BATON ROUGE — The LSU softball team opens the 2006 season this weekend with the Easton Purple & Gold Challenge at Tiger Park, beginning with games against Stephen F. Austin at 3:30 p.m. and Northwestern State at 5:45 p.m. on Friday.
Along with the Ladyjacks and Lady Demons, the Tigers are hosting Arkansas-Pine Bluff and South Dakota State as part of the three-day tournament, which beings on Friday at 11 a.m. and concludes with the championship game on Sunday at 2 p.m.
“The team is tremendously excited about getting on the field,” said LSU head coach Yvette Girouard. “They look forward to competing against an opponent that is not wearing a purple and gold uniform.”
The tournament features round robin play on Friday and Saturday and wraps up with championship play on Sunday. Friday’s other game includes Stephen F. Austin against South Dakota State at 11 a.m., South Dakota State vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 1:15 p.m. and Arkansas-Pine Buff against Northwestern State at 8 p.m.
“We welcome some new faces to Tiger Park and bring in some friendly foes from the past,” said Girouard about the five-team field. “We hope the weather will cooperate and the fans will come out to see a great Tiger team in action.”
The Tigers did not lose a starter from their 2005 team, and lost only one letterwinner, while also adding a trio of newcomers who can help them revisit the level of success that has become a staple for LSU throughout the program’s history.
Seniors Lauren Castle and Stephanie Hill led the Tigers with identical .367 batting averages a year ago. The 2006 team captains started every game for LSU, while Castle led the team with 180 hits and Hill ranked second on the team with seven home runs.
Sophomore Vanessa Soto led the Tigers with 39 RBIs and 16 doubles as a freshman last season, while sophomore Quinlan Duhon ranked second on the team with 38 RBIs and posted a team-best eight home runs. Senior Camille Harris and sophomore Dee Dee Henderson tied for the team lead with 21 stolen bases each.
In the circle, junior Emily Turner led LSU last season with a 17-16 record and 2.28 earned run average. In addition, she posted a team best six shutouts with 203 strikeouts. Sophomore Megan Jolly, who played most of her freshman year injured, recorded a 2.32 ERA with a 7-5 record in 2005, while recording three shutouts and 71 strikeouts.
The Tigers are 8-1 all-time in season openers, including a 6-0 record at Tiger Park. In nine previous season openers, the Tigers have outscored opponents 91-8 and recorded six shutouts.
This will be the seventh consecutive year LSU has hosted the Purple & Gold Challenge. The Tigers have won five of the six previous tournaments – the sixth was called due to weather. LSU is 27-2 all-time in the Purple & Gold Challenge.
Last season, the Tigers went undefeated at 6-0 in tournament play. LSU posted four run-rule wins, including a 13-0 win and two 10-2 wins over Ohio in five innings, and an 11-0 win over Columbia in five innings. In addition, the Tigers posted a pair of wins over Columbia, 6-1 and 1-0.
This will be the first meeting between the Tigers and both Arkansas-Pine Bluff and South Dakota State. The Tigers are 19-0 all-time against Northwestern State, including nine shutouts and four run-rule victories. LSU has also posted a 6-1 series record against Stephen F. Austin, but the last meeting was a loss to the Ladyjacks in 2003.
The Demons posted the best record last season of any team coming in for the tournament. Northwestern State went 35-28 with a 15-12 mark in the Southland Conference. The Demons return nine of 17 letterwinners from a year ago, including five starters.
Stephen F. Austin, also a member of the Southland, recorded an 18-30 mark a year ago with an 8-19 record in league play. The Ladyjacks return 12 letterwinners from last season, including six starters.
This is the second year at the NCAA Division I level for SDSU, which posted a 30-29 mark, including a 3-16 record against Division I teams, as an independent in the Jackrabbits first year after the move up from Division II. South Dakota State has 13 returning letterwinners, including six starters. The Lady Lions from MVSU were 2-41 last season, with a 2-22 record in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
The Tigers continue tournament play on Saturday with games against Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 1:30 p.m. and South Dakota State at 3:45 p.m. LSU will participate in bracket play on Sunday as the tournament concludes with the championship game at 2 p.m.
The Tigers host a doubleheader with Grambling State next Wednesday at 4 p.m. before hosting the Easton Tiger Classic next weekend. LSU will bring in nationally ranked Washington, Eastern Michigan, Mississippi Valley State and Western Kentucky for the three-day tournament.