Feb. 26, 2005

Box Score

LAFAYETTE, La.-Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns won their eighth straight game to begin the season with a 10-1 victory over Marist College here Friday night at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field in game two of the Mardi Gras Ball Baseball Classic.

Louisiana-Lafayette (8-0) will host Miami University at 2 p.m. Saturday in game three of the Mardi Gras Ball Baseball Classic. Marist (0-1) will face Texas State in game four at 6 p.m.

Kevin Ardoin (3-0) earned his third win of the season, going seven complete innings. Ardoin allowed one run on five hits, while striking out a season-high nine batters. Junior Brandt Sanders relieved Ardoin in the eighth, providing an inning of effective relief. Ian Pecoraro came on in the ninth to shut down the Marist attack.

Marist's Scott Chambers (0-1) got the loss, going 5 2/3 innings. Chambers allowed five runs - two earned - on five hits, while striking out four batters.

With one out in the bottom of the third, Adam Massiatte singled to right field. John Coker's sacrifice bunt advanced Massiatte to second. Josh Landry singled through the right side, plating Massiatte to give the Cajuns a 1-0 advantage. Justin Merendino reached on a fielding error by first baseman Kevin Buck. Landry advanced to third on the play before Phillip Hawke flied out to end the inning.

Micah Cockrell hit his first home run of the season in the fourth to extend the Cajuns lead to 2-0.

In the sixth, Ardoin became the school's fifth all-time strikeout leader, when he struck out Marist's Andy Kiriakedes to lead off the inning.

After striking out Kiriakedes, Ardoin surrendered three straight hits, including Keith Brachold's RBI triple to right center that brought the Red Foxes to within one run, 2-1.

The Cajuns extended their lead to four with a three-run sixth inning. Merendino reached on an error by third baseman Pat Feeney and later advanced to second. After a Hawke walk, Merendino advanced to third on a John McCarthy fly out. Merendino scored on a Dallas Morris sacrifice fly to centerfield. Cockrell then plated Hawke with an RBI single up the middle. Jefferies Tatford's triple to right centerfield scored Cockrell, giving the Cajuns a 5-1 lead.

The Cajuns added four more runs in the seventh, increasing their lead to eight, 9-1. The Cajuns' first six batters of the inning each reached on base safely. Coker led off with a single up the middle and later advanced to second on a wild pitch. Landry then drew a walk. Merendino followed with a double to center field, plating Coker. Hawke's two RBI double scored Merendino, resulting in a 9-1 advantage. Tatford struck out, followed by a Massiatte fly out to end the inning.

Freshman Jonathan Lucroy added another run in the eighth for the Cajuns with a pinch-hit solo home run - his first career home run.

Cockrell led the Cajuns offensively, going 2-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBI. Coker went 2-for-4 from the plate. Eight different Cajuns batters registered a hit.

Brachold led Marist at the plate, going 2-for-4 with an RBI.