BATON ROUGE, La. – Coming off of a loss on Saturday night, the No. 3 LSU Tigers refused to let a repeat happen in the final game of the 2016 Tiger Classic on Sunday afternoon, scoring seven runs in the first three innings and capped by a Bianka Bell walk off three-run home run in the fifth to send the team to a 10-1 win in five innings over the Pacific Tigers.
After being held to just five hits Saturday night, LSU (4-1) pounded out 13 in the tournament finale on Sunday, taking advantage of the multiple scoring opportunities provided in the contest against Pacific (3-2) by going 8-for-15 with runners in scoring position and 11-for-19 with runners on base.
“I thought we had some great moments. I think we have a lot to learn and we have some things to do better coming out of this weekend, which actually excites me,” head coach Beth Torina said.
Bell sent the Tiger faithful out with a bang in the final at-bat of the contest, using a 1-1 count and drilling a shot to left center, finishing the game hitting 3-for-3 with four RBIs and two runs scored. She was one of three players to finish the game with multiple hits, as Sahvanna Jaquish, Bailey Landry and Kellsi Kloss each had two and drove in a run on the day.
“We had a mental breakdown yesterday, but we came back to do what we had to do today and got the win in five innings,” Bell said.
Improving her season record to 2-0, sophomore pitcher Carley Hoover stifled the Pacific bats for much of the game, and battled out of a big jam late to cement the complete-game win by striking out 11 and allowing an unearned run on three hits. She tossed 113 pitches over the course of the contest, with 68 for strikes, one more than the three Pacific pitchers combined.
LSU wasted little time in washing out the loss from Saturday, as after getting the Pacific side to go down in order in the opening frame, LSU got on the offensive quickly with an Emily Griggs leadoff double to center. After a grounder moved her to third, a single to short by Jaquish and infield chopping single by Bell loaded the bases for LSU.
A wild pitch allowed Griggs to score and moved everyone up to make it a 1-0 advantage for the home side. A ripped single by Kloss through the right side scored Jaquish, with Constance Quinn following suit with a single to right to plate Bell giving LSU a 3-0 cushion one inning in.
Hoover ran into a small bit of trouble in the second, walking the first two batters she saw in the inning, but settling down to strike out the next two and getting the third to hit a weak infield fly to end the frame with the shutout intact.
Griggs led off with a walk to open the bottom of the inning, as Landry laid down a bunt single to put two on. It looked like LSU might come up fruitless in the inning after a double play forced out Griggs at third, but with Landry at second, Bell came through with a laser through the infield to score Landry and increase LSU’s lead to 4-0.
Pacific’s first of two pitching changes on the day came to open the bottom of the third, and after a groundout, Hoover helped her own cause with a single down the left field line to reach first. Sydney Bourg came on to pinch run at first, moving to second after an infield single by Sandra Simmons. With both on, a fly ball to center put two outs on the board, but the team remained undeterred as Landry singled to center scoring Bourg to make it 5-0.
On the next play at the corners, Landry broke for second and stole the base, as Simmons raced home and stole home to score to extend the lead to 6-0. Jaquish capped the scoring as she singled to right field, driving in Landry to put LSU up seven.
“We just came out with the mindset that nothing was going to stand in the way of what we wanted to accomplish,” Jaquish said. “We were focused from the start and I think you could tell that we wanted to do everything we could as a team to win today.”
Pacific went to the well to try and get any kind of rally started in the top of the fifth inning, bringing on two pinch hitters that each struck out to get Hoover to 10 on the day. But a walk and single up the middle put two on for the visitors. An infield single loaded the bases, as a passed ball allowed a run to score and advance the runners on base.
A hit batter put three on again, but Hoover was able to end the inning as she started, collecting a strikeout to end the threat and send it to the bottom of the inning.
Griggs reached base on a walk, but was tagged on a force out after a Landry grounder. A walk to Jaquish put two on, leaving the table set for Bell who ended the game on the third pitch, giving LSU its third run-rule victory of the weekend.
“I think if we would have played perfect softball, then we wouldn’t have a lot of things to do next week,” Torina said. “I think it’s good that we understand some of our weaknesses and things we need to work on. That way we can devise a good plan going into a pretty tough next weekend.”
LSU returns to action next weekend, taking part in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Palm Springs, California.
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