Tag: LSU Softball

Tigers softball splits Day 2 at LSU/ULL Crossover, suffers first loss of the season

The Tigers suffered their first blemish of the season, but they bounced back in Game 2.

Editor’s Note: The following is an official press release courtesy of LSU’s athletics department.

BATON ROUGE, La. – No. 14/15 LSU split day two of the LSU/ULL Crossover Saturday at Tiger Park. After dropping their first game of the year in a 5-4 loss to UL-Lafayette, the Tigers rebounded with a 12-0 shutout win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.

In the second game of the day, redshirt sophomore pitcher Emilee Casanova threw her first career shutout to earn her first career decision in the circle.

“I thought it was a great response to the first game,” said Head Coach Beth Torina. “I think they did a great job of coming out and scoring right off the bat and getting a good shutdown performance from Emilee Casanova.”

Outfielder Ciara Briggs and infielder Georgia Clark mirrored each other on day two of the LSU/ULL Crossover by going 3-for-5 at the plate with four RBIs, two runs scored and one home run. Briggs hit her first career grand slam against A&M-Corpus Christi (7-5) for her seventh career dinger, while Clark hit her 34th career home run against UL-Lafayette (8-5). Clark currently ranks sixth for the most career home runs in program history with 34 and is right behind shortstop Taylor Pleasants who has 35 career homers after hitting the Tigers’ third longball of the day.

Game One

Clark stayed led the offense with a 2-for-4 outing at the plate and hit her second home run in as many games. Pleasants and first baseman Raeleen Gutierrez both recorded a hit and RBI, and also drew one walk.

Pitcher Raelin Chaffin (2-1) was credited with the loss after throwing 2.0 innings, allowing two hits and four runs. Pitcher Sydney Berzon pitched 5.0 innings where she struck out two batters and allowed five hits, one run and walked two batters.

After the Tigers retired the Ragin’ Cajuns in order, third baseman Danieca Coffey led off the bottom half inning with a walk and advanced to second on a sac bunt. Pleasants drove a liner through the right field gap, bringing Coffey home for the opening run. Clark followed with an RBI single to left field to score Pleasants, giving the Tigers an early 2-0 advantage after the opening inning.

ULL responded with five unanswered runs in the second and third innings combined, highlighted by a pair of two-RBI homers in each frame to take a 5-2 lead.

Both teams went scoreless for two innings until Clark hit a leadoff homer in the sixth frame. Gutierrez kept the rally alive with a two-out RBI single through the middle, cutting into the Ragin’ Cajuns lead, 5-4.

Despite putting two runners on base in the seventh, the Tigers were unable to plate the tying run, resulting in a 5-4 loss.

Game Two

Casanova earned her first career win in game two versus the Islanders. Casanova tossed a two-hit complete game shutout that featured five strikeouts and gave up just two hits with no walks against the 17 batters she faced.

Briggs and Coffey each was 2-for-2 in the batter’s box and scored two runs to lead the Tigers offensively. Briggs set a new career high of four RBIs after hitting her first career grand slam, and Coffey added two ribbies of her own. Clark had her second multi-RBI game of the day as she drove in two runs on one hit and scored one run.

LSU got the night started with back-to-back singles from Coffey and Briggs in the bottom of the first. Both runners advanced on a fly out to center before Clark brought both home on a two-RBI single to give the home team a 2-0 lead.

The offense kept pouring on the runs in the second stanza. LSU loaded the bases behind a couple of singles and a walk before Briggs stepped to the plate and hit the Tigers first grand slam of the season. Pleasants back doored her with a solo shot in the next at bat, giving her six home runs on the season. LSU went to bust the inning open with three more runs and finished the inning with eight runs on five hits to build a 10-0 lead.

The Tigers scored two insurance runs in the fourth thanks to a two-RBI single by Coffey. Casanova continued to shine throughout the offensive surge as she retired eight consecutive batters and fanned four batters over the final 2.2 innings.

On Deck

The Tigers travel to Lafayette, La. Sunday to conclude the LSU/ULL Crossover at 2:30 p.m. against UL-Lafayette at Lamson Park.

Directly support LSU Softball by joining the Diamondbackers today!

For the latest news and information on Tiger softball, visit www.lsusports.net/softball. Fans can also follow the team on its social media outlets at www.facebook.com/lsusoftball and @lsusoftball on Instagram and Twitter.

No. 14/15 LSU softball ready for battle in the LSU/ULL crossover

The Tigers will look to continue their perfect start this weekend.

Editor’s Note: The following is an official press release courtesy of LSU’s athletics department.

BATON ROUGE, La. – No. 14/15 LSU returns for another weekend tournament at Tiger Park as they host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and UL-Lafayette in the LSU/ULL Crossover Feb. 24-25 before concluding the tournament with a game in Lafayette, La.

The Tigers will open the tournament with a 6 p.m. game on Friday, February 24 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (7-2). On Saturday, LSU will matchup against UL-Lafayette (6-5) and A&M-Corpus Christi at 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively. Sunday, February 26, the Tiger will conclude the tournament with a 2:30 p.m. game versus UL-Lafayette at Lamson Park in Lafayette. All LSU games played at Tiger Park will be streamed on SEC Network+ and Sunday’s game at ULL will be streamed on ESPN+.

The Tigers are off to a 12-0 start after collecting a couple of wins at Louisiana Tech and ULM earlier this week. LSU has outscored its opponents 73-19 and has a .342 batting average with six players batting .300 or better with 10 or more hits in no less than 30 at bats. In the circle, LSU ranks No. 4 in the SEC and No. 23 in the NCAA with a 1.44 ERA.

Pitcher Sydney Berzon was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on Monday and has responded with a pair of wins on Tuesday and Wednesday to improve to 5-0 in the circle this season. Berzon has a 0.27 ERA (No. 3 in SEC) with 24 strikeouts (No. 10 in SEC) in 26.0 innings pitched. The New York native also ranks No. 2 in the NCAA with three saves this season.

Graduate Ali Kilponen has a 3-0 record in the circle and leads the pitching staff with 31 strikeouts (No. 4 in NCAA) and 28.1 innings pitched. Kilponen has a 2.22 ERA and has thrown three complete games, two shutouts and two saves.

Other pitchers to receive decisions this season consist of sophomore Raelin Chaffin and freshman Alea Johnson who are both 2-0.

Shortstop Taylor Pleasants is the nation’s leader with 21 RBIs and is batting .415 behind 17 hits, five home runs and 11 runs scored. Pleasants ranks No. 5 in the LSU record book with 34 career home runs and leads the team with seven multiple-hit games this season.

Center fielder Ciara Briggs leads the team and ranks No. 8 in the NCAA with 18 hits and has a team-high .450 batting average. Briggs also ranks No. 2 in the league with 16 runs scored and matches Pleasants’ seven multi-hit games this season.

Infielder Georgia Clark has a .400 batting average and .667 slugging percentage. Clark has 12 hits and 13 walks that leads the SEC. Clark currently ranks No. 8 all-time with 102 career walks and No. 7 all-time with 32 career home runs.

THE LINEUP

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi comes to Baton Rouge on a five-game winning streak. The Islanders have a .298 batting average and 3.06 ERA. Infielder Quinn De Avila leads TAMUCC with a .467 batting average, but utility player Kimane Rogron (.394) and first baseman Sydney Hoyt (.429) lead the team with 13 and 12 hits, respectively. Right-handed pitcher Primrose Aholelei leads the pitching staff with 1.89 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 33.1 innings pitched. Aholei has a record of 4-2 and has thrown two shutouts while allowing 28 hits, 13 runs and 13 walks this season.

The Ragin’ Cajuns are coming off a competitive weekend at the TaxAct Clearwater Invitational where they played four nationally ranked top 10 programs and concluded the Florida trip with an 8-0 run-rule victory over No. 25 UCF. Outfielder Karly Heath leads ULL offensively with a .414 batting average, 12 hits and 12 runs. She also has nine RBIs. Outfielder Maddie Hayden also has 12 hits and has a .353 batting average and has scored 10 runs. Pitcher Meghan Schoman leads a large staff of pitchers with a 3-2 record behind a 2.04 ERA and has 27 strikeouts in 24.0 innings pitched.

ON DECK

Sunday’s game at UL-Lafayette begins a 10-game stretch of games away from Tiger Park. LSU will participate in the Judi Garman Classic in Fullerton, Calif. March 3-5 where they will play five games before opening SEC play at South Carolina March 11-13. The Tigers will have a midweek game at Southeastern Louisiana on March 15 before returning home for a three-game series against Tennessee March 17-19.

Directly support LSU Softball by joining the Diamondbackers today!

For the latest news and information on Tiger softball, visit www.lsusports.net/softball. Fans can also follow the team on its social media outlets at www.facebook.com/lsusoftball and @lsusoftball on Instagram and Twitter.

LSU softball downs ULM 9-3

The Tigers moved to 12-0 on the season Wednesday night.

Editor’s Note: The following is an official press release courtesy of the LSU athletics department.

MONROE, La. – No. 14/15 LSU pulled away with a 9-3 win against ULM Wednesday night at ULM Softball Complex.

The Tigers are now 12-0 on the season while the Warhawks fall to 7-6.

Pitcher Sydney Berzon (5-0) picked up the win in the circle after tallying five strikeouts and gave up two hits, and three walks but no runs in 5.1 innings. Pitcher Ali Kilponen got the for LSU and recorded two strikeouts, two hits, three walks and three runs in 1.2 innings pitched.

Third baseman Danieca Coffey led the Tigers offensively with three hits and two runs to go with three RBI’s which came off her first home run of the season. First baseman Georgia Clark had a season-high four RBIs in the ball game, three of which came on a three-run shot of her own.

Coffey led off the game with a single through the middle to give the Tigers the first base runner of the night. Two batters later shortstop Taylor Pleasants singled to center field, putting runners on the corners with Clark coming up to bat. Coffey beat out the throw home on a fielder’s choice to give the Tigers the first run of the night.

After a three-up-three down inning by ULM highlighted by two Kilponen strikeouts, left fielder Ali Newland drew a walk and catcher Maci Bergeron reached on a fielder’s choice to set Coffey up with runners on the first and third. Coffey came to the plate and blasted one over the right field wall, giving the Tigers a 4-0 advantage after two innings.

The Warhawks scored three runs in the bottom of the second, but the bats stayed hot for LSU in the top of the third. With runners on the corners again, Clark went yard to stretch LSU’s lead back to four runs, 7-3 through four frames. It was Clark’s 32nd career home run, moving her into a tie for seventh all-time on the LSU home run list.

After holding ULM scoreless in the sixth, second baseman Karli Petty hit a two-out single with the bases loaded that scored two insurance runs for the Tigers.

On Deck

Next up for LSU is the LSU/ULL Crossover Feb. 24-26 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and UL-Lafayette.

Directly support LSU Softball by joining the Diamondbackers today!

For the latest news and information on Tiger softball, visit www.lsusports.net/softball. Fans can also follow the team on its social media outlets at www.facebook.com/lsusoftball and @lsusoftball on Instagram and Twitter.

LSU softball continues perfect start with win over Louisiana Tech

The Tigers are 11-0 after a 3-1 win on Tuesday night.

Editor’s Note: The following is an official press release courtesy of the LSU athletics department.

RUSTON, La. – Sophomore McKenzie Redoutey hit a pair of solo shots to help No. 14/15 LSU defeat Louisiana Tech, 3-1, Tuesday night at Dr. Billy Bundrick Field.

Redoutey finished 2-for-3 at the plate and recorded her seventh career multi-hit and multi-RBI game. By hitting her fourth and fifth caree home runs, Redoutey became the first Tiger with multiple homers in a single game this season and first since junior Taylor Pleasants did it last year against McNeese. Junior Ciara Briggs was also 2-for-3 at the dish, recording her 45th career multiple-hit game.

Sophomore pitcher Raelin Chaffin got the start Tuesday and threw four strikeouts and gave up two hits and three walks through 4.0 innings. Freshman Sydney Berzon entered the game in the bottom of the fifth and earned her fourth win of the season striking out three batters and gave up four hits, one walk and no runs in 2.2 innings. Graduate Ali Kilponen replaced Berzon with two outs in the bottom of the seventh and struck out the final batter of the night to be credited with the save. Kilponen has two saves this season and now ranks No. 4 all-time with seven career saves.

Junior Ciara Briggs had two hits on the night, putting her in a tie for 11th most in the nation this season. Freshman Maci Bergeron joined Redoutey in the RBI column, tallying one on an RBI-double in the top of the sixth.

After both clubs went scoreless in the first inning, Redoutey led off the inning with a solo shot straight to center field for her first home run of the season. The pitchers battled in the third and fourth inning without giving up a run, but the Lady Techsters tied the game in the fifth thanks to an RBI single from Brooke Diaz.

The Tigers responded in the top of the sixth when Redoutey crushed her second homer of the game – a two-out longball to right field. Junior Ali Newland singled to center field before freshman Maci Bergeron brought her home on an RBI-double to give the Tigers a 3-1 advantage.

LA Tech threatened with the bases loaded with one out in the bottom of the sixth, but Pleasants made a play at the plate to save a run and Berzon struck out her third batter of the night to end the inning.  LSU could not cross another run in the seventh and after two quick outs in the bottom half inning, Berzon gave up a single and a walk before calling it a night. Kilponen replaced Berzon with one out left to get and secured the victory with a strikeout.

On Deck

LSU will finish its road trip with a 6 p.m. game tomorrow against ULM at the ULM Softball Complex in Monroe, La.

Directly support LSU Softball by joining the Diamondbackers today!

 For the latest news and information on Tiger softball, visit www.lsusports.net/softball. Fans can also follow the team on its social media outlets at www.facebook.com/lsusoftball and @lsusoftball on Instagram and Twitter.

LSU Sports Weekend Recap: Gymnastics thrives and Kim Mulkey’s group survives

From baseball to gymnastics, here’s how the LSU teams fared in the last week.

With spring sports in full swing, it’s one of college athletics’ busiest periods as they overlap with winter sports.

At LSU, it’s no different. [autotag]Jay Johnson[/autotag] and the No. 1-ranked baseball team began their season while [autotag]Jay Clark[/autotag] and gymnastics secured a huge conference win.

Kim Mulkey got her group back on track while the men’s team continued its slide. It’s quiet on the football front as we wait for spring practice to get underway, but things will soon heat up there, too.

With all that going on, there’s something for everyone. Here’s a recap of the last week in LSU athletics.

LSU softball’s Taylor Pleasants named SEC Player of the Week

Taylor Pleasants led a hot start for LSU softball, totaling four home runs and 13 RBI over the weekend.

After a hot start to the season, [autotag]Taylor Pleasants[/autotag] was named SEC Player of the Week.

Pleasants totaled four home runs and drove in 13 runs over the weekend. A junior from Texas in her fourth year with the program, she’s been a steady contributor for the last couple of years.

She was second-team All-SEC last spring and appeared in 143 games as a Tiger. Pleasants is a career .325 hitter with 33 homers.

Pleasants’ fast start sets the table for her to be one of the SEC’s best players in an offense that could be among the conference’s best. LSU is 5-0 after a weekend that included a 12-0 victory over a ranked Oregon State team.

The Tigers will be back in action Thursday against Eastern Illinois to kick off a weekend that also features contests against hot Utah and Central Arkansas teams.

LSU hasn’t been to a Women’s College World Series since 2017 and will look to end that drought behind a strong lineup and improved pitching.

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Recapping Tigers softball’s perfect season debut at the LSU Invitational

The Tigers began the season 5-0 with a combined run margin of 41-9 over the weekend.

Spring is just around the corner, and that can only mean one thing: Diamond sports are upon us.

The No. 25-ranked Tigers softball team began its season over the weekend, playing host for the LSU Invitational. It played five games, all of which it won with three coming via run rule, and the total margin in those contests was 41-9

LSU begins the season 5-0 with a pair of shutout wins against a ranked opponent. After playing five games in three days, the Tigers will have most of the week off before hosting a slate of games over the weekend that will feature matchups against Eastern Illinois, Ohio, Utah and Central Arkansas.

In the meantime, here’s how coach Beth Torina’s squad fared in each contest over the weekend.

LSU softball’s season ends after dropping second game in Tempe Regional

LSU’s postseason run came to an underwhelming end in Tempe on Saturday night against Cal State Fullerton.

For the first time since 2014, LSU softball will not be advancing to a super regional.

LSU dropped the opener at the Tempe Regional to San Diego State on Friday, and it was the same story on Saturday in a 3-2 loss to Cal State Fullerton in the elimination game, which ended the Tigers’ postseason run.

LSU jumped out to a 2-0 lead, scoring two in the top of the first. The Titans responded by one-upping the Tigers with three in the bottom of the inning. That 3-2 score held tight the rest of the way and just like that, it was over for LSU.

Down to the last out, [autotag]Taylor Pleasants[/autotag] reached in the seventh with a double down the third baseline. That brought slugger [autotag]Georgia Clark[/autotag] to the plate, who walked after a full count. CSF put an end to the threat the next batter after a [autotag]Shelbi Sunseri[/autotag] strikeout.

It’s a disappointing end of the year for Beth Torina’s group. Arizona State was always going to be the favorite to advance out of this regional, but LSU went 0-2, dropping both games to lower seeded teams.

There were a lot of things to like about this LSU team, but it was never able to put it all together. There’s talent there, but there was far too much inconsistency for a program of this stature.

There will be speculation about Torina’s at LSU. She is one of the few holdovers from the previous administration, and [autotag]Scott Woodward[/autotag] has moved to instill his coaches at many of LSU’s popular athletic programs.

Softball could be next.

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How to watch LSU softball’s elimination game vs. Cal State Fullerton at the Tempe Regional

The Tigers will try to keep their season alive against the Titans on Saturday evening.

The season will be on the line on Saturday evening for coach [autotag]Beth Torina[/autotag] and the Tigers.

They entered the NCAA Tournament as the No. 2 seed in the Tempe Regional but suffered an upset in their first game on Friday night against the No. 3-seeded San Diego State Aztecs in a 10-5 loss.

Now, LSU draws an elimination game on Saturday evening against the Cal State Fullerton Titans, the No. 4 seed in Tempe who held a 2-1 lead against top-seeded Arizona State heading into the bottom of the six before they allowed a four-run bottom of the sixth that let the Sun Devils capture a 5-2 win.

The winner of this game will survive and advance to take on the loser of the winner’s bracket game between ASU and SDSU, which will be played first at 4 p.m. CT. Here’s everything you need to know to follow what could be the Tigers’ final game of the season if they can’t pull off a win.

LSU softball drops first game in Tempe Regional, will face elimination on Saturday

The Tigers will look to keep their season alive on Saturday after a 10-5 loss to open the postseason.

The Tigers headed out to the desert this weekend looking to emerge victorious while playing on the road at the Tempe Regional to open the NCAA Tournament. But after a 10-5 Game 1 loss against the San Diego State Aztecs, LSU’s stay in the postseason could be brief as it faces an elimination game on Saturday.

Much of this game was a back-and-forth affair, but it was bookended by poor play from the Tigers. [autotag]Ali Kilponen[/autotag] got the start at pitcher in this one, but she allowed a pair of one-run homers in the first as her team fell behind early.

The Tigers got their answer in the form of a two-run homer from [autotag]Morgan Smith[/autotag] in the bottom of the second to even the game, but a trio of base hits and a fielding error led to three Aztec runs to open the third as the deficit grew for LSU.

Once again, though, it had an answer. [autotag]Ali Newland[/autotag] came up clutch with a three-run homer in the bottom of that inning to tie the game at five runs apiece, and it looked like we were heading to a thrilling finish.

That’s not exactly how it played out, though. The Tigers swapped pitchers, and [autotag]Shelbi Sunseri[/autotag] allowed a run to score on a wild pitch before giving up a two-run blast as LSU found itself down three once again.

Unlike before, it had no answer. It couldn’t get much going on offense down the stretch and squandered the opportunities it did have, stranding runners in the fifth and seventh innings. SDSU added to its lead after an error in the sixth and another homer allowed by Sunseri in the seventh as it completed the upset.

The Tigers will play an elimination game on Saturday against the loser of the matchup between regional host Arizona State and four-seeded California State Fullerton. They will try to keep their season alive as they face a do-or-die situation after just one game.

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