KNOXVILLE, Tenn. ? The No. 20 LSU softball team dropped a hard-fought 6-5 decision against No. 18 Tennessee in the SEC Tournament Quarterfinals Thursday at Lee Stadium on the UT campus.
The 11 runs matched a SEC tournament single-game record, while the combined 17 hits set a record. The Lady Vols advance to face top-seeded Florida in the semifinals. LSU will look to the NCAA Selection Show held Sunday at 9 p.m. on ESPNU.
The Tigers (32-16-1) battled back from a 5-0 hole and loaded the bases in the seventh inning. Juliana Santos and Ashley Langoni drew walks coupled with Anissa Young getting hit-by-a-pitch. With two outs, pinch hitter Casey Faile grounded out to end the game.
“Four errors, not enough good pitching and not enough timely hitting in what we call primetime at-bats,” head coach Yvette Girouard said. “To Tennessee’s credit, they took advantage every time the situation was in their favor.”
Kirsten Shortridge tossed three innings of two-hit relief with a trio of strikeouts for the Tigers.
Tennessee (38-15-1) broke through for a pair of unearned runs in the second inning capitalizing on a Jazz Jackson fielding error and a Morgan Russell throwing error.
The Lady Vols tacked on three more runs in the third inning as Jessica Spigner and Jen Lapicki knocked RBI-singles to pull ahead 5-0.
LSU fired back for four runs in the home half of the frame. With one out, Jessica Mouse sparked the rally with a single to left field. Shortridge reached on a walk and Jackson slapped an infield single to fill the bases.
Rachel Mitchell and Santos platted runs to bring LSU back to 5-2, while Young belted a two-run single to right field to make it 5-4.
Tennessee responded with a Kelly Grieve two-out, RBI-single in the fourth inning to give the Lady Vols a 6-4 edge. LSU’s Cody Trahan was chased from the game after facing one batter in the fifth inning. She fell to 11-6 and allowed four earned runs on seven hits.
The Tigers manufactured a run in the fifth inning on an Ashley Applegate fielder’s choice for the final margin of 6-5.
“It was a battle, but it just went Tennessee’s way tonight,” Shortridge said. “Everyone fought and our goal is to not leave the field with regrets. I hope my teammates didn’t do so, I know I didn’t. We just have to get that all cleaned up, and we’ll be back to winning.”