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Baseball: Fuselier, Marze spark UL’s sweepJoshua Parrott • jparrott@theadvertiser.com • May 13, 2010 For UL’s baseball team Alex Fuselier, a sophomore designated hitter, did his damage at the plate with a two-out RBI single in the top of the ninth on Sunday to drive in the go-ahead run. Dayton Marze, a redshirt sophomore right-hander, silenced the Privateers in the ninth as he allowed two runs — one earned — in a career-best six innings to ice the 5-4 win. With the win, the Cajuns (32-16, 16-8 Sun Belt "You’ve got to develop two ways as a hitter and pitcher, both mentally and physically," said UL coach Tony Robichaux, whose team plays host to Western Kentucky this weekend at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field. "Physically they develop pretty quickly in the weight room by working with our strength coach, but the mental part takes a little longer. "I’ve always said that the most important muscle for an athlete is the one between his ears, and I think Alex and Dayton are developing more as the maturation process kicks in mentally." Fuselier hit .615 in the series, going 8-for-13 with seven RBIs to earn Sun Belt Conference Hitter of the Week honors. On Friday, Fuselier led the way with a 4-for-4 night to go with three doubles and five RBI in UL’s 16-7 win over UNO. Prior to adding two hits in Saturday’s 4-1 win, Fuselier was named to the Academic All-District VI second team. Fuselier capped his weekend with the game-winning hit in Sunday’s win to help the Cajuns move into a second-place tie in the league standings with South Alabama. With his big weekend, Fuselier is now hitting .305 this year with 11 doubles, 33 RBI and 15 stolen bases. He is second on the squad in steals, third in RBI and fourth in doubles. Last season he hit .245 after starting 37 of 46 games played and actually began the year as the team’s Friday night starter. He finished hot, going 9-for-22 in his final five games. Coach Robichaux has credited Fuselier’s offensive improvement to all of the work he’s done in the batting cages.
"He’s a hard-nosed guy and wants to be the best, and that’s a good mindset to have," UL center fielder Kyle Olasin said. "He’s really progressed since he got here last year. He’s worked hard and deserves all the credit in the world." Marze moved to 3-3 this season on Sunday after replacing starter Michael Cook in the third inning and throwing the final six frames. He has a 2.58 ERA on the year in 14 appearances — the third-most on the club — and has two saves. In 38.1 innings, he has 30 strikeouts A season ago, Marze threw only eight innings and posted a 13.50 ERA after redshirting "I’ve seen the biggest transformation in him," UL first baseman/pitcher Justin Robichaux said. "He came in as a freshman and got redshirted and threw a little bit last year but got touched up pretty good. Now he’s kind of turned the tide as one of the top guys out of the bullpen "I know he’s got it now. That just comes with time." Coach Robichaux hopes that Marze will spend some more time around campus. Marze is eligible to be drafted this summer and has gained the interest of numerous pro scouts. "He has the best fastball on the team and the most velocity on the team, and he’s a great athlete," coach Robichaux said. "He’s worked very hard mechanically and manipulating the baseball to add movement with his velocity. "The big difference now is that he’s throwing in the 90s with movement. And I’ve always said that if you match velocity with movement you’re going to end up with a draft choice."
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