American college softball season
The 2017 Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns softball team represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the 2017 NCAA Division I softball season . The Ragin' Cajuns play their home games at Lamson Park . This would also be the last season that a Lotief would be the head coach of the Ragin' Cajuns. This came after the university fired Lotief, both Malveauxs, Director of Operations Kelsey Vincent, and one manager, Sara Corbello on November 1, 2017 due to allegations of physically and verbal abuse to his players and for laying a finger on the university's strength coach. The Ragin' Cajuns softball players strongly disagreed with his firing. Several even transferred schools with most making a pack that "if they couldn't play with Lotief, they wouldn't play at all." However, most of the team remained and competed in 2018. Nearly a year later, Lotief filed a lawsuit against the university claiming that they fired him over retaliation from Lotief claiming that the university violated NCAA Title IX laws which state that women's sports must be treated the same as their male counterpart. In the lawsuit, Lotief called University President Joseph E. Savoie, Athletic Director Bryan Maggard, and Assistant Athletic Director Dr. Jessica Leger as the defendants.[ 3] [ 4]
Preseason
Sun Belt Conference Coaches Poll The Sun Belt Conference Coaches Poll was released on January 30, 2017. Louisiana-Lafayette was picked to finish first in the Sun Belt Conference with 100 votes and 10 first place votes, every first place vote available.[ 5]
Coaches poll
Predicted finish
Team
Votes (1st place)
1
Louisiana-Lafayette
100 (10)
2
Texas State
87
3
South Alabama
80
4
Georgia State
68
5
Georgia Southern
55
6
Troy
44
7
UT Arlington
41
8
Coastal Carolina
32
9
Louisiana-Monroe
30
10
Appalachian State
13
Preseason All-Sun Belt team Ivie Drake (GSU, JR, Catcher)
Mandy Blackwell (GSU, SR, 1st Base)
Haley Hayden (ULL, SR, 2nd Base)
Kaleigh Todd (USA, JR, 2nd Base)
Sandra Mendoza (UTA, JR, 2nd Base)
DJ Sanders (ULL, JR, Shortstop)
Corrina Liscano (TXST, SR, 3rd Base)
Taty Forbes (CCU, SO, Outfield)
Aleah Craighton (ULL, JR, Outfield)
Rochelle Roberts (ULM, SR, Outfield)
Megan Litumbe (GSU, R-JR, Designated Player)
Dixie Raley (GASO, SO, Pitcher)
Alex Stewart (ULL, SR, Pitcher)
Devin Brown (USA, JR, Pitcher)
Randi Rupp (TXST, JR, Pitcher)
Preseason Player of the Year Aleah Craighton (ULL, JR, Outfield)'
Roster
2017 Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns roster
Pitchers
5 Kirsten Pruett - Freshman
9 Summer Ellyson - Redshirt Freshman
10 Alison Deville - Sophomore
11 Kylee Jo Trahan - Junior
12 Makenzie Carpenter - Freshman
16 Alyssa Denham - Freshman
18 Alex Stewart - Senior
22 Samantha Bradley - Freshman
24 Macey Smith - Senior
32 Victoria Brown - Senior
Catchers
19 Lexie Comeaux - Sophomore
23 Brittany Nollkamper - Sophomore
26 Allie Medlin - Sophomore
33 Shae Schreckengost - Freshman
34 Miranda Grotenhuis - Sophomore
Designated Players
99 Daniella Chavez - Junior
Infielders
4 Kassidy Zeringue - Senior
7 Alaina Guarino - Redshirt Freshman
31 Corin Voinche - Senior
35 Haley Hayden - Senior
37 DJ Sanders - Junior
39 Kara Gremillion - Sophomore
44 Kourtney Gremillion - Freshman
Outfielders
1 Chelsea Lotief - Redshirt Freshman
2 Jaime Landry - Sophomore
3 Taylor Terrio - Senior
6 Shannon Theriot - Redshirt Freshman
8 Aleah Craighton - Junior
15 Aeriyl Mass - Freshman
20 Kendall Smith - Senior
27 Sarah Arceneaux - Senior
29 Beth Ashley - Redshirt Freshman
30 Kelly Martinez - Junior
42 Abby Sterling - Sophomore
Coaching staff
2017 Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns coaching staff
Michael Lotief – Head coach – 17th year
Chris Malveaux – Assistant head coach – 5th year
Kate Malveaux – Assistant head coach & video director – 1st year
Kelsey Vincent – Director of operations (pre-firing) – 1st year
Denee Simon – Director of operations (post-firing) – 1st year
Shellie Landry – Manager
Schedule and results
Legend
Louisiana-Lafayette win
Louisiana-Lafayette loss
Postponement/Cancellation
Bold
Louisiana team member
2017 Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns Softball Game Log
Regular season (42-6)
February (11-4)
Date
Opponent
Rank
Site/stadium
Score
Win
Loss
Save
TV
Attendance
Overall record
SBC record
Louisiana Classics
Feb. 10
DePaul
No. 11
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 9-1 (6 inn)
Stewart (1-0)
Landwehrmier (0-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1-0
Feb. 10
Iowa State
No. 11
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 9-1
Denham (1-0)
Sanders (0-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,022
2-0
Feb. 11
DePaul
No. 11
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 4-3
Stewart (2-0)
Garcia (1-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
3-0
Feb. 11
Ball State
No. 11
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 7-4
Smith (1-0)
Miles (0-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,237
4-0
Feb. 12
Southern Miss
No. 11
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
L 3-4
Johnson (1-0)
Denham (1-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
4-1
Feb. 12
Southern Miss
No. 11
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
L 3-5
Crowson (3-0)
Stewart (2-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,175
4-2
Feb. 18
No. 4 Alabama
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
L 0-3
Osorio (4-0)
Smith (1-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
4-3
Feb. 18
No. 4 Alabama
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 11-2 (6 inn)
Stewart (3-1)
Moore (1-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,210
5-3
Feb. 19
No. 4 Alabama
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 7-0
Denham (2-1)
Osorio (4-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,079
6-3
Mardi Gras Invitational
Feb. 23
Drake
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 9-3
Denham (3-1)
Newman (5-3)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
7-3
Feb. 23
Bowling Green
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 14-2 (5 inn)
Stewart (4-1)
Combs (1-2)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,024
8-3
Feb. 24
Dartmouth
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 12-5
Ellyson (1-0)
Ethridge (0-1)
Smith (1)
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,917
9-3
Feb. 25
Maryland
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 3-0
Denham (4-1)
Martin (1-3)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,939
10-3
Feb. 26
Bradley
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
L 1-2
Hull (5-1)
Stewart (4-2)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
10-4
Feb. 26
Mississippi Valley State
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 19-0 (5 inn)
Smith (2-1)
Ellis (0-1)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,010
11-4
March (12-1)
Date
Opponent
Rank
Site/stadium
Score
Win
Loss
Save
TV
Attendance
Overall record
SBC record
Ragin' Cajuns Invitational
Mar. 3
Alcorn State
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 8-0 (5 inn)
Smith (3-1)
Castillo (1-3)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
12-4
Mar. 3
North Dakota State
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 8-2
Denham (5-1)
Sertic (3-9)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,841
13-4
Mar. 4
North Dakota State
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 15-0 (5 inn)
Stewart (5-2)
Leddy (1-4)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
14-4
Mar. 4
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 8-0 (6 inn)
Stewart (6-2)
Carter (4-6)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,915
15-4
Mar. 5
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 18-0 (5 inn)
Denham (6-1)
Carter (4-7)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
16-4
Mar. 5
Alcorn State
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 14-4 (5 inn)
Stewart (7-2)
Dorsey (0-4)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,799
17-4
Mar. 9
No. 15 Baylor
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
L 4-5
Selman (11-2)
Stewart (7-3)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,861
17-5
Mar. 11
at Appalachian State
No. 18
Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium • Boone, NC
Series cancelled due to inclement weather
Mar. 11
at Appalachian State
No. 18
Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium • Boone, NC
Series cancelled due to inclement weather
Mar. 12
at Appalachian State
No. 18
Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium • Boone, NC
Series cancelled due to inclement weather
Mar. 18
UT Arlington
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 6-5
Stewart (8-3)
Clakley (11-6)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
18-5
1-0
Mar. 18
UT Arlington
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 6-2
Denham (7-1)
Denson (1-6)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,061
19-5
2-0
Mar. 19
UT Arlington
No. 18
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 11-2 (6 inn)
Denham (8-1)
Clakley (11-7)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,908
20-5
3-0
Mar. 25
at South Alabama
No. 17
Jaguar Field • Mobile, AL
W 8-3
Denham (9-1)
Brown (9-5)
None
None
21-5
4-0
Mar. 25
at South Alabama
No. 17
Jaguar Field • Mobile, AL
W 4-2
Stewart (9-3)
Vicknair (9-5)
None
None
687
22-5
5-0
Mar. 26
at South Alabama
No. 17
Jaguar Field • Mobile, AL
W 9-4
Stewart (10-3)
Brown (9-6)
None
None
591
23-5
6-0
April (16-1)
Date
Opponent
Rank
Site/stadium
Score
Win
Loss
Save
TV
Attendance
Overall record
SBC record
Apr. 1
at Georgia Southern
No. 17
Eagles Field at GS Softball Complex • Statesboro, GA
W 15-0 (5 inn)
Stewart (11-3)
Raley (9-12)
None
None
24-5
7-0
Apr. 1
at Georgia Southern
No. 17
Eagles Field at GS Softball Complex • Statesboro, GA
W 10-2 (6 inn)
Denham (10-1)
Camp (5-6)
None
None
137
25-5
8-0
Apr. 2
at Georgia Southern
No. 17
Eagles Field at GS Softball Complex • Statesboro, GA
W 6-2
Stewart (12-3)
Raley (9-13)
Denham (1)
None
126
26-5
9-0
Apr. 8
Troy
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 3-1
Denham (11-1)
Graves (7-6)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
27-5
10-0
Apr. 8
Troy
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 11-0 (5 inn)
Stewart (13-3)
Willis (1-2)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,088
28-5
11-0
Apr. 9
Troy
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 11-0 (5 inn)
Stewart (14-3)
Rigney-Brown (6-13)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,474
29-5
12-0
Apr. 11
Southeastern Louisiana
No. 17
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 13-5 (5 inn)
Denham (12-1)
VanHemelryck (0-3)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,865
30-5
Apr. 14
at Texas State
No. 17
Bobcat Softball Stadium • San Marcos, TX
W 8-1
Denham (13-1)
Rupp (20-6)
None
None
31-5
13-0
Apr. 14
at Texas State
No. 17
Bobcat Softball Stadium • San Marcos, TX
W 12-4 (6 inn)
Stewart (15-3)
Williams (5-3)
None
None
1,013
32-5
14-0
Apr. 15
at Texas State
No. 17
Bobcat Softball Stadium • San Marcos, TX
L 1-2 (8 inn)
Williams (6-3)
Denham (13-2)
None
None
784
32-6
14-1
Apr. 19
at No. 4 Texas A&M
No. 17
Aggie Softball Complex • College Station, TX
W 11-9
Denham (14-2)
Show (14-3)
None
SEC Network +
953
33-6
Apr. 22
Georgia State
No. 17
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 19-4 (5 inn)
Smith (4-1)
Worsham (4-2)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
34-6
15-1
Apr. 22
Georgia State
No. 17
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 7-1
Stewart (16-3)
Jennings (14-9)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,740
35-6
16-1
Apr. 23
Georgia State
No. 17
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 14-6 (5 inn)
Stewart (17-3)
Jennings (14-10)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
2,058
36-6
17-1
Apr. 29
Coastal Carolina
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 9-0 (5 inn)
Stewart (18-3)
Rahach (12-8)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
37-6
18-1
Apr. 29
Coastal Carolina
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 13-4 (5 inn)
Stewart (19-3)
Guillette (11-9)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,750
38-6
19-1
Apr. 30
Coastal Carolina
No. 16
Lamson Park • Lafayette, LA
W 8-0 (5 inn)
Stewart (20-3)
Rahach (12-9)
None
Ragin' Cajuns Digital Network
1,725
39-6
20-1
May (3-0)
Date
Opponent
Rank
Site/stadium
Score
Win
Loss
Save
TV
Attendance
Overall record
SBC record
May 6
at Louisiana-Monroe
No. 15
Geo-Surfaces Field at the ULM Softball Complex • Monroe, LA
W 4-0
Stewart (21-3)
Porter (6-6)
None
None
40-6
21-1
May 6
at Louisiana-Monroe
No. 15
Geo-Surfaces Field at the ULM Softball Complex • Monroe, LA
W 6-5
Denham (15-2)
Wader (1-2)
Stewart (1)
None
271
41-6
22-1
May 7
at Louisiana-Monroe
No. 15
Geo-Surfaces Field at the ULM Softball Complex • Monroe, LA
W 8-0 (6 inn)
Stewart (22-3)
Coyne (16-13)
None
None
187
42-6
23-1
Post-Season (5-2)
SBC tournament (3-0)
Date
Opponent
Seed/rank
Site/stadium
Score
Win
Loss
Save
TV
Attendance
Overall record
SBC record
May 11
vs. South Alabama (Quarterfinals)
No. 14
Troy Softball Complex • Troy, AL
W 6-0
Stewart (23-3)
Vicknair (14-11)
None
ESPN3
476
43-6
May 12
vs. Texas State (Semifinals)
No. 14
Troy Softball Complex • Troy, AL
W 5-2
Stewart (43-3)
Vicknair (14-11)
None
ESPN3
570
44-6
May 13
vs. Texas State (Championship)
No. 14
Troy Softball Complex • Troy, AL
W 12-0 (5 inn)
Stewart (25-3)
Williams (6-4)
None
ESPN3
679
45-6
NCAA tournament (2-2)
Date
Opponent
Seed/rank
Site/stadium
Score
Win
Loss
Save
TV
Attendance
Overall record
SBC record
Baton Rouge Regionals
May 19
vs. McNeese State
No. 14
Tiger Park • Baton Rouge, LA
W 6-0
Stewart (26-3)
Corbello (11-4)
None
ESPN3
1,993
46-6
May 20
vs. No. 18 LSU
No. 14
Tiger Park • Baton Rouge, LA
W 4-2
Stewart (27-3)
Walljasper (16-5)
None
ESPN3
2,358
47-6
May 21
vs. No. 18 LSU
No. 14
Tiger Park • Baton Rouge, LA
L 1-6
Hoover (13-6)
Stewart (27-4)
None
ESPN3
1,997
47-7
May 22
vs. No. 18 LSU
No. 14
Tiger Park • Baton Rouge, LA
L 1-5
Hoover (14-6)
Stewart (27-5)
None
ESPN3
2,169
47-8
Schedule Source: [ 6]
Baton Rouge Regional
Baton Rouge Regional Teams
(1) LSU Tigers
(2) Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns
(3) McNeese State Cowgirls
(4) Fairfield Stags
First Round Semi-Finals Finals 13 LSU 2 Fairfield 1 13 LSU 2 Louisiana-Lafayette 4 McNeese State 0 Louisiana-Lafayette 6 Louisiana-Lafayette 1 1 13 LSU 6 5 Lower round 1 Lower final 13 LSU 10 Fairfield 2 McNeese State 1 McNeese State 6
References
Venues Coaches Seasons Women's College World Series appearances in italics