The Coaches Who Built Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Softball

(LAFAYETTE, La.) - Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park in Lafayette didn't get its name by accident. According to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, it got it because one person showed up in 1981 with no budget, no uniforms, and no scholarships, and decided to build something anyway. What she built over the next 20 years became the foundation for everything that came after, 10 NCAA Tournament appearances, three Women's College World Series trips, and a 759-250 record that still stands as the best in program history.

A Legacy Passed Down the Right Way

When Girouard stepped away after the 2000 season, the program didn't skip a beat. Stefni Whitton Lotief had been a Ragin' Cajun as a player, the program's first All-American in 1989, and she came back to keep it going as head coach starting in 2001. Her husband Michael joined alongside her, and together they turned Lamson Park into one of the most feared stops in college softball. Three more Women's College World Series appearances. Sun Belt dominance that was almost unfair. When Stefni stepped out of the dugout in 2012, Michael carried it forward through 2017.

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New Voices, Same Standard

Gerry Glasco arrived in 2018 and picked up right where things left off, delivering four consecutive Sun Belt titles and keeping the NCAA Tournament streak alive year after year. Then in 2024, Alyson Habetz came home. A Crowley native who played right here at Lamson Park, spent 25 years winning at Alabama, and now carries the name forward.

Five coaches. One standard. Take a look.