UL Softball Falls To LSU In Baton Rouge Regional
The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns will have to make their way through the elimination bracket to return to Championship Sunday of an NCAA Regional.
15th-ranked Louisiana, the number two-seed, fell to the host school, the top-seeded and number seven National Seed LSU Tigers, 10-3, on the second day of the Baton Rouge Regional on Saturday in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
UL now needs to come back and win an elimination game on Saturday night to advance into the Regional finals for the 13th-consecutive year, excluding 2020, which was canceled due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
The Cajuns are now 1-1 in the Baton Rouge Regional, after defeating George Washington in 11 on Friday, 1-0.
Louisiana, who is seeking its 12th-Regional title, dropped to 79-62, all-time, in NCAA Tournament play, including a 67-39 record in Regionals.
UL, who is now 33-12 in Regional play since 2008, is gunning for its 8th-Regional title in that same time frame.
The Cajuns are also in search of their 8th Super Regional appearance.
Louisiana is making its 22nd-consecutive NCAA Regional appearance, including its 30th in the last 31 years.
The Cajuns, who have still won 27 of their last 32 games, reached the 40-win mark this year for the 22nd-consecutive season.
Louisiana got on the scoreboard first, scoring one run in the top half of the first inning when Ciara Bryan began the game with a solo home run, her 6th of the season, which gave them a quick 1-0 lead.
LSU responded in a big way in the bottom half of the first inning, scoring five runs on seven hits, including a two-run double by Amanda Doyle, as well as a three-run home run off the bat of Raeleen Gutierrez, her third of the season, which gave them a 5-1 advantage.
The Cajuns trimmed the deficit in the top half of the second inning when Kendall Talley began the frame with a single before later scoring on a fielder's choice groundball off the bat of Bailey Curry, which cut the lead to 5-2.
The Tigers pushed across two more runs in the bottom half of the second inning, courtesy of a two-run two-out double, which widened their lead to 7-2.
LSU pushed across another run in the bottom half of the 4th inning when Gutierrez doubled before later scoring on a single off the bat of Morgan Cummins, which made it 8-2.
Louisiana drew a little closer in the top half of the 5th inning when Justice Milz drove home a run with a run-scoring double, which made the score 8-3.
The Tigers added two insurance runs in the bottom half of the 6th inning, including a solo homer by Sunseri, her 8th of the season, which made it 10-3.
That was more than enough for the Tigers, as they went on to the 10-3 triumph.
LSU, who outhit Louisiana, 17-8, was led at the plate by Gutierrez and Sunseri, who both collected three hits and a homer apiece, while Aliyah Andrews went 3-for-5 with two runs scored.
In losing cause or UL, Bryan homered.
Shelbi Sunseri (11-6) recorded the win inside the circle for the Tigers, allowing three runs on 8 hits over 7.0 innings.
Summer Ellyson (24-7) suffered the loss for the Cajuns, allowing five runs on seven hits over two-thirds of an inning.
With the victory, LSU improved to 34-19, overall, while Louisiana fell to 45-11.
Louisiana returns to action on Saturday evening when they take on either McNeese St. or George Washington in an elimination contest.