BATON ROUGE — Riding a 15-game winning streak, the LSU softball team moved up one spot to No. 2 in the USA Softball/ESPN.com poll as the Tigers prepare to host Southern Miss on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Tiger Park.
The No. 2 national ranking is the highest for LSU in school history. The Tigers have been ranked No. 3 in the USA Softball poll once and in the NFCA/USA Today poll on six occasions. The Tigers were ranked No. 6 in last week’s NFCA/USA Today poll, which is released every Wednesday.
After dropping two games to nationally ranked Georgia at home in late March, LSU has rattled off 15 consecutive wins, including a three-game sweep at No. 7 Alabama and 12 consecutive Southeastern Conference games. The Tigers now stand two games ahead of Tennessee in the overall league standings and four and a half games ahead of Alabama in the Western Division standings.
During the 15-game streak, LSU had outscored its opponents 116-21 with seven shutouts and four run-rule victories. Over the last 11 games, the Tigers have allowed just six runs with a 0.38 earned run average.
This will be the fourth meeting between LSU and Southern Miss this season. The Tigers are 3-0 against the Lady Eagles, including a pair of wins at home and one on the road. The game will be broadcast on the LSU Sports Network in Baton Rouge on Country Legends, WJNH 107.3 FM and on the internet at www.LSUsports.net. Cox Sports Television will also broadcast the game tape delayed at 10 p.m. on Baton Rouge cable channel 37.
“We have played very well when we played Southern Miss this season,” said LSU head coach Yvette Girouard. “They have been playing much better and we know that we can not overlook them. We will have to be prepared for them to play us very tough. We hit the ball well and took advantage of our opportunities and we will have to do that again in order to be successful.”
LSU defeated Southern Miss, 19-1 in five innings, in the first meeting on Feb. 21 in the LSU Purple & Gold Challenge. Stephanie Hill went 3- or-3 with a double, three RBIs and two runs scored. Five other Tigers also recorded multiple-hit performances, including a double and a home run by Lauren Delahoussaye.
The pair met again in the Purple & Gold Challenge championship game a day later. LSU again run-ruled the Lady Eagles, taking a 13-2 victory in six innings. Delahoussaye and Sara Fitzgerald each went 3-for-4 for the game as Fitzgerald recorded a pair of doubles and Delahoussaye had one. For the game, the Tigers recorded seven extra-base hits, including three doubles, a triple and three home runs as a total of seven LSU players had multiple-hit performances.
In the third meeting on March 10 in Hattiesburg, Miss., the Tigers scored eight runs on 12 hits to run-rule Southern Miss for a third time, 8-0 in five innings. Lauren Castle went 3-for-3 in the game, while Delahoussaye knocked in three runs on a home run.
Freshman Emily Turner earned the first two victories in the circle for the Tigers. In the first game, she allowed one run on seven hits with a walk and five strikeouts. In the rematch, she allowed two unearned runs on five hits with five strikeouts. In game three, Kristin Schmidt took the complete-game shutout win. She allowed just three hits while striking out seven.
Southern Miss took two out of three at Conference USA rival Charlotte last weekend. The Lady Eagles have also posted wins over Mississippi State and Ole Miss since last playing the Tigers.
Auriel Jenkins leads Southern Miss with a .402 season average, while Ashley Davis is second at .338. Ashley Brenan leads the Lady Eagles with 22 runs batted in, followed by Jenkins with 21 and Davis with 20.
Since LSU reinstated softball in 1997, the Tigers are 13-4 all-time against Southern Miss, including a 9-3 record at Tiger Park. LSU has now won 11 consecutive games over the Lady Eagles, dating back to the 2001. For her career, Girouard is 38-3 all-time against Southern Miss, including a perfect 11-0 record as a Tiger.
LSU returns to SEC action this weekend at home against nationally ranked Auburn. LSU will host the 21st-ranked Tigers in a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m. The series will conclude with a single game on Sunday beginning at 1 p.m.