BATON ROUGE – The No. 18 LSU softball team will take fans behind the scenes with “Blogging from the Berm” at different points during the 2011 season.
Senior Jessica Mouse shared some thoughts as LSU hits the road over the weekend for the first time during the 2011 season at the Houston Hilton Plaza Classic. The Tigers have match-ups with host Houston along with No. 20 Oklahoma State, Nicholls State and Southern.
Fans can follow the team’s social media pages at www.Facebook.com/lsusoftball and on Twitter at Twitter.com/LSU_Softball.
Hey Tiger Fans –
I was so thrilled to see everyone at Tiger Park on opening weekend. I forgot how loud the crowd gets when the umpire says, “Play ball!” We came out strong and focused on the little things. Our goal was to win each inning because in the end that would get win us the game. Everyone stepped up in their own way and contributed to each victory. Our speed players continued to set the table for our power bats, that’s all you can ask for. I’m so proud of the freshmen because they proved to everyone that they can hang with anyone. Meghan Patterson started her college career by striking out the side. She continued to shine the rest of the weekend pitching two complete games. Meghan stepped up and showed everyone that she means business. Simone Heyward also had an unbelievable start to her college career. She repeatedly challenged the defense every time she stepped into the box and is a mature hitter in my mind because even when she makes outs, she will let everyone know what she saw at the plate. Most people will hang their heads, but she wants to help everyone no matter what.
Juniors Anissa Young, Ashley Langoni, and Juliana Santos all stepped up in the RBI department. I know they will continue to have great years because each one of them knows how important they are to our team. I also was very proud of the defense because people were thrown into different positions. The communication was good all the way around, and I believe that’s the key to keeping things under control. I hope that everyone enjoyed opening weekend as much as we did!
We’re now heading to Houston to play four different opponents. Everyone is so excited because it is our first bus trip of the season. The freshmen don’t know what to expect, but they will quickly learn the ropes. We have assigned seats on the bus that you keep your entire career. This is a tradition that we learned our freshman year. We all bring movies to watch and Coach Cain (aka Coach Hobbs) will hold each movie up so we can take a poll. This gets very loud, and we tend to argue about which movie gets selected.
The team also likes to lip sing and try to come up with new dance moves in the back of the bus. This gets extremely loud but, to me, is the highlight of the bus rides. We also will have quiet time where everyone has a chance to study. This usually happens on our way back to campus on Sunday’s. I love bus trips because it’s a great bonding experience for everyone. We learn so much about each other and that to me is what makes us stronger.
All of the upperclassmen have been letting the freshmen know how things work on the road. We have helped them with their packing list and let them know that we don’t use our cell phones when we have “family” dinner. We also told them about curfew, and how important it is to get rest on the road.
Everyone is extremely excited for this weekend and for another tournament. I hope that our wonderful fans will come support us in Houston or follow us on LSUsports.net over the weekend. I LOVE all of our supporters and hope to meet as many people as I can throughout the season!!!!
Geaux Tigers,
Jessica