UL Softball Rolls To Two Wins In 2nd Day Of Ragin’ Cajuns Invitational

The 6th-ranked Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns softball team recorded two more wins on Saturday, defeating the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, 8-0, before downing the Alcorn St. Lady Braves, 12-0, in the second day of the 2016 Ragin' Cajuns Invitational at Lamson Park.

UL won both games in mercy-rule fashion, with the Cajuns capturing the first game in 6 innings, and the second in 5 innings.

After banging out 8 hits in the opener, the Cajuns won the second game behind the perfect game-pitching of sophomore right-hander Kylie Jo Trahan, the second no-hitter for her in the tournament.

Louisiana, who defeated Rutgers on Friday night, 12-0, is now 3-0 in the event, increasing their current win streak to 7 games.

The Cajuns got on the scoreboard first in the opening game against Rutgers, scoring two runs in the bottom half of the second inning, when freshman third baseman Kara Gremillion and junior right-fielder Kassidy Zeringue drew back-to-back walks, before crossing the plate, Gremillion on a bouncer to second off the bat of junior second baseman Hayley Hayden, and Zeringue on a wild pitch, to give them a 2-0 lead.

Louisiana added to their lead in the bottom half of the fourth inning, scoring four runs, the first three on a three-run home run off the bat of senior left-fielder Shellie Landry, her third long ball of the season, before they loaded the bases and scored another run, when senior designated player Sara Corbello was hit by a pitch, to extend their advantage to 6-0.

The Cajuns ended things in the bottom half of the sixth inning, scoring two runs, when Aleah Craighton singled, and later scored on a Kelly Martinez single, before Martinez scored on a Gremillion, which ended the game.

For the Cajuns, who outhit the Scarlet Knights, 5-3, Landry led the way, going 1-for-2, along with a home run, 2 walks, and 3 runs batted in.

Junior right-hander Macey Smith (1-0) recorded the win for Louisiana, tossing a 6-inning, 3-hit shutout, allowing only one walk, while striking out 3 batters.

Aubrey Levine (0-3) suffered the loss for Rutgers, allowing two runs in 2.2 innings of work.

View the game box score.

With the victory, Louisiana improved to 12-1, while Rutgers dropped to 2-11 with the loss.

In the second game against Alcorn St., Louisiana jumped on top quickly, scoring three runs in the top half of the first inning, courtesy of a three-run home run by senior catcher Lexie Elkins, her 11th of the season, which leads the nation, to grab a 3-0 lead.

The Cajuns tacked on three more runs in the top half of the second inning, when Gremillion opened the frame with a solo home run, the first of her college career, before Vincent drove home two runs with two-out double, extending their advantage to 6-0.

Louisiana put up another run in the top half of the third inning, when sophomore shortstop D.J. Sanders smashed a solo homer, her third of the year, to make it 7-0.

The Cajuns put the game completely away in the top half of the fourth inning, plating two runs, courtesy of a two-out, two-run single off the bat of Sanders, which widened the lead to 9-0.

UL added 3 insurance runs in the top half of the fifth inning, as they went on to the 12-run win.

For Louisiana, who outhit Alcorn St. at the plate, 12-0, Sanders led the way at the plate, going 1-for-2, along with a homer and 3 RBI's.

Trahan (4-1) picked-up the win in the circle for the Cajuns, tossing her second 5-inning no-hitter in as many days.

This one was a 5-inning perfect game, as Trahan retired all 15 batters she faced, striking out 9, giving her 19 K's in 10 innings in the tournament.

View the game box score.

With the victory, Louisiana improved to 13-1, while Alcorn St. fell to 4-8.

The Cajuns return to action next Saturday/Sunday, when they travel to Hattiesburg, Mississippi, to take on the Southern Miss Golden Eagles in a three-game, weekend, non-conference series.