LAFAYETTE, La. – University of South Alabama softball saw leads over No. 5 Louisiana-Lafayette turn into losses on Sunday, as the Jaguars were swept in a Sun Belt Conference twin bill at Lamson Park.
 
USA took a 2-0 lead in game one before ultimately falling, 3-2, and led by as much as four runs in the nightcap before allowing an eight-run inning to carry the hosts to a 10-6 win.
 
"We had a chance to win both of those games, but we didn't finish," said USA head coach Becky Clark. "It's conference season, so it's time for us to compete and time for us to go, and that's it. We're getting healthy, and as we continue to get those pieces back, things will start to heat up for us some more."
 
South Alabama fell to 10-10 on the year and has now lost four games in a row for the first time since the 2011 season. The Jaguars will look to get back on track this Wednesday when they travel to Southern Miss for a 6 p.m. tilt. USA hosts Louisiana-Monroe in league series next weekend.
 
Devin Brown struck out 10 Ragin' Cajun batters in game one, marking the most strikeouts against ULL all season. She fell to 5-6 with the loss after giving up three runs (all earned) on four hits with only two walks in the complete-game effort.
 
Destin Vicknair had a gem going through five innings in game two before allowing a leadoff single and issuing two walks towards the bottom of the ULL order, and the Ragin' Cajuns made USA pay by piecing together the go-ahead inning.
 
Vicknair fell to 5-3 with the loss after allowing six runs (all earned) on eight hits with four strikeouts to five walks in 5 1/3 innings. Brown threw 2/3 of an inning in relief and allowed two runs (both earned) on as many hits.
 
Emily Messer led the Jags with three hits on the day and three runs scored. Kaleigh Todd scored a pair of runs on two hits with a walk. Amanda Minahan, in her first action since she suffered a hand injury on Feb. 12, drove in a pair of runs with her homer in game two.
 
South Alabama 2, No. 5 Louisiana-Lafayette 3
Back-to-back leadoff singles from Messer and Todd and Stephanie Pilkington's sacrifice bunt brought up Haleigh Lowe, who supplied an RBI groundout to score Messer for a 1-0 Jaguar lead. Kristian Foster singled up the middle to score Todd and double USA's advantage to 2-0 in the first inning.
 
Brown retired the Ragin' Cajuns in order in the first and second frames and wiggled out of a leadoff hit by pitch and subsequent single, before solo home runs by Lexie Elkins and Aleah Craighton tied the score at 2-2 in the bottom of the fourth.
 
An inning later, eight-hole ULL hitter Kara Gremillion drew a leadoff walk, but was forced out at second on a fielder's choice that allowed Kassidy Zeringue to reach. Zeringue stole second and then scored on Shellie Landry's RBI single to left center, as the hosts took a 3-2 lead.
 
Alex Stewart retired six of the final seven Jaguar batters she faced to see the game out, improving to 9-0 on the year after striking out nine to one walk and allowing two runs (both earned) on five hits.
 
South Alabama 6, No. 5 Louisiana-Lafayette 10
USA scored three runs in the opening frame and took a 4-0 lead in the second inning, before ULL immediately cut that margin in half.
 
Lowe drove in Messer and Todd, who both reached to lead off the game again, with a base hit, and haleigh Lane delivered an RBI groundout.
 
In the top of the second, Pilkington singled to score Messer, who got on with a one-out double to left field, as USA grew its lead to four runs.
 
After ULL loaded the bases on two singles and a walk, a Jaguar fielding error allowed two unearned Ragin' Cajun runs to score, as USA's lead was cut to 4-2.
 
After Foster's one-out single to right field in the top of the fifth inning, Minahan lifted her first home run of the year over the left-field wall to push USA's lead to 6-2;  however, that lead was short-lived, as ULL pushed across eight runs, the most USA has allowed in one inning this year, on five hits and five walks.
 
DJ Sanders led off with a base hit to right field, before back-to-back walks were issued to Taylor Terrio and Gremillion. Haley Hayden struck first with an RBI single up the middle, and Landry followed with a two-run base hit that would have cut the USA advantage to one run, 6-5, if not for a Jaguar throwing error on the relay back to the infield that allowed the tying run to score.
 
Elkins then drew a walk, before Kelsey Vincent plated the go-ahead run with a single to left field. Craighton supplied her second home run of the day, good for three runs,  to take the Ragin' Cajuns ahead, 10-6.
 
South Alabama went down in order in the final inning.
 
ULL starter Kylee Jo Trahan, who allowed the first three Jag batters to reach at the start of the game and was pulled in favor of Stewart, finished the final two innings and was credited with the win, as ULL took the lead when she was the pitcher of record.
 
Trahan improved to 7-1 despite only pitching two innings with three runs allowed (one earned) on no hits with two walks and no strikeouts. Stewart threw five inning of relief and allowed three runs (all earned) on six hits with three strikeouts and two walks.
 
Craighton finished the contest 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored to lead ULL. Vincent was 2-for-4 with a run and RBI. Landry drove in a pair of runs and scored one on one hit. ULL outhit USA, 10-6, in game two.
 
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).