LAFAYETTE – The Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Softball team will start Year No. 6 of the Gerry Glasco era among the group of teams that are ranked in the D1Softball Top 25 preseason rankings.
D1Softball released its first ranking for the upcoming 2023 collegiate softball season on Tuesday (Jan. 17, 2023). Louisiana was listed at No. 20 in the poll.
The Ragin' Cajuns (47-13, 23-4 Sun Belt in 2022), the three-time defending Sun Belt Conference regular season and tournament champions, have appeared in every edition of the organization's preseason rankings.
D1Softball's Top 25 rankings are headlined by lead writers Rhiannon Potkey and Tara Henry.
It's the 20th consecutive season in which Louisiana will be preseason ranked by at least one national media outlet. The program has been preseason ranked by the NFCA each year since 2004, and listed in every edition of the ESPN.com/USA Softball preseason poll which began in 2006.
Louisiana, an NCAA Tournament participant each year since 1999, begins the 2023 season at Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park from Friday-Sunday, February 10-12 hosting the 37th Annual Louisiana Classics.
The official season opener is set for Friday, Feb. 10 at 4:30 p.m., when the Ragin’ Cajuns begin play in the Louisiana Classics with a matchup against Lafayette College.
To view the complete 2022 season schedule, click here [ragincajuns.com].
There are nine (9) teams listed in the 2023 D1Softball Preseason Top 25 that appear on the Ragin’ Cajuns’ season schedule: No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Oklahoma State, No. 4 Florida State, No. 5 Florida, No. 8 Arkansas, No. 14 Texas, No. 15 UCF, No. 17 LSU and No. 25 Ole Miss.
Louisiana is coming off the program's 23rd consecutive 40-win season and NCAA Tournament appearance. In the 2022 season, the Ragin' Cajuns placed a conference-high nine players on the All-Sun Belt team, produced five NFCA All-Central Region performers, recorded a program-record .351 season batting average and generated the most home runs in Glasco's tenure (82).
ABOUT LOUISIANA
As he heads into Year No. 6 guiding the Ragin' Cajuns, Gerry Glasco aims to continue molding his influx of young talent - the bulk from the No. 1 recruiting class that debuted in Spring 2022 - into a strong and durable national postseason contender.
Last spring, Glasco directed and mentored a lineup that featured at most two upperclassmen and as many as five freshmen, and developed them into a championship and NCAA Tournament team. Despite the youthfulness, Louisiana advanced to Championship Sunday of the NCAA Clemson Regional.
Fast forward to now, and the youthful Ragin' Cajuns group is a year wiser and still has many other veteran pieces in place to form a dangerous combination.
The three key pieces to last season's pitching success remain intact (Meghan Schorman, Kandra Lamb and Sam Landry) and all but two starters in the lineup return headlined by leading home run hitters Alexa Langeliers and Karly Heath (13 each), leading run-producer Stormy Kotzelnick (51 RBI), top hitter for average Jourdyn Campbell (.392) and stolen-bases leader Maddie Hayden (28-of-34).
SEASON TICKETS ON SALE
Season tickets are currently on sale and can be purchased by phone at (337) 265-2104, online at RaginCajuns.com using Account Manager, or by visiting the Cajundome Box Office in-person Monday-Friday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and extended hours during Ragin' Cajuns basketball events. A minimum $50 donation to the RCAF Annual Fund is required to purchase Louisiana Softball season tickets.
FOLLOW THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Follow the Ragin' Cajuns on Facebook (/RaginCajunsSB [facebook.com]), Twitter (@RaginCajunsSB [twitter.com]) and Instagram (@Louisiana.SB [instagram.com]) to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Louisiana Softball.
Fans are also encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here [apps.apple.com] for iOS/Apple platforms and here [play.google.com] for Android platforms.
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