BATON ROUGE — After being ranked No. 9 in the NFCA/USA Today preseason poll, the LSU softball team enters the 2008 season ranked No. 7 in the ESPN/USA Softball preseason poll released on Tuesday.
Defending national champion Arizona tops the poll, edging out Arizona State. The Wildcats defeated Tennessee in the best of three championship series. The Sun Devils advanced to the Women’s College World Series last season after defeating the Tigers in the NCAA Super Regionals and finished ranked seventh.
Texas A&M, which also advanced to the WCWS, comes in a third, followed by Alabama and Oklahoma. Rounding out the Top 10 are Northwestern, LSU, DePaul, Baylor and UCLA.
The Pac-10 leads the way with seven teams ranked in the top 25, followed by the Big 12 with five ranked teams and the SEC with four. Among the four SEC teams in the top 25, two are in the top 10, including Alabama and LSU. Tennessee comes in at No. 11 and Florida is ranked No. 13. South Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi State are among the 21 teams receiving votes.
LSU will play 12 of its regular-season games against six teams that are ranked in the Top 25, including five games against three Top 10 opponents. Ranked opponents on the Tigers’ 2007 schedule include No. 1 Arizona, No. 4 Alabama, No. 6 Northwestern, No. 11 Tennessee, No. 13 Florida and No. T-24 Cal State Fullerton.
The Tigers return NFCA first-team All-American and Diamond Sports National Catcher of the Year Killian Roessner and All-South Region selections Dani Hofer and Jazz Jackson. LSU ranked fourth nationally in win-loss percentage last season, second in earned run average, eighth in doubles per game and posted top 50 rankings in scoring, batting average, slugging percentage, home runs per game, stolen bases per game and fielding percentage.
Along with Hofer, the Tigers have three outstanding pitchers to go to in the circle. Tiffany Garcia returns for her senior season after being a reliable reliever for the last two years. Cody Trahan will be called upon to stop into a starter’s role this year, while LSU is bringing in South Carolina Gatorade Softball Player of the Year Casey Faile.
Despite having to replace two starters in the infield, the Tigers have a wealth of experience and talent to choose from to make the transition much easier. Shannon Stein will remain at second base for the second season, while Tayl’r Hollis makes the move to shortstop. A career utility player who has seen action at five different positions in her career, Erika Sluss will take over at first base. Freshman Jessica Mouse is expected immediately step in and start at third base.
The 2007 outfield returns two of its three starters, including Jackson in centerfield with Quinlan Duhon or Rachel Mitchell in left and Dee Dee Henderson in right field. The Tigers also add speedsters Tiffany Shaw and Ashley Applegate for depth.
The Tigers will host the 2008 Southeastern Conference Tournament and be in action for 19 regular season games and two pre-conference tournaments at Tiger Park. SEC Tournament tickets, along with LSU season and individual game tickets, went on sale on Monday.
The SEC Tournament will be held at Tiger Park for the first time. The three-day single-elimination tournament will determine the league’s automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament. LSU has advanced to the championship game eight times in the last nine seasons, winning the title an unprecedented five times, including last season when the Tigers defeated Florida, 1-0, in nine innings.
Tickets for the tournament went on sale at the LSU Ticket Office, along with regular season tickets, on Monday. Tournament books are available for $20 each for adults and $10 each for youth between the ages of 3 and 12. All children under three get into Tiger Park for free.
Season tickets are available for $60 for reserved seats, while single-game tickets are available at a cost of $5 for adults and $3 for youth. Fans are encouraged to get their season tickets this season to guarantee great seats in the new Tiger Park for next season. Fans can purchase tickets online at the official web site of LSU Athletics, www.LSUsports.net, at the ticket office or call (225) 578-2184 or (800) 960-8587. LSU students, faculty and staff are admitted free to regular season games with an LSU ID.
The Tigers will open the season at home on Friday, Feb. 15 in the Easton Tiger Classic. LSU will begin play at 3:30 p.m. against St. John’s before taking on Ball State at 5:45 p.m. The Tigers will also face Nicholls State and Chattanooga as part of the three-day tournament.
2008 Preseason NFCA/USA Today Top 25 Poll
Rank Team Final 2007 Record Points Final 2007 Ranking
1. Arizona (14) 50-14-1 487 1
2. Arizona St. (3) 54-17 468 7
3. Texas A&M (2) 46-14 465 8
4. Alabama 55-10 425 11
5 Oklahoma 55-8 410 9
6 Northwestern 52-13 346 4
7. LSU 55-12 325 10
8. DePaul 47-13 324 6
9. Baylor 51-16 319 5
10 UCLA (1) 37-18 304 18
11. Tennessee 63-8 285 2
12. Michigan 47-13 278 12
13. Florida 50-22 270 15
14. Washington 42-19 256 3
15. Virginia Tech 49-16 239 14
16. Hawaii 50-13 233 13
17. Stanford 35-21-1 162 21
18. Georgia Tech 54-16 135 16
19. Oregon State 41-23 127 17
20. ULL 46-18 115 NR
21. Missouri 40-24 74 19
22. Ohio State 40-18 65 22
23. Oregon 44-19 63 23
T24. Cal St. Fullerton 38-23 62 20
T24. Texas 35-20 62 NR
Others receiving votes: Massachusetts (21); South Carolina (18); California (17); Houston (16); Florida State (14); Fresno State (13); Creighton (13); Nebraska (13); Georgia (13); North Carolina (12); Louisville (7); Southern Illinois (6); Long Beach State (6); Loyola Marymount (6); BYU (6); South Florida (5); Illinois State (5); Mississippi State (4); NC State (2); UNLV (2); Cal Poly ? San Luis Obispo (2).