After a grueling week that saw the Cajuns go 1-4, including a rare extra-inning loss and a wind-blown pitchers' duel, head coach Matt Deggs met with the media to assess where his team stands and what lies ahead as the Sun Belt schedule hits its back half.

“We’ve taken it on the chin a little bit,” Deggs admitted candidly. “But it’s not from a lack of effort or care. These boys are giving us everything they’ve got.”

The week began with a midweek matchup against a tough UT Rio Grande Valley squad, a team Deggs praised as “very impressive” along with the rest of the Southland Conference. The Cajuns then turned around and gave the young guns a shot against Louisiana Tech in Ruston. “I was very impressed with them,” Deggs said of the younger players, who helped tally another seven runs.

The weekend opened strong with a Friday win, but Saturday brought the team’s first extra-inning game of the year—a 4-3 heartbreaker. Sunday’s 3-2 loss, despite a 20-mph wind blowing out, capped off a tough series that left the Cajuns searching for answers.

Still, Deggs remains focused on what lies ahead.

“We’re at the halfway point now,” he noted. “It would’ve been nice to hit nine [conference wins], but we didn’t take care of business. We’ve got to scrap these last five weeks.”

With no midweek game ahead, the team gets a rare chance to rest, refocus, and prepare for a Thursday-to-Saturday series at Old Dominion—a team Deggs says is “playing a lot better.”

“Coach Chris Finwood does a great job. They gave us all we wanted last year—we were lucky to sweep them, but they got after us in the tournament,” Deggs recalled. “They’ll be ready.”

The Cajuns’ path through the second half of the schedule won’t be easy. Road trips to Old Dominion, Georgia State, and Southern Miss loom large, along with home matchups against an improved Arkansas State and always-dangerous Georgia Southern.

“You’re going to need 15 or 16 wins to get into that [Sun Belt] tournament,” Deggs predicted. “We’ve got to find a way to come up with eight more. And in my opinion, the second-half schedule is tougher.”

Despite the disappointment, Deggs emphasized the strong morale and character of his team.

“This group is different. They like to play. They work. They haven’t splintered,” he said. “Usually by now you start to see some leaks in the boat, as Coach Robe used to say. I haven’t seen that.”

He pointed to Wednesday night’s lineup against Tech as “a glimpse into the future” and noted that while older players have shown flashes, the coaching staff must weigh immediate needs against long-term development.

“That’s the psychology of the game. My job isn’t just about today or this weekend—it’s about next year and the year after that.”

One bright spot has been the bullpen. Deggs highlighted six arms he’s currently confident in—CMo, Hammer, Theut, Hermann, Tollette, and Riley—and said the key to a tournament run would be timely hitting and everything falling into place.

“This isn’t one of those teams where you drop one and claw back. No, everything would have to go right,” he admitted. “But anything can happen in a tournament. You just have to get in.”

The Cajuns now sit at a crossroads. With their backs against the wall, they’ll look to regroup, reset, and take the fight into the season’s final stretch.

“This weekend is a precipice,” Deggs said. “We’ll be rested, no midweek luggage, and we’ll get to see how good we can really play.”