoked the run-rule in the seventh with an RBI from Piskos to win the game 8-0.
BIG NUMBER: 8
Louisiana used the eight-run rule to make quick work of the Mountaineers. A combination of good pitching and consistent offense allowed them to do so.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Karly Heath
Karly was effective in the circle, and also contributed a double and a walk at the plate. She continues to be a versatile utility player who can do a variety of things for this Cajuns’ team.
UP NEXT: Louisiana and App State will continue the series at Lamson Park with Game 2 tomorrow at 4:00 P.M.