LAFAYETTE – 21st-ranked Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Softball struck first in the series finale with No. 24 Texas State and led the entirety of the contest in a 3-1 win Monday afternoon at Lamson Park.
The Ragin’ Cajuns (28-11, 14-4 Sun Belt) quick start was led by Alissa Dalton and Brittany Rodriguez who singled to lead off the first inning, both stole a base and both scored for a quick 2-0 lead.
Summer Ellyson, who yielded a single run and just four hits, was provided an insurance run in the third inning. Kylee Jo Trahan faced the final two batters and retired both to lock up the win.
Louisiana picked up the series win over Texas State (31-10, 12-2 Sun Belt), extending the string of consecutive Sun Belt series wins to 43 dating back to March 2013.
UP NEXT
No. 21 Louisiana travels to Lake Charles on Wednesday for the final non-conference game of the regular season. The Ragin’ Cajuns and McNeese (30-15) are scheduled to play a 6 p.m. single game at Cowgirl Diamond.
Following Wednesday’s contest, the Ragin’ Cajuns return to Lamson Park for a Sun Belt series with Georgia Southern Saturday-Sunday, April 21-22.
LEADING THE RAGIN’ CAJUNS
Dalton was 3-for-3 at the plate, her first hit jumpstarting the run-scoring first inning for Louisiana.
Kara Gremillion and Lexie Comeaux had the key two-out hits in the third inning which padded the lead. Gremillion doubled and was brought home when Comeaux drove a sharp single up the left field line.
Ellyson added to her impressive series performance pitching 6-1/3 innings and allowing the lone run. That run was the only one she allowed in 13-1/3 innings of regulation play in the series.
Trahan earned her third save of the season, getting a strikeout and lineout while facing the tying run at the plate.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After Dalton and Rodriguez reached the base path in the first inning and worked their way into scoring position, Kara Gremillion bounced a grounder to shortstop and Kourtney Gremillion lifted a sacrifice fly to left field to bring them home.
Louisiana bounced back from a double play that Texas State turned in the third inning to pick up the insurance run. The Gremillion-Comeaux two-out hitting sequence pushed the lead to 3-0.
After the Bobcats picked a run up with a solo home run from Hailey MacKay in the fourth inning, Ellyson and Texas State’s Randi Rupp squared off the rest of the way.
The Bobcats made a push with a pair of singles in the sixth inning that placed runners at first and third. Ellyson induced a grounder back to her for the final out to preserve the lead.
NOTEWORTHY
– Alissa Dalton extended her season-and career-best hitting streak to 12 games and picked up her team-leading 16th multiple-hit game.
– Kourtney Gremillion’s sacrifice fly increased her season RBI total to 19, leaving her one shy of becoming the fifth Ragin’ Cajun to reach 20.
– Summer Ellyson reached five strikeouts for the ninth consecutive start. She held the opposition to one earned run or less for the 13th time in 20 starts.
– Alissa Dalton finished the series 6-for-10 at the plate, continuing the tremendous success she’s had in her debut season at Lamson Park. Dalton is now batting .453 at home this season.
– Kylee Jo Trahan made her eighth appearance since returning to full-time work on April 4 after resting with arm soreness. She has worked 19-1/3 innings and yielded just three runs (two earned) and 14 hits.
– Summer Ellyson and Kylee Jo Trahan teamed up to hold Texas State to 14 hits and a .179 average in the series.
– Louisiana hit .333 as a team in the series, raising the batting average in conference play to .307.
– The Ragin’ Cajuns 27 hits marked the most Texas State’s pitching staff has allowed in a Sun Belt Conference series this season.
– Louisiana won the regular season Sun Belt series from Texas State for the fifth time in as many meetings. The Ragin’ Cajuns increased their all-time series lead to 33-5 which includes a 12-3 mark in Sun Belt regular season games.