With a pair of runners on base and no outs in the top of the sixth inning, Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns senior Shelbi Redfearn gave the Cajuns a three-run lead with one swing of the bat, snapping a 1-1 tie and helping lead the Cajuns their 12th Sun Belt Tournament crown with a 4-1 victory over the South Alabama Jaguars on Saturday at Lamson Park.
The Cajuns (44-8-1) earned a berth to their 24th NCAA Tournament, with their first tournament title since 2011. The Cajuns will now await their placement in the 2014 NCAA Softball Tournament, which will be announced Sunday, March 11 at 9 p.m. on ESPNU. The Cajuns will be making their 16th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Regionals, dating back to 1999.
Junior pitcher Christina Hamilton (24-2) earned the win for the Cajuns, allowing one run on six hits and one walk.
Freshman Haley Hayden put a run on the board for the Cajuns in the first inning, when she belted her 15th home run of the season off USA starter Farish Beard (21-6) giving Louisiana a 1-0 lead. The Cajuns threatened again in the first inning, loading the bases, but couldn't get anything else across.
South Alabama responded in their half of the first, playing as the home team. Blair Johnson hit a two-out double and Chloe Rathburn drove her in with a double in the next at-bat, knotting the score at one.
The Cajuns got two more runners on base in the second with a walk to Kelsey Vincent and a single by Natalie Fernandez, but Beard responded with a strikeout and a flyout to end the inning.
The Jaguars placed two runners on base with one out in the second, but Fernandez got the Cajuns out of the inning with a dazzling 4-3 double play, grabbing a hard grounder by USA's Stephanie Pilkington and getting to the bag in time for a quick throw to first base to end the inning.
Both pitchers settled in after that, to combine for four scoreless innings.
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