AUSTIN, Texas — The No. 7 LSU softball team fell for the first time this season, losing to No. 2 Washington, 4-1, in the championship game of the Texas Invitational Sunday.
LSU had defeated Washington, 4-2, in pool play on Friday.
The Tigers picked up their first loss of the season bringing them to 9-1 for the season, but head coach Glenn Moore was satisfied with the efforts of his team and feels that his team can use this loss as a learning experience.
“This was a very good tournament for us. I am really pleased with the way or defense played. Our offense has also played well with exception of the last game against Washington. I think we need to make some adjustments there,” said Moore. “We saw two of the top pitchers in the nation when we played Washington. I thought we did well; however, I was not pleased with the way we handled Graves in the last game. We can take the experience against their pitchers and learn from it to become a better team. Overall I think we gained a lot of confidence out of the weekend and will be a much better team next time we play.”
The Tigers first hit came in the bottom of the first when left fielder Dee Douglas tripled to right field to start the inning. Douglas then scored on a sacrifice fly by shortstop Tara Asbill to put LSU ahead of the Huskies 1-0.
The Huskies’ first hit off of pitcher Ashley Lewis came in the top of the third with two outs by left fielder Kelly Hauxhurst. However, the Tiger defense answered back when third baseman Ashlee Ducote fired an assist to first baseman Shaunte’ Fremin to put Husky third baseman Kim DePaul out and end the inning.
In the top of the fifth, Husky second baseman Christie Rosenblad singled to left field with two outs for the second hit of the game. But the Tigers held them scoreless when shortstop Rosie Leutzinger flied out to Douglas in left field to end the inning.
Washington pulled ahead of LSU in the top of the sixth when DePaul singled to center field, and catcher Jenny Topping was walked by Lewis to place runners on first and second. Jessica Bork then came in to pinch run for Topping, and Lewis loaded the bases by hitting right fielder Jessica Clark. First baseman Melissa Downs picked up the RBI with a sacrifice fly to center fielder
Stacey Newton to score DePaul. With runners on second and third and two outs, Lewis intentionally walked second baseman Jamie Graves for the force out. The designated hitter Shannon Walsh then hit a single to left field to score Bork and Clark to put the Huskies ahead 3-1.
The Huskies struck again in the top of the seventh with a single to left field by DePaul. Topping then reached on an error by short stop Tara Asbill. Clark hit an RBI double to the left field wall to drive in DePaul, making the score 4-1.
In the bottom of the seventh the Tigers had one last effort, but the Huskies held them at bay. Second baseman Stephanie Hastings beat the throw to first for a single to start the inning but was put out at second on a fielder’s choice when Asbill reached first. Third baseman Ashlee Ducote then drew a walk by pitcher Jamie Graves. Right fielder Trena Peel advanced the runners on a ground out to the short stop. But Husky pitcher got her 10th strike out of the game against Lewis to seal the win for Washington.
LSU will play host to the Purple and Gold Challenge next weekend on February 25-27. The Tigers will begin play against Baylor at 5 p.m. Southern Miss and Alabama A&M will also be present.
No. 2 Washington 000 003 1 – 4 7 0
No. 7 LSU 100 000 0 – 1 2 2
Winning Pitcher: Jamie Graves (8-0) 10 K’s
Losing Pitcher: Ashley Lewis (4-1) 2 K’s
LSU (9-1)
Washington (13-1)