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SB Signing Day 2019SB Signing Day 2019

SB Signing Day 2019

Softball Inks Nine on Signing Day

BATON ROUGE – As the fall season comes to a close, LSU softball and head coach Beth Torina announce the signing of nine during 2019 Signing Day. All will be freshman and eligible for the 2020 season.

FloSoftball ranked the Tigers’ class as No. 2 in the country as they have six in the Top 100 Prospect rankings. Extra Inning Softball also ranked the Tigers second as they have seven ranked in the Elite 100 and a total of eight ranked in the Top 200.

The Tigers signed Hayden Brown (Colleyville, Texas), Emilee Casanova (Amite, La.), Danieca Coffey (Richwood, Texas), Emari Frazier (Franklin, Tenn.), Kennedi Houshmandzadeh (Cerritos, Calif.), Ali Newland (Bremen, Ga.), Presleigh Pilon (Murrieta, Calif.), Laney Roos (Aubrey, Texas) and Morgan Smith (Phoeniz, Ariz.).

“This is a very talented class,” said Torina. “They will truly help in all areas on the field – from speed and power to pitching and catching, they will have an impact throughout this program. 

“We strive for excellence in all that we do here at LSU, and I know we have achieved this with the 2020 class. I look forward to seeing them represent LSU at the highest level.” 

Brown, a 5-10 catcher, will join the Tigers from Colleyville, Texas. Extra Inning Softball ranks Brown as the 14th best player in the 2020 class, while she is ranked 43rd by FloSoftball.

Over the last two years at Keller High School, she batted .508 as a sophomore and .510 as a junior with OPS marks of 1.540 and 1.665, respectively. She helped the Texas Glory 18U team win the World Fastpitch Championship in 2018 and paced the team that year with 16 home runs, 51 RBI, a .824 slugging percentage and a 1.334 OPS.

Brown helped Keller High School go 35-4-1 in 2019 and reach the Class 6A state semifinals, as well as the Texas State tournament for the third time in four years. In 2019, she earned many accolades, including USA Today All-USA Third Team, Extra Innings Second Team All-American and First Team All-District.

Casanova, a 6-2 pitcher, comes to Baton Rouge from Amite, La. She is a four-time letterwinner at Oak Forest Academy, where she helped her team to back-to-back state championship appearances, claiming the title in her freshman season. In her senior season, she pitched 126 innings and tallied 145 strikeouts, while holding a .414 batting average.

The four-time 4.0 Honor Roll selection, is a four-time All-District honoree and a two-time All-State selection. She also lettered in basketball and track. She throws the discus, picking up State Champion honors as a junior and was the state runner up as a sophomore.

Coffey, a 5-6 infielder, will join the Tigers from Richwood, Texas. She is ranked as the 17th best player in the 2020 class by FloSoftball and is ranked 56th by Extra Inning Softball.

At Angleton High School, she batted .430 as a junior, tallying 10 triples with 35 RBI and 54 run scored. After helping her team to a state championship as a junior, she earned all-state honors, Defensive All-District and was named Defensive Player of the Year. She earned First Team All-American honors at the USA Elite Select Showcase in 2017.

The Texas senior had a season-saving inside-the-park home run in a Class 5A state semi-final game that helped the Lady Cats ultimately win the state title. She hit .487 as a sophomore with 57 hits, 39 RBI, three triples, six doubles and four home runs to go along with 26 stolen bases. That year, she helped her team to a fifth-place finish at state.

Frazier, a 5-6 infielder, comes to Baton Rouge from Franklin, Tenn. She is ranked the 48th best player in the 2020 class by Extra Inning Softball. She plays with LSU signee Kennedi Houshmandzadeh on the Firecrackers, who is coach by NFL great TJ Houshmandzadeh.

She committed to LSU in October of 2016, has a good arm and the ability to shut down the speed game of the opponent’s fastest players. Offensively, she has natural strength and can go yard on any pitch. She loves pressure situations and enjoys being the go-to hitter when the game is on the line.

Houshmandzadeh, a 5-4 infielder, will join the Tigers from Cerritos, Calif. She is the daughter of NFL great TJ Houshmandzadeh and sister of current LSU softball player Karrington Houshmandzadeh.

The two-time second team all-league selection is ranked the 16th best player in the 2020 class by Extra Inning Softball and she is ranked 73rd by FloSoftball. She has helped Los Almitos High School to a 72-16 record in three years, including CIF Southern Section Division I Champions as a freshman.

Off the field, she has been on the honor roll in all four years and earned All-League Academic team honors the past three years. As a junior, she was a member of the Junior Honors Society.

Newland, a 5-4 outfielder, comes to Baton Rouge from Bremen, Ga. She is ranked the 20th best player in the 2020 class by Extra Inning Softball and is ranked 55th by FloSoftball. In her prep career at Bremen Hall, she earned multiple honors, including First Team All-State and Region 6AAA Player of the Year.

This fall, she helped her team to a second-place finish in the AA Georgia State Playoffs.  She was voted the 2018 Times Georgia Most Valuable Player. She earned First Team All-Region, First Team All-Area and All-Area MVP. She had a season batting average of .567 with a 1.216 slugging percentage, 53 hits, 60 runs scored, 45 RBI, 16 home runs and was 23-for-23 in stolen bases.

She plays for the Georgia Impact under Patrick Lewis and has helped them to a PGF Championship run the last two years. 

Pilon, a 5-8 infielder, will join the Tigers from Murrieta, Calif. She is ranked as the seventh best player in the class of 2020 by Extra Inning Softball and is ranked 50th by FloSoftball. She is a two-time Cal-Hi All-American and a three-time all-league selection.

In her eight years with Athletics-Mercado, she has been a part of every national championship at each age group: 12U, 14U and 18U, while taking second at 10U and 16U. She also has won a CIF Championship for Murrieta Mesa High School as a freshman, hitting .450 that season.

As a sophomore, she hit .475 with nine home runs to earn Extra Inning Softball First Team All-American honors. As a junior, she earned Second Team All-American honors by Extra Inning Softball after hitting .400 with 37 hits, including four home runs.

Roos, a 5-6 left handed pitcher, joins the Tigers from Aubrey Texas. She threw her first career perfect game last May. She is a 2019 11-4A Co-MVP and All-Area Co-MVP. She earned DMN All-Area Second Team and TGCA All-State honors.

In 2018, she was named 11-4A Defensive MVP and earned TGCA All-State and All-Area First Team honors. She was District 11-4A Co-MVP in 2017, All-Area Newcomer of the Year and TGCA All-State.

Roos was a part of the 2019 18u USSSA North Texas Fall Shoutout Championship. She plays club ball for the Texas Glory.

Smith, a 5-10 pitcher, will come to Baton Rouge from Phoenix, Ariz. FloSoftball ranked her as the 28th best player in the class and she is ranked 62nd by Extra Inning Softball. She is a 6A Desert Valley First Team All-Region selection and was a Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year nominee. She led her team to back-to-back 6A Desert Valley Section Champions. 

She won a state title at Pinnacle High School in Phoenix as a sophomore and earned First Team Extra Inning Softball All-American status. In the last two years in high school competition she has hit 21 home runs and had a .503 mark at the plate. As a junior, she went 15-0 in the circle with a total of 187 strikeouts in 100.2 innings of work. As a sophomore, she finished with 13 home runs and was 12-3 in the circle. As a freshman, she hit .473 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI. 

For all of the latest news and information on Tiger softball, visit www.lsusports.net/softball. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/lsusoftball along with @lsusoftball and @BethTorina on Twitter and @lsusoftball on Instagram.