BATON ROUGE — For the third time this season, the 11th-ranked LSU softball team will attempt to host Southeastern Louisiana as the Tigers prepare to take on the Lady Lions on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Tiger Park.
In LSU’s previous two attempts to play Southeastern Louisiana, the games were cancelled due to rain in Baton Rouge. The Tigers (33-11) enter the game on a seven-game winning streak, their longest of the season, also having won eight of their last nine contests. Conversely, SLU (12-25) comes into the match-up on a four-game losing skid and has lost seven of its last eight.
“Hopefully the third time is the charm and we will get to play Southeastern this season,” said LSU head coach Yvette Girouard. “We will be a bunch of very busy Tigers this week with five games scheduled in the next five days. We just have to take them one game at a time.
“We know that Southeastern is going come in and try to take a game from us like other in-state schools. They always give us a good game and this should be no different. We just need to stay relaxed at the plate and play like we are capable of playing.”
With a three-game series sweep of Kentucky last weekend, the Tigers moved into fourth place overall in the Southeastern Conference. LSU moved ahead of both Florida and Tennessee, but remains behind overall leader Alabama in the West and Georgia and South Carolina in the East.
Junior Kristin Schmidt has been masterful in the circle for the Tigers as of late. The Houston native has won nine-straight games and allowed just two runs in her last five complete games. With a 20-9 record and an earned run average of 0.90 for the season, Schmidt reached the 200-strikeout mark on Sunday, tying her for fifth in LSU single-season history.
Sara Fitzgerald continues to lead the team at the plate. The junior from Kingwood, Texas, has a .309 batting average with 13 doubles, the ninth most in LSU single-season history. In addition, she leads the team in runs batted in and ranks second on the team in home runs and runs scored.
Sophomore Tessa Lynam is a duel threat for the Tigers. With a .303 batting average, four home runs and 26 RBIs, she is one of LSU’s top offensive weapons. The part-time first baseman/designated player is also riding a five-game hitting streak and recorded a double and a home run with five RBIs in the three-game series against Kentucky last weekend. In addition, she sports a 13-2 record in the circle with a 1.96 ERA and has won eight of her last nine games.
Since LSU reinstated its softball program in 1997, the Tigers are 3-0 all-time against Southeastern Louisiana, with all three games being played at Tiger Park. With the exception of a 6-0 shutout victory in 2001, the meetings have been decided by one run. Last season, LSU defeated the Lady Lions, 4-3, with a two-out RBI double by Erin Johnson in the bottom of the sixth inning.
The Tigers will return to action on Wednesday as LSU travels to face Southern Miss in Hattiesburg in a single game at 6:30 p.m. The Tigers defeated the Lady Eagles, 3-0, in Baton Rouge during the Purple & Gold Challenge earlier this season and have now won six-straight over Southern Miss.
LSU will return to conference action this weekend with a three-game series against Ole Miss at Tiger Park. The Tiger will face the Lady Rebels in a doubleheader on Friday beginning at 5:30 p.m. before closing out the series with a single game on Saturday at 1 p.m.