LAFAYETTE – Louisiana-Lafayette hit three home runs and put together a big fifth inning to beat Louisiana Tech, 10-5, before 4,109 fans on a cloudy night at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field at Russo Park.
 
In the decisive fifth, the Ragin' Cajuns used three hits and two errors to score four runs and erase a 3-3 tie.
 
The Bulldogs are now 16-17, 6-6 in Conference USA. Tied for the lead in the Sun Belt Conference, ULL, 24-9, has won six in a row.
 
The two teams traded runs in the first. Tech took the lead on two-out back-to-back doubles by Dalton Davis and Jorge Corona. The Cajuns tied it in the bottom half when Heath Hood, who had his streak of 48 consecutive games reaching base broken Saturday in a win at Marshall, started a new streak with an opposite field home run that rode the wind over the wall in right.
 
In the second, Walker Burchfield lined a ground rule double to left center, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored when Logan McLeod knocked a 3-1 pitch into center for a 2-1 Tech lead.
 
Right-handed starter Brendan Moody (0-3) then walked Will Safford and, with one out, gave way to senior right-handed reliever Cooper Rawls, who was greeted by both Ethan Bates and misfortune. Bates' ground ball was booted, Safford scored and Tech led, 3-1.
 
Tech starter Reed Smith struck out two in the bottom of the second but the Cajuns scored a run on a walk and double to cut the lead to 3-2.
 
The Cajuns stole a run in the third to tie at 3-3. With Carson Roccaforte on first and Ben Robichaux on third with two out, Roccaforte took off for second, got in a run down, and was tagged out — but not until Robichaux, who'd singled with one out and moved to third on a hit batter and a fielder's choice, reached home.
 
Ryan Harland, who took the loss, relieved Smith in the fourth, retired three straight batters, but was touched for the four runs, three earned, in the fifth as ULL built a 7-3 lead. The rally started with an infield hit after an eight-pitch at-bat by Ruston High product and ULL junior second baseman C.J. Willis.
 
In the sixth, Tech pulled to within 7-5 on a two-out opposite field homer by McLeod, the junior third baseman's first of the season and second of his career.
 
The Cajuns added a two-run homer in the seventh and a solo shot in the eighth.
 
The Bulldogs play ULM at 6 p.m. Wednesday night at J.C. Love field at Pat Patterson Park and host C-USA's FIU for three games this weekend, Friday at 6 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 11 a.m.