BATON ROUGE — LSU head coach Yvette Girouard will look to come one step closer to her 1,000th career victory as the 12th-ranked Tiger welcome No. 9 Baylor to Tiger Park on Wednesday at 6 p.m. in a non-conference game.
LSU (17-5) was 1-2 last weekend as the Tigers dropped its Southeastern Conference-opening series to South Carolina on the road. The Bears (27-3) come into town riding an eight-game winning streak and have won 13 of their last 14. Baylor is schedule to play Northwestern State on Tuesday night at 5 p.m. in Natchitoches.
The game can be heard on the LSU Sports Network, in Baton Rouge on Country Legends 107.3 FM and on the internet at www.LSUsports.net.
“I am really excited to play a very good Baylor team,” said head coach Yvette Girouard. “I am sure they will be well prepared to play the Tigers. We were their road block to the Women’s College World Series last year so I’m sure that they will be looking for a little revenge.”
Girouard is just two wins away from becoming only the fifth coach in NCAA Division I history and the sixth coach in NCAA history to record 1,000 career wins. She can move one game closer with a win over Baylor before the Tigers head to Athens for a three-game series with nationally ranked Georgia this weekend.
With Baylor coming to town, Bears head coach Glenn Moore, along with Baylor assistant coaches Mark Lumley and Britni Sneed return to Baton Rouge. Moore was the LSU head coach from 1999-2000, posting a 117-25 record and winning two SEC Championships and two SEC Tournament titles. Lumley was an assistant for Moore with the Tigers from 1999-2000, while Sneed was a three-time All-American for LSU from 2000-2002 and still holds 22 Tiger pitching records.
“We are pleased to welcome back former Tigers Glen Moore and Mark Lumley,” said Girouard. “We are especially excited to welcome back one of LSU’s favorite daughters in Britni Sneed.”
Junior Lauren Castle leads a trio of Tigers with over a .400 batting average, hitting at a .423 clip this season. Freshman Quilan Duhon leads the team with seven home runs, while freshman Vanessa Soto has a team-best 10 doubles and 29 runs batted in.
As a team, LSU ranks second in the SEC with a .351 batting average. With 49 doubles, five triples and 21 home runs, the Tigers lead the league with a .559 slugging percentage.
In the circle, Emily Turner leads LSU with an 8-2 record, including one save, and a 1.74 earned run average. The Chula Vista, Calif., native has two complete-game shutouts, allowing opponents to hit just .153 against her while averaging over eight strikeouts per game.
LSU boasts a 1.91 team earned run average with seven complete-game shutouts. The Tigers have allowed just 39 walks in 139 innings, while striking out 149. Opponents are managing to hit just .170 against the staff, the second lowest total in the SEC.
Kim Wilmoth leads Baylor with a .447 batting average, while Chelsi Lake leads the Bears with nine home runs and 36 RBIs. As a team, Baylor is batting .352 on the season with 51 doubles, 14 triples and 29 home runs.
Cristin Vitek is the ace of the Bear pitching staff, coming in with a 10-2 record in 76 innings pitched with a 1.75 earned run average. Lisa Ferguson holds a 1.42 ERA and a 9-1 record, while former Tiger Tessa Lynam is 6-0 with a 0.17 ERA. As a team, Baylor has posted a 1.49 team ERA with nine shutouts in 30 games with a171 strikeouts in 197 innings or work.
LSU is 4-0 all-time against Baylor, including a 3-0 record at home. The Tigers won the last meeting, 7-3, in 10 innings in the NCAA Regional semi-finals last season on their way to the Women’s College World Series.
Girouard is 7-4 all-time against Baylor, including a 2-0 record at LSU while at LSU. Moore was 2-0 against Baylor in his stint at LSU.