AUBURN, Ala. — The 11th-ranked LSU softball team hits the road this weekend for a three-game Southeastern Conference series against the Auburn Tigers.
LSU (40-12, 16-7 SEC) currently ranks in third place in the league standings behind Eastern Division leader Georgia and Western Division leader Alabama. Auburn (26-25, 13-13 SEC) stands third behind LSU in the Western Division and seventh overall.
“We will have our hands full with this Auburn team,” said LSU head coach Yvette Girouard. “They have a pitcher that is real hot. She threw a no-hitter the other night. They are also dedicating their new stadium this weekend, so they will be even more eager to win because of that. It should be a fun environment for softball if we play the way we have been playing recently.”
Since LSU reinstated its softball program in 1997, the Fighting Tigers are 21-4 all-time against Auburn. LSU is 10-1 in Auburn, Ala., the only loss a 7-3 defeat in the last meeting in 2001. Last season LSU took two out of three from Auburn, dropping the second game of the series at Tiger Park.
LaDonia Hughes led the Tigers in hitting against Arkansas earlier in the week. The junior transfer went 5-for-8 (.625) at the plate with a triple, two RBIs and four runs scored. Camille Harris followed closely with a 4-for-7 (.571) performance including a double, a triple and a home run for a 1.429 slugging percentage. The freshman also knocked in five runs and scored three times.
Continuing her outstanding performance this season, junior Kristin Schmidt has a 25-10 record on the year. The Houston native has won 11-straight starts and allowed just nine earned runs in her last nine complete games. Sporting a 1.00 earned run average for the season, she ranks ninth in victories and in the top 20 in ERA in the NCAA this season.
Kristin Keyes leads Auburn in the circle with a 12-11 record and 2.66 ERA. In addition to her 10-inning no-hitter against Georgia Tech last week, she has recorded a team-best 176 strikeouts on the season. Ashley Griffin is the Auburn leader at the plate with a .321 batting average. She also leads the team with 17 doubles and is tied for the team lead with 17 RBIs.
The three-game series with Auburn will conclude with a single game on Sunday beginning at noon. LSU will return home for the home finale against Southern Miss on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. for Senior Night. The Tigers will honor the three-player senior class prior to game.