BATON ROUGE — The seventh-ranked LSU softball team opens Southeastern Conference action this weekend against Tennessee at Tiger Park beginning with a doubleheader at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
The Tigers (16-5) will be seeking their unprecedented fifth-straight SEC championship. The Lady Vols (16-6) comes into the game having won six-straight games.
“We are anxious and excited to get the SEC schedule started,” said LSU head coach Yvette Girouard. “We are welcoming a young and talented Tennessee team. We feel good about playing and are hoping for great weather for the start of the SEC season.”
The LSU marketing department is sponsoring “Bring the Family to the Park” this weekend. There will be an 18-foot giant slide, a rock climb slide with ball pit and a space walk with fun jumper along with games and prizes throughout the weekend.
Tiger junior pitcher Kristin Schmidt was named the Purple & Gold Challenge’s Most Valuable Player. In four appearances last weekend, she posted a perfect 3-0 record with three shutouts. She allowed only eight total hits in 20 and a third innings pitched, while recording 24 strikeouts. She now ranks seventh in the Southeastern Conference with a 0.71 earned run average and fourth with 76 strikeouts.
Sophomore Leigh Ann Danos, junior LaDonia Hughes, sophomore Tessa Lynam and freshman Alicia Owen were also named to the all-tournament team for the Tigers. The four combined to go 28-for-57 (.491) from the plate for the tournament with 11 doubles, 21 RBIs, one home run, and 24 runs scored for a .737 slugging percentage.
Playing in the offensive lineup for the first time this season, Lynam hit .467 with a .733 slugging percentage, both of which lead the SEC. Against Jackson State, she tied the LSU single-game records for hits in a game with a four-for-four performance, while also tying the records for runs in a game with four and doubles in a game with three. In addition, she recorded her first compete-game no-hitter in the 19-0 win over the Lady Tigers.
LSU is 6-0 all-time in Southeastern Conference openers, including a 3-0 record in Tiger Park. This will be the first time the Tigers have opened the conference schedule against Tennessee. LSU is 4-0 all-time against Auburn in openers and 2-0 against Florida.
Since LSU reinstated its softball program in 1997, the Tigers are 11-3 all-time against Tennessee. LSU is undefeated at home against the Lady Vols with a 7-0 record. They are 3-3 in Knoxville, Tenn., and 1-0 at neutral sites.
One of two perfect games in LSU history was thrown against the Lady Vols. Britni Sneed and Sarah Meadors combined for the perfect game on March 18, 2001. The Tigers have also thrown two no-hitters against Tennessee. Britni Sneed threw both no-hitters, one on March 17, 2001 and the other on March 16, 2002.
The Tigers have outscored their opponents 42-10 in season opener. Two of the games were decided by one run, a 6-5 win over Auburn in 2000 and a 1-0 win over Florida in 2001. Three of the games were decided by four or more runs, a 4-0 win over Florida in 2002, a 5-0 win over Auburn in 1997 and a 12-3 win over Auburn in 1999.
The three-game series will conclude with a single game on Sunday at 11 a.m.