April 9, 2004

LAFAYETTE-The Cajuns went deep four times and Kevin Ardoin pitched a dandy as the Ragin’ Cajuns rumbled to an 11-1 win over conference foes the New Mexico State Aggies. The Cajuns hit consecutive homeruns in the third after Phillip Hawke set the tone early with a three-run jack in the bottom of the first.

Hawke drove in the first three runs of the game in the opening stanza with a line drive that left the yard in a hurry. Hawke’s eighth homer on the year came after Justin Merendino worked his way on with a walk and took second on a Josh Landry single to the left side to start things for Louisiana.

Landry and Justin Bourque led off the bottom of the third with back-to-back homeruns to claim a 5-1 lead for the home team and put the game out of reach for the Aggies.

Kevin Ardoin tossed a complete game being touched up for only one run while scattering seven hits through the nine innings. Ardoin (4-1) cruised helping the Cajuns to improving to 5-3 overall in Sun Belt action.

The loss went to NMSU’s Dustin Cameron who gave up five runs on six hits through the first seven innings of baseball. Cameron (1-2)’s loss came as the tenth on the season for the Aggies.

Ardoin sat the Aggies 1-2-3 in the top of the first.

Adrian Ballesteros homered in the top of the second to pull the Aggies to with two.

Ardoin retired the Aggies’ side in order in the top of the third.

New Mexico State threatened in the top of the fourth when Billy Becher dropped a one-out double into left before Ballesteros walked putting runners on first and second now with two gone. Ardoin employed his strikeout pitch to get the third out in the inning swinging away.

Cameron got one strikeout helping to sit the Cajuns side in order in the bottom of the fifth.

Ardoin followed suit seating the Aggies in order in the top of the next frame.

New Mexico State loaded the bases but couldn’t score in the seventh. Mark Aranda singled to right before Emory Davies walked on a full a count. Gavin Monjaras hit a bloop that fell for a single to load the bases. Ardoin pitched out of the jam getting a strikeout and a groundout up the middle to end the inning.

The Cajuns added six runs in the eighth highlighted by Merendino’s sixth homerun of the season. The two-run shot over the leftfield wall ended any doubt regarding the outcome of the game.

These same two clubs will play again tomorrow at 2:05 p.m. before the series wraps up on Easter Sunday with a 1:00 p.m. matinee.

UL Sports Information Release

The Cajuns finally get a sweep in a series and are really looking good now, I think we can make it far into the CWS as long as we play this way and win the SBC.