Louisiana Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns Final '07 Rank: 26 45-17

The Ragin' Cajuns closed last season at 45-17, the second time in three seasons that they have had 45 or more victories. Despite winning 40 games and the regular season Sun Belt Conference title by a seven game margin, Louisiana was denied an opportunity to host a regional and were forced to travel to College Station. They won their first two games to earn a berth in the regional championship, but fell to host A&M in the next two to bring their season to a disappointing end.

Going into 2008, the strength of the Cajuns is their pitching staff. Their four top starters will return to Lafayette, led by senior Hunter Moody and junior Danny Farquhar. Moody, the 2006 Sun Belt Conference Pitcher of the Year, had another impressive season, finishing with a team-high eight wins and a 4.13 earned run average. Farquhar started the season as a closer, saving six games before moving into the starting role. He finished the season with a 6-3 record and a 3.08 ERA. More impressively, however, was his ability to take the bat out of opponent's hands. He recorded 115 strikeouts in 87.2 innings of work to rank ninth in the NCAA in strikeouts per nine innings. Senior Brent Solich came to Louisiana after two seasons at Manatee Community College and finished his first season as a Cajun with a 5-2 record, a 3.21 ERA and struck 63 batters in 73 innings. Another senior coming back to campus is Buddy Glass. Despite a steady 7-5 record and 3.41 ERA, Glass will be looking to regain his '06 form when he finished 8-3 and ranked 23rd nationally with a 2.17 ERA.

The Cajuns will miss catcher Jonathan Lucroy and first baseman Jefferies Tatford who were selected in the third and fifteenth rounds, respectively, of last year's draft. However another backstop, junior Scott Hawkins, will be bringing his bat back to UL along with a pair of senior JC transfer outfielders, Nolan Gisclair and Josh Logan. Hawkins batted .344 with 16 home runs and will be expected to fill not just Lucroy's place behind the plate, but in the heart of the order as well. Gisclair was the Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year after taking a playing two seasons at Delgado Junior College. He hit .348 and was second on the team with 78 hits with 27 extra base hits, including 10 doubles, four triples and 13 home runs. Logan played two seasons at Copiah-Lincoln Junior College before becoming a Cajun. He hit .355 wearing the Vermilion and White of Louisiana and led the team with 19 stolen bases.

The Cajuns will be the favorite to repeat as champions in an increasingly competitive Sun Belt Conference which placed three teams in last season's national tournament (New Orleans and Troy were the other two). If head coach Tony Robichaux can continue to gel and stimulate this spicy group from the South, look for the Cajuns to be cooking in Omaha next spring.