BATON ROUGE, La. – Head coach Beth Torina and select members of the LSU softball team met with the media on Friday afternoon in the LSU Athletic Administration Building ahead of the Tigers’ season opener next week against Ohio State.
Torina, along with seniors Bianka Bell, Kellsi Kloss and Sandra Simmons, juniors Bailey Landry and Sahvanna Jaquish and sophomores Carley Hoover and Allie Walljasper met with the assembled media ahead of the start of the 2016 campaign that has LSU ranked No. 3 in both of the national polls going into the opening weekend of the season.
“To be at the spot we’re at and to watch the sport grow; it has been really exciting for me as a coach and for this program,” Torina said.
LSU opens the year hosting the 2016 Tiger Classic at Tiger Park, welcoming the Buckeyes, Connecticut, North Florida and Pacific. The Tigers will begin play in the tournament at 5 p.m. next Friday against Ohio State, playing five total games on the weekend.
For all of the latest news and information on Tiger softball, visit www.lsusports.net/softball. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/lsusoftball along with @lsusoftball and @BethTorina on Twitter and @lsusb on Instagram.
LSU Softball Media Day
Friday February 5th, 2016
Head Coach Beth Torina
Opening Statement…
“Welcome, I would like to start by thanking everyone for the coverage that we received last season. I thought it was amazing the support we got from the media, both on a national level and a local level. I think it is just exciting to be a part of this sport right now. To be at the spot we’re at and to watch the sport grow; it has been really exciting for me as a coach and for this program. I would sum up last season by saying its history-making. There were a lot of things this team did that made history for this program. Five All-Americans, receiving our first number one ranking. We broke the average single-season attendance record. We had 21 wins over ranked opponents, and I think the thing that stands out most to me is that we started the season 25-0. This was the best start in LSU season history, and when I think about the tradition of athletics at LSU I think that one means the most to me.”
Senior Infielder Bianka Bell
On if she ever envisioned herself being one of the best hitters in LSU history…
“Not at all. I came in here just with the feelings that this is going to be a great experience for me and it has been for sure. Receiving the coaching I have has helped me immensely and I have been really pleased and blessed with the coaching staff I’ve had. They have helped me get to where I want to be.”
On if she has any specific goals for herself this season…
“I think my only goal is to win the Women’s College World Series. I feel that after receiving all of the accolades last year, I’m focused just on winning this year. I just want to maintain my focus game-by-game and try to be a better player and a leader on this team.”
Senior Infielder Sandra Simmons
On if the team’s preparation changes given the No. 3 ranking in the nation…
“I believe it is an honor to be ranked that high, but we are more focused on our ranking in June and what we can become by then. During our preparation we are going to work like we have a lot to prove, almost as if we were ranked at the bottom of the rankings rather than the top.”
On if the team had hard feelings finishing third after the regular season they had…
“Definitely. We knew what our potential was and we knew we had the potential to finish the season first. It was an exciting moment making to the Women’s College World Series, being that it was my first time there. Finishing third is awesome but it is also not what we work for. We work for being number one at the end of the year. We took no time off from the end of last season to prepare to be first this upcoming season.”
On if she believes LSU can win it all this season…
“We certainly hope so. We are preparing every day, working hard and having that in the back of our minds. We cannot settle for anything less.”
Junior Infielder Sahvanna Jaquish
On her initial thoughts going into the season…
“I am really excited for our team this year. We have a lot of freshmen that can really make an impact coming out of the gate and I am really excited to see that. Also to see the character of our team; It’s different every year because some people leave and others come in.”
On what former teammate A.J. Andrews brought to the group and how they will fill that role this season…
“I don’t think you could ever replace a player like A.J. She was the strongest leader on our team last season, so it’ll be pretty tough to fill that role because she held us all accountable and pushed our team to the next level. But someone will step up.”
On who within the team can be capable of taking on a leadership role…
“Really any of us are capable of being a leader on this team. We have some of the best players across Louisiana and the country, so a lot of us are used to having that leadership role, but we will have to see after we play a couple of games to see who steps up for certain.”