BATON ROUGE — The No. 19 LSU softball team reeled off five consecutive hits en route to five runs in the first inning highlighted by a Juliana Santos grand slam and didn’t look back in a 10-2 five-inning rout over Kentucky Sunday afternoon at the new Tiger Park.
The Tigers (14-5, 2-1 SEC) won its opening SEC series for the 12th time in 13 series since softball was reinstated in 1997.
“It was important for us to come out and set the tone,” head coach Yvette Girouard said. “We know we have to score runs and approach every inning like its 0-0. We were playing with a makeshift lineup [without starting second baseman Ashley Langoni] and shuffled some things around today. All in all, it was a great job by the Tigers today.”
Kirsten Shortridge, Jazz Jackson and Rachell Mitchell set the table with a trio of infield hits for Santos, who cranked a 2-2 pitch onto the left field berm to give the Tigers a 4-0 advantage.
Santos finished the game with a career-best five RBIs after adding a bases loaded walk in the fifth inning. She became the first LSU player to reach that feat since Tayl’r Hollis against St. John’s (Feb. 15) last season.
“We knew that we needed to come back after what happened yesterday,” Santos said. “The coaches did an excellent job of preparing us and it was crucial for us to get off to a fast start. We really wanted to buckle down and finish them in the five innings.”
Ashley Applegate tacked on single and advanced to second on a fielding error by UK right fielder Destinee Mordecai. She came around to score on an Anissa Young RBI-single to cap the five-run first inning.
A Katie McCarty RBI-single in the second inning allowed Kentucky to pull within 5-1 before Young belted a towering homer to left field to stretch the LSU lead back to 6-1 in the third inning.
The Wildcats strung together back-to-back hits in the fifth inning as Holly Johnson knocked a RBI-double to draw UK back to 6-2.
LSU responded with four runs during a two-out rally in the home half of the frame. Courtney Hollier hustled down the line to force a throwing error by Johnson on a ground ball. The Tigers showed patience at the plate as Shortridge, Mitchell and Santos drew walks sprinkled between singles by Jessica Mouse and Jackson to make it 9-2.
“We talk about how important it is to extend innings,” Girouard said. “It’s a teaching process with a young team. Players want to come in and hit the ball as hard as they can. You have to learn how to play the game [by] dropping a bunt down or drawing a walk in certain situations.”
Jackson scored on a wild pitch by UK reliever Rachel Riley for the final margin of 10-2. She finished the game with a season-best three hits.
“This was a big win for us because we are a young team,” Jackson said. “Our effort today put a stamp on the whole weekend. We need to keep moving forward and build on this.”
Cody Trahan won her fifth consecutive start firing a complete game in the circle.
LSU squares off with Baylor in a mid-week showdown. First pitch on Wednesday is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be broadcasted live on The X 104.5 and 104.9 in the Baton Rouge area. Patrick Wright, the voice of Tiger softball, will call the play-by-play action. LSUSports.net also will provide live stats.
The night before the game, former All-American hurler and current Baylor assistant coach Britni Sneed will be the first Tiger softball player to be inducted into the LSU Hall of Fame.
“We have a ton of respect for Britni and for what she did for this program,” Girouard said. “Her and [current Baylor head coach] Glenn Moore put this program on the map. It should be a fun night at the ballpark.”
Wednesday also marks the third of four Weekday Worker’s Nights. By providing a business card at the new Tiger Park ticket office, fans will receive an adult ticket for the $3 youth price and will be entered to win a $50 gift certificate to LSUShop.net.