A lot has changed for the UL softball team over the last two weekends.
The Ragin' Cajuns have gone from struggling to qualify for the Sun Belt Tournament to being in the hunt to receive a first-round bye in May 6-9 event at Lamson Park.
But first, coach Alyson Habetz's team must figure out a way to win its first road series of the Sun Belt season at South Alabama in Mobile starting at 6 p.m. Thursday.
The Cajuns are 2-15 in road games this season.
"There's really no rhyme or reason to the whole not playing well on the road," Habetz said. "I think our pitching and defense is much better than it has been on the road, so I'm looking forward to it actually. I think we're going to finish it strong. We just have to play it one game at a time and hopefully good things will happen."
This critical series is filled with storylines, and UL's dismal road record is just one of them. For starters, there's the Sun Belt standings.
The Cajuns (27-24, 10-11 Sun Belt) are in seventh place, one game behind James Madison (25-22, 11-10) and South Alabama (27-24, 11-10). The top six teams get a first-round bye in the tournament.
It's far too complicated to list all the potential two-, three- and four-way tie scenarios possible after this weekend's games. After all, Troy (31-19, 9-12) is still in the mix and plays at slumping Coastal Carolina (22-29, 6-15) this weekend.
It's pretty clear that UL's prospects increase with each win it can get this weekend in Mobile.
James Madison is playing at first-place Marshall (36-14, 16-5), which is currently tied with UL-Monroe (34-19, 16-5) in the battle for the No. 1 seed.
The next angle is the huge elephant in the room.ย
The Cajuns have defeated South Alabama 29 straight times. UL is 51-11 all-time against the Jaguars and has won 15 of the 18 series.
Ryley Harrison (13-11, 2.68 ERA, 167 IP, 155 K) is the clear-cut ace pitcher for the Jaguars.
"She's a good, tall pitcher who throws 68ish and she can throw it," Habetz said. "We have to be ready to hit. We have to get upย there with a plan and put the bat on the ball. I think if we put the ball in play, we can make things happen."
The South Alabama defense has allowed 37 unearned runs this season, so the Cajuns are hoping their offense can take advantage of that deficiency.
"On paper, if we put the ball in play and make things happen, I think we can create some chaos for them," Habetz said. "But again, we're going to get everybody's best game. That's what we're expecting. We just have to play our game and stay consistent."
On the other side, the Cajuns seem to finally be set on a weekend pitching rotation with Sage Hoover (10-10, 4.16 ERA, 117โ
IP, 75 K) and Bethaney Noble (9-4, 3.00 ERA, 98 IP, 46 K).
"I think they both have gone through the ups and downs of a season," Habetz said. "Ultimately, the goal is to finish strong, and I think they both figured out in their way how to pitch well and how to get the best out of themselves."
The Cajuns are coming off of a home sweep of Coastal Carolina and beating first-place Marshall two of three last weekend.
"I think our hitters realize we have pitchers who can stop the bleeding and a defense that can stop the bleeding," Habetz said. "I think that alone gives us confidence going into any game."