Championship Central
2014 Sun Belt Conference Championship Bracket
HIGHLIGHTS
UL LAFAYETTE PRESS CONFERENCE
SOUTH ALABAMA PRESS CONFERENCE
Lafayette, La. – The No. 1 seed UL Lafayette softball team defeated No. 2 seed South Alabama 4-1 to clinch the 12th Sun Belt Conference Softball tournament title in school history and earn the conference’s automatic bid to the 2014 NCAA Softball Championship on Saturday at Lamson Park.
The No. 1 seed and host Ragin’ Cajuns (43-8-1) won the softball tournament for the first time since 2011, denying a three-peat from South Alabama. The No. 22/23-ranked Jaguars fall to 40-12 on the season. South Alabama, with a RPI ranking of No. 21, awaits its fate in the 2014 NCAA Softball Tournament selection show on Sunday night beginning at 9 pm C.T. on ESPNU.
The No. 12-ranked UL Lafayette will make its 16th-consecutive appearance in the NCAA Softball Tournament and its 24th appearance overall. Of the 15 Sun Belt Conference softball tournaments, UL Lafayette has won 12 of them including four while hosting the tournament.
Junior Christina Hamilton led the way for the Ragin’ Cajuns, securing the final out via strikeout to clinch the win. Hamilton tossed seven innings and scattered six hits allowing one earned run to earn her 24th win of the season. South Alabama junior Farish Beard took the loss, pitching five innings and allowing four earned on six hits and striking out five.
Senior Shelbi Redfearn drove in the deciding runs by smacking a three-run home run to left field in the top of the sixth inning. Sophomores Samantha Walsh and Shellie Landry led off the inning with back-to-back singles into left field, on back-to-back pitches. Beard’s third pitch of the inning was driven into the left field bleachers by Redfearn and broke a 1-1 tie.
The No. 1 seed UL Lafayette, the designated visiting team at Lamson Park, got on the board in the top of the first to open the scoring. Ragin’ Cajuns freshman Hayley Hayden launched a 1-1 offering from Beard into the left field bleachers to give UL Lafayette the early 1-0 lead. It was Hayden’s 15th home run of the season and the sixth in the first inning.
The Jags fought right back in the bottom of the first as junior Blair Johnson doubled off the wall in left to give the Jags a two-out base runner in scoring position. Freshman Chloe Rathburn drilled the first pitch off the base of the wall in left field to score Johnson and tie the game at 1-1.
The game remained scoreless until the top of the sixth when Redfearn’s home run broke a deadlocked game and gave the Ragin’ Cajuns the edge at 4-1. South Alabama went scoreless in the bottom of the sixth and UL Lafayette went to bat in the top of the seventh before rain force a delay in the action. The game went into a one-hour rain delay before play resumed in the top of the seventh inning.
UL Lafayette swept the Sun Belt Conference regular-season and tournament titles in softball for the 10th time in program history.
2014 Sun Belt Conference Softball All-Tournament Team
Most Outstanding Player – Lexie Elkins, UL Lafayette
Christina Hamilton, UL Lafayette
Shelbi Redfearn, UL Lafayette
Samantha Walsh, UL Lafayette
Samantha Hamby, UL Monroe
Miyuki Navarrette, UL Monroe
Hannah Campbell, South Alabama
Emily Messer, South Alabama
Amanda Minahan, South Alabama
Olivia Watkins, WKU
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