BATON ROUGE – Simone Heyward provided a spark from the top of the lineup with four hits, five runs and three stolen bases as the No. 19 LSU softball team picked up a 9-1 six-inning victory over Louisiana Tech followed by a 5-0 shutout of Bowling Green to open the 2011 season Friday on day one of Wilson/DeMarini Tiger Classic at Tiger Park.
LSU (2-0) used strong pitching efforts from Rachele Fico and Brittany Mack to extend its opening weekend home winning streak to 18 games dating back to the 2004 season. The Tigers also improve to 13-2 in season openers.
“I was very happy with opening day, and I thought that all three pitchers were just fabulous,” head coach Yvette Girouard said. “The speed with Simone Heyward, had a career night as a freshman. Saw so many good things out there: good defense, the speed game is going to be a big asset for us. I thought both catchers did a phenomenal job handling the pitchers and throwing people out. “
Heidi Pizer and Juliana Santos provided three RBIs apiece, while Santos teamed with Alex Boulet for a pair of steals. Tammy Wray and Anissa Young also belted three hits each to fuel the offense.
LSU returns to action Saturday against Bowling Green at 12:30 p.m. followed by a 3 p.m. tilt versus Purdue.
“We want to see the same consistency,” Girouard said. “We know that the games will be tougher tomorrow. We do want to thank our fans for coming out here because it was pretty chilly and there were a lot of fans in the stands.”
Live stats for every game of the Wilson/DeMarini Tiger Classic are available on LSUsports.net and fans can follow in-games updates via the program’s social media pages at www.Facebook.com/lsusoftball and www.Twitter.com/LSU_Softball.
The Tiger Park Ticket Booth will open Saturday at 9:30 a.m. and fans can purchase tickets on-site starting at $5 for adult general admission. Additional ticket information for LSU’s home series with SEC heavyweights Alabama, Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee is available at www.LSUtix.net.
Game 1 – LSU 9, Louisiana Tech 1 [6 Innings]
LSU dented the scoreboard with runs in five of the six frames highlighted by a trio of runs in the first and sixth innings.
Heyward was hit-by-a-pitch to open the game. She stole second, advanced to third on a Louisiana Tech error and crossed the plate on a Young RBI-single. Later in the frame, Heidi Pizer would draw walk and Jacee Blades was hit-by-a-pitch, both with the bases loaded, to make it 3-0.
That would be more than enough run support for Fico, who was touched up for a run on three hits. She fired in 11 strikeouts to match a career-high.
The Tigers added single runs in the second, third and fourth innings. Juliana Santos slapped a RBI-single to score Heyward, who opened the second with a leadoff triple. Pizer and Ashley Langoni would tack on runs with a sacrifice fly and RBI-groundout, respectively, to extend the lead to 6-0 after four innings.
Louisiana Tech scored its lone run on a Janna Frandrup RBI-double in the third inning. Fico slammed the door on the Lady Techsters and retired nine of the last 10 batters she faced, four via the strikeout.
Cassie Trosclair and Heyward cranked back-to-back singles to start the sixth inning. Santos cleared the bases with a two-run triple. Two batters later, Young added a RBI-groundout to score Santos for the final margin of 9-1.
“I have been working really hard rehabbing and my trainers have been helping me a lot. Finally I am ready and healthy to play,” Santos said. “We have depth at every position. We all have confidence in each other and it is going to be a very good season. I look forward to watching us.”
Game 2 – LSU 5, Bowling Green 0
LSU raced out of the gates with another three-run first inning. Heyward looped a leadoff single into centerfield, stole second, moved to third on a Santos groundout and scored the game’s opening run via a Langoni RBI-groundout.
Young and Wray reset the table with a single and a walk. The frame was extended on a Bowling Green fielding error which plated Young, while Wray scored on a Pizer RBI-single to centerfield.
The Tigers used some two-out lightning in the fifth inning to cash in two insurance runs. Once again, it was Young and Wray, who knocked a single and double to move into scoring position. The duo would cross the plate after Morgan Russell laced a two-run, two-bagger of her own into the right centerfield gap to push the advantage to 5-0.
“We talk about primetime at-bats and put some pressure on them at practice because it is the RBIs that are going to win us games,” Girouard said. “Three starters [Ashley Applegate, Allison Falcon and Jessica Mouse] are out resting, and everybody that got a chance, did great tonight.”
Brittany Mack tossed six innings of one-hit ball and tallied five strikeouts against two walks. She gave way to Meghan Patterson, who struck out the side in her Tiger debut to put the finishing touches on the 5-0 triumph.
“It was a very good start,” Mack said. “Megan [Patterson] can’t do any better. Three batters, three strikeouts, she did awesome. [Rachele] Fico obviously did her best and got her record strikeouts. I am happy, I came out, produced and added to it.”
LSU vs. Louisiana Tech/Bowling Green
February 11, 2011
LSU PLAYER QUOTES
Head Coach Yvette Girouard
On opening day…
“I was very happy with opening day and I thought that all three pitchers were just fabulous. The speed with Simone Heyward, had a career night as a freshman. Saw so many good things out there: good defense, the speed game is going to be a big asset for us. I thought both catchers did a phenomenal jobs handling the pitchers and throwing people out. “
On hitting in crucial situations…
“We talk about primetime at-bats and put some pressure on them at practice because it is the RBIs that are going to win us games. Three starters are out resting, and everybody that got a chance, did great tonight.”
On the pitching…
“I was very happy with all of them. I was extremely pleased to see Brittany Mack so strong and so much more in command of her pitches. What can you say about the freshman [Meghan Patterson] that comes in and strikes out the size. She’s a very cool, calm customer.”
On tomorrow’s games…
“We want to see the same consistency. We know that the games will be tougher tomorrow. We do want to thank our fans for coming out here because it was pretty chilly and there were a lot of fans in the stands that weren’t parents. They were real fans and we would like to thank them again for coming out.
Designated Player Juliana Santos
On starting the 2011 season after disappointing end to 2010…
“I have been working really hard rehabbing and my trainers have been helping me a lot. Finally I am ready and healthy to play. I am just really excited and looking forward to the 2011 season.”
On the depth of the team…
“We have depth at every position. We all have confidence in each other and it is going to be a very good season. I look forward to watching us.”
On how important timely hitting situations…
“Obviously last year we struggled a little bit with primetime situations. But it was a main focus during practice this fall and spring. It is going to be very crucial during the close games like Florida and Alabama. We are ready; we are just going to keep going.”
On Coach Girouard’s feelings about the team…
“She expects perfection from us every day. She’s glad, she’s happy but what is different this year is that we are holding each other accountable. We expect it from each other but most importantly we expect from ourselves.”
Pitcher Brittany Mack
On a good start to 2011…
“It was a very good start. Megan [Patterson] can’t do any better. Three batters, three strikeouts, she did awesome. [Rachele] Fico obviously did her best and got her record strikeouts. I am happy, I came out, produced and added to it.”
On adjustments in-between seasons…
“I definitely had problems with the stress fractures, and we found out it might be the force at the end of my pitch. We had to find ways to take it off so I can make it through the season. So far, it is working great, and my arm is feeling great.”
On getting rest for tomorrow’s games…
“Definitely going to make sure that I am going to take it easy tonight, then tomorrow same thing. All of us have the right mind. We all came out here and did what we needed to do. We just need to come out and do it again tomorrow.