Nationally-Ranked Louisiana and Coastal Carolina SBC Baseball Preview

CONWAY, S.C. – No. 14-ranked Louisiana opens the second half of its Sun Belt Conference Baseball schedule on Friday when it faces No. 19-ranked Coastal Carolina in a three-game series at Springs Brooks Stadium.

First pitch for Friday’s opener is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT. The series continues on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT and concludes on Sunday at noon CT. All three games will be streamed live on ESPN+ with fans able to listen to all games in the Lafayette area on KPEL-FM (96.5) and worldwide on the Varsity Network app.

Louisiana (30-9, 14-1 SBC) swept a pair of midweek games against in-state opponent Southeastern Louisiana, opening with a 15-8 win in Hammond on Tuesday before claiming an 8-1 decision at M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field at Russo Park on Wednesday.

The Ragin’ Cajuns, who have won their past five games and 21 of their last 22, swept a three-game series at home last weekend against Marshall. Louisiana limited the Thundering Herd to one run over the course of the series and marking the second time this season in holding an SBC opponent to one run.

Trey LaFleur (.402-6-23), Kyle DeBarge (.342-12-39), Conor Higgs (.325-7-20), Caleb Stelly (.305-1-23) and Duncan Pastore (.300-2-24) lead a Louisiana offense which is hitting .297 as a team to rank second among SBC schools.

Louisiana will send southpaw Andrew Herrmann (4-1, 1.91 ERA) to the mound in Friday’s opener with freshman left-hander Chase Morgan (4-1, 1.90 ERA) scheduled to pitch on Saturday. The Ragin’ Cajuns will wrap up the series on Sunday with right-hander Carson Fluno (2-0, 2.20 ERA) taking the mound.

Coastal Carolina (26-11, 9-6 SBC) enters the weekend ranked sixth nationally in scoring at 9.8 runs per game and leads the SBC in both batting average (.302) and home runs (61). Five regulars in the lineup average .300 or above led by Sam Antonacci (.402-2-31).

Blake Barthol (.343-14-42), Derek Bender (.338-5-40), Graham Brown (.320-9-42) and Jake Books (.317-7-31) are next in hitting for the Chanticleers.

Right-hander Riley Eikhoff (4-0, 5.44 ERA) will start in Friday’s opener for CCU with freshman righty Cameron Flukey (2-1, 4.36 ERA) earning the start on Saturday. Sunday’s starter is to be determined.

Tickets for Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Baseball are available for purchase on-line at RaginCajuns.com/tickets or by calling the Louisiana Athletics Ticket Office at (337) 482-GoUL (4685).

Group tickets are also available by contacting the Louisiana Athletics Ticket Office by email at Tickets@louisiana.edu.

Fans are encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.

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