Louisiana baseball rallies to beat Coastal Carolina, keep season alive at Sun Belt Tourney
Importance of taking advantage of opportunities is greatly magnified when the deficit is multiple runs. How teams performs make or breaks them.
Staring down elimination and an end of its season, trailing No. 7 Coastal Carolina, 3-0, Louisiana baseball stepped up and delivered when it needed to most.
The Ragin' Cajuns scored four runs in the fifth to take the lead in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament semifinal and it did it behind efficient hitting with runners on and with runners in scoring position. Four consecutive UL batters generated hits to help lift Louisiana to the victory, 7-3, at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery, Alabama, on Saturday afternoon.
UL (39-21) couldn't have produced at a better time as it's NCAA Tournament hopes remain on it continuing its run through the conference tourney.
Cajuns and Chants will meet in an elimination game at 7:30 p.m. Saturday night.
CAJUNS TAKE DOWN TEXAS STATE Louisiana baseball extends season, takes out Texas State at Sun Belt Conference Tournament
UL FALL TO COASTAL CAROLINA Louisiana baseball falls to Coastal Carolina in Sun Belt Conference Tournament
LOUISIANA DROPS SEASON FINALE AT USM Louisiana baseball drops wild one in regular season finale at Southern Miss
Louisiana baseball stays hot on offense with runners on base
In last night's win over Texas State, Louisiana put together its best marks of the league tournament in average with runners on and runners in scoring position.
The Ragin' Cajuns not only built off that performance, they improved on the numbers, going .500 with runners on and hit a salty .714 with runners on scoring position. Against Coastal, most teams aren't going get many chances, and it's imperative to generate runs when those times arise.
Led by sophomore Kyle DeBarge with three hits, leadoff Max Marusak with his two RBIs and C.J. Willis, who smashed the eighth-inning, two-run homer, Louisiana capitalized when the Chants gave it a window.
Coastal Carolina's Blake Barthol is a headache for Cajuns
The Chants' lineup is loaded with hard outs, guys that can crush the ball and make a pitcher's life a nightmare.
Barthol has been just that for the entire Cajuns staff this season. In four games against UL, he went 8-for-14 with eight RBIs and three runs. In the two conference tourney meetings, Barthol batted in three of the nine runs Coastal scored against the Cajuns.
The timing of his hits hurt UL as well, as he extended what were small deficits into more difficult gaps.
Ragin' Cajuns get clutch performance from bullpen
Louisiana starter Cooper Rawls, getting his fifth start of the season, was chased in the third after the Chanticleers pushed the game's first three runs across and were threatening again. But Steven Cash, Jerry Couch and Blake Marshall followed up with a combined six-plus innings without giving up a run.
Cory Diaz covers the LSU Tigers and Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his Tigers and Cajuns coverage on Twitter: @ByCoryDiaz. Got questions regarding LSU/UL athletics? Send them to Cory Diaz at bdiaz@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Louisiana baseball rallies to down Coastal Carolina at Sun Belt Tourney
