BATON ROUGE — Sixth-ranked LSU pounded four home runs, including a record three in the first inning, while all but two Tigers saw action as part of an 11-1 win over cross town rival Southern in five innings on Tuesday evening at Tiger Park.
With the win, LSU (43-6) extended its winning streak over in-state opponents to 54 games and remained undefeated against the Lady Jaguars in five meetings. Southern (13-16), however, did score its first run on the Tigers, snapping its scoreless streak at 26 innings.
“You have to perform every time you come out to the field because the 54-straight is not just a given,” said LSU head coach Yvette Girouard of the current winning streak over Louisiana opponents. “This is always a big game for the in-state schools. I’m proud of our team that they can get the job done during these mid-week games because it’s easy to get up for the weekends, but it can be a coach’s nightmare mid-week.”
Fifteen of LSU’s 17 players saw duty on the field, with several players getting action at new positions. Freshman Lindsey Hope played a third for the first time this season in just her second collegiate appearance, while freshman Cody Trahan played several innings at first base for the first time this year. Junior utility player Erika Sluss got action behind the plate for the first time this season, her fifth position played this year.
“I want them to always stay hungry on the bench and to never think that they aren’t coming in,” Girouard said of some of the reserves who saw action on Tuesday. “We’ve gone through a rash of injuries throughout the season so we always want to make sure we know what we have going into postseason play. It’s always good to get to play a lot of people.”
Senior Leslie Klein tied the LSU single-game record with a pair of home runs as the two-time All-American finished 2-for-3 with three RBIs and two runs scored. With 30 career home runs, she is now just one shy of Julie Wiese’s school record of 31. In addition, she moved into 10th place in single-season RBIs with 48 and is only 16 shy of her single season record.
“It was a fun day at the ballpark for the Tigers,” said Girouard. “Klein is hitting the ball really well and we jumped out early in that first inning. There were a lot of balls flying over the fence, which is a lot of fun, and we got the job done in five.”
For the third-straight game, Tayl’r Hollis extended her hitting streak with a home run. The junior now sits at 13 games and counting, the longest current streak on the team and tied for the fifth-longest streak in school history. Hollis, who has five round trippers on the season, has now hit three home runs in her last seven plate appearances after going 2-for-2 with an RBI and a run scored.
Quinlan Duhon was the third Tiger to hit a home run. The junior designated player now has six on the season, which is tied for third on the team. For the game, Duhon went 1-for-3 with two RBIs and a run scored. Batting seventh in the line-up, her home run with two outs in the first inning broke the school record for home runs in an inning, besting the previous record of two done on many occasions.
Freshman Jazz Jackson posted a 3-fof-3 day at the plate with an RBI and two runs scored, while Rachel Mitchell went 2-for-2 with two doubles, two RBIs and two runs scored. Sluss added a double in going 1-for-1 with two RBIs as part of a 14-hit performance for LSU in the game.
After a shaky outing at Mississippi State last weekend, senior Emily Turner rebounded against the Lady Jaguars. The All-American started and earned the win to improve to 14-5 on the season. She allowed just two hits and a walk with six strikeouts in three innings of work. Junior Tiffany Garcia came on in relief in the fourth and gave up one run on three hits with a walk and four strikeouts in the final two innings.
“I wanted to give Emily some innings because she didn’t have a very good outing at Mississippi State and I thought she threw a little bit better tonight,” said Girouard. “She’s keeps getting better and she will get there.”
Megan Hodge started and took the loss for Southern to fall to 11-6 on the season. She allowed nine runs on 10 hits with a walk in an inning before being relieved in the second. Jennifer Hodrick then came on and gave up two runs on four hits with two strikeouts in the final three innings.
The Tigers now take to the road once again for a three-game SEC series at Arkansas. The series will begin with a doubleheader on Saturday at 1 p.m. and conclude with a single game on Sunday at 1 p.m. After a mid-week game at Southeastern Louisiana next Wednesday, LSU’s final regular season home games will be a three-game series against No. 1 Tennessee on April 28-29. The series begins with a doubleheader on Saturday at 3 p.m., in a game time that was pushed back two hours for television, and concludes with a single game on Sunday at 1 p.m. The first and third games of the series will be broadcast live nationally on ESPN2, in Baton Rouge on cable channel 36.