BATON ROUGE — Riding an eight-game winning streak, the fifth-ranked LSU softball team will host South Carolina in a three-game Southeastern Conference series beginning with a doubleheader on Friday at 4 p.m. and concluding with a single game on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The games will both be broadcast on the LSU Sports Radio Network in Baton Rouge on The X ? 104.5/104.9 FM and also in the Geaux Zone on LSUsports.net. Teams will also take over the park against the Gamecocks. Local teams who wear their team uniforms will be admitted to the series for FREE courtesy of The Advocate. In addition, the first 500 fans will get free LSU softball team sports backpacks.
On Tuesday, the Tigers (37-5, 12-2 SEC) swept an SEC doubleheader from Kentucky at Tiger Park. Last weekend, LSU swept a three-game conference series at Auburn, allowing just three runs while recording 18 in the first series sweep for LSU at AU since 2003. With the sweep of Kentucky on Tuesday, the Tigers took over first place in the SEC standing, sitting a half game ahead of Tennessee overall and a game ahead of Alabama in the SEC Western Division.
“We’d like to continue this and finish off this weekend the way the last two weeks have gone,” said LSU head coach Yvette Girouard.
South Carolina (25-13, 3-8 SEC) comes into the series having lost 10 of its last 11 games, but that is a bit deceiving. Five of those losses were to No. 1 Tennessee and No. 2 Alabama, and nine of the 10 losses were by two runs or less. Prior to their current losing slump, the Gamecocks were 24-3 on the season and were among the teams receiving votes in the national polls.
“I have tremendous respect for Joyce Compton,” Girouard said about the South Carolina head coach. “She is one of my oldest rivals over my coaching career. It looks like she has South Carolina back on track. They are a very dangerous team in the fact that they have given Alabama and Tennessee everything they could possibly want. All five of those games were closely contested and South Carolina gave them their best shot. Obviously that has our attention.”
Senior Leslie Klein currently leads LSU at the plate with a .422 batting average. The USA Softball National Player of the Year Finalist leads the SEC with 16 doubles, four shy of the Tiger softball single-season record, with a team-best three triples, five home runs and 40 RBIs. The LSU career record holder for doubles, she is now just two RBI and three home runs shy of breaking those career records.
Juniors Dee Dee Henderson and Killian Roessner are also hitting over .400 for the Tigers with Henderson at .415 and Roessner at .400. Henderson leads the team with 25 stolen bases, while the designated player has scored 31 runs. Roessner has posted 11 doubles with five home runs and 28 RBIs.
Against the Wildcats on Tuesday, third baseman Tayl’r Hollis hit .800 in the series, as she went 4-for-5 with three doubles, two runs scored and two RBIs. Klein and Vanessa Soto also posted four hits in the doubleheader, adding three doubles, four runs scored, three RBIs and two stolen bases between them.
Four starting Tigers are hitting over .300 on the season, including three batting over .400. As a team, LSU ranks second in the league with a .326 batting average and leads the SEC with 64 doubles. The Tigers have also hit seven triples, 35 home runs and scored 255 runs in 42 games.
As a team, the Tigers have a 1.19 earned run average, second best in the conference, and are allowing opponents to hit just .159 against them, also the second best in the league. In addition, LSU pitchers have struck out 368 batters, which averages out to over nine strikeouts per seven innings.
Among the regular SEC starters, Turner leads the way with a 1.20 earned run average and is 13-4 on the season with 124 strikeouts. Sophomore Dani Hofer leads the team with a 15-1 record, while posting a 1.52 ERA and 168 strikeouts. Both freshman Cody Trahan and junior Tiffany Garcia are undefeated on the year, combining for a 9-0 record. Trahan has yet to allow an earned run in give appearances, while Garcia has a 1.04 earned run average in eight appearances.
For the season, South Carolina is hitting just .254 as a team, with 44 doubles, 10 triples and only 14 home runs for a .359 slugging percentage. Ashton Payne leads the Gamecocks with a .336 average as only two of South Carolina’s regular starters are hitting over .300 for the season. McKenna Hughes leads the Gamecocks with 10 doubles, eight home runs, the only player with more than two homers on the team, and 25 RBIs, the only player with more than 14 RBIs.
As a team, South Carolina has recorded just a 1.32 earned run average on the season and struck out 291, giving up less than 1.75 runs per game. Kate Pouliot leads the Gamecocks with a 13-3 record and a 1.08 earned run average, while striking out 112. Melissa Hendon is 10-9 on the year with a 1.45 ERA and 165 strikeouts, while Krystle Robinson is 2-1 in five appearances with a 2.30 ERA and 14 strikeouts.
LSU is 20-10 all-time against South Carolina, including a 10-3 record in Baton Rouge. The Tigers swept the series last year in Baton Rouge and have won four straight at home. Girouard is 34-9 all-time against the Gamecocks, including a 15-5 mark while at LSU.
LSU will conclude its six-game home stand on Wednesday against Southeastern Louisiana at 6 p.m. The Tigers will then travel to Starkville, Miss., for an SEC doubleheader against Mississippi State next Saturday. The series, originally scheduled for the mid-week, was pushed back to the weekend and will serve as LSU’s final doubleheader series.
SERIES FACTS
No. 5 LSU Tigers (37-5, 12-2 SEC) vs. South Carolina Gamecocks (25-13, 3-8 SEC)
DATE/TIME
Friday, April 6 ? 4 p.m. (DH)
Saturday, April 7 ? 1 p.m.
STADIUM
Tiger Park in Baton Rouge, La.
RADIO
LSU Sports Radio Network (WNXX-FM, The X -104.5/104.9 in Baton Rouge)
INTERNET
Live audio and stats in the Geaux Zone at LSUsports.net
TV
None
SERIES RECORD
LSU leads 20-10