BATON ROUGE, La. – As the finish line of the regular season approaches, No. 13/14 LSU (37-11, 10-8 SEC) has a pivotal series at Alabama (34-15, 10-8 SEC) April 28-30 at Rhoads Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Both clubs enter the weekend tied fifth in the SEC standings with the SEC Tournament slated for May 9-13 in Fayetteville, Ark.
The series begins with at 6 p.m. CT Friday and will be streamed on SEC Network+ with Gray Robertson and Cait Brooks calling the action. Game two of the series Saturday will be at 1 p.m. CT on ESPN2 and the series finale will be on Sunday at 11:30 a.m. CT on ESPN. Beth Mowins and Michele Smith will call both games on Saturday and Sunday. Fans can also tune in with Patrick Wright, the Voice of LSU Softball, on 107.3 FM in the Baton Rouge area.
LSU comes off its first SEC series sweep this season where they hit a program record 37 hits in the three-game series against Mississippi State. The Tigers rank No. 2 in the SEC with 403 hits behind a .319 batting average which sits at No. 3 in the conference. LSU also has the third-lowest ERA in the league at 1.96, has thrown 259 strikeouts and registered 12 shutouts this season.
Junior shortstop Taylor Pleasants is the SEC Player of the Week for the second time this season after leading the Tigers with a .615 batting average and eight hits, highlighted by back-to-back three-hit performances. In all, Pleasants is batting .355 this season with 45 RBIs (No. 7 in SEC) and has 44 hits, eight home runs and 29 runs scored. Pleasants ranks No. 5 in program history with 37 career home runs and No. 8 all-time with 163 career RBIs.
Junior infielder Danieca Coffey ranks No. 3 in the SEC with 64 hits (No. 12 in the NCAA) and ranks No. 6 with a .416 batting average. Coffey also leads the Tigers with 38 runs scored. Junior outfielder Ciara Briggs has a .348 batting average behind 55 hits which ranks No. 5 in the SEC. Briggs also has 36 runs and leads the team with 10 stolen bases.
Graduate infielder Karli Petty and junior utility player Ali Newland are batting .327 and .318, respectively. Petty has strung together 48 hits this season and has 32 RBIs and 25 runs scored, while Newland leads the Tigers with a .400 batting average and 22 hits in SEC games.
Graduate infielder Georgia Clark has a .298 batting average and has tallied 39 hits and ranks No. 5 in the SEC with 35 walks. Clark has a team-high 11 home runs this season and adds 38 RBIs. Clark sits at No. 4 in LSU softball history with 41 career home runs, No. 3 with 124 career walks, and No. 10 with 157 career RBIs.
Freshman pitcher Sydney Berzon (13-5) ranks No. 9 in the SEC with 106 strikeouts and has a 1.60 ERA in 109.1 innings pitched. Berzon’s 106 punch outs are the 8th most in program history from a freshman and comes into the weekend tied for the most strikeouts in the SEC as a freshman.
Graduate pitcher Ali Kilponen is 11-5 in the circle and has a 2.18 ERA behind 96 strikeouts (No. 11 in the SEC). Kilponen has tossed 11 complete games with four shutouts and three saves in 106.0 innings pitched. Kilponen ranks No. 10 all-time in the program’s history with 55 career wins and her 458 career strikeouts ranks No. 9 in the program’s record book.
THE LINEUP
LSU holds a 45-41 edge in the all-time against Alabama that includes last season’s 2-1 series win at Tiger Park. Although the Tigers played a pair of non-conference games in Tuscaloosa in 2021, they will return to Rhoads Stadium for an SEC three-game series for the first time since 2017.
Alabama dropped its three-game series at home to Auburn last weekend, 2-1. The Crimson Tide has a .279 batting average and league-high 1,271 at bats. Alabama’s strength is its pitching staff that has the second-lowest ERA in the SEC at 1.92 behind 366 strikeouts – also No. 2 in the SEC.
Graduate catcher Ally Shipman leads the offense with a .333 batting average with 48 hits, 28 runs and 28 RBIs. Freshman infielder Kenleigh Cahalan is batting .329, but leads the team with 49 hits, 34 runs, and 29 walks to contribute to a .442 on-base percentage. Junior infielder Bailey Dowling (.308) and graduate infielder Ashley Prange (.294) have each logged 41 and 40 hits, respectively, with Prange leading the team with 12 home runs.
Graduate pitcher Montana Fouts is the club’s ace with an 18-8 record and 1.54 ERA behind a nation-leading 262 strikeouts in 172.1 innings pitched. Junior pitcher Jaala Torrence (6-2) has a 2.38 ERA with 41 strikeouts and has held opponents to a .136 batting average, while sophomore pitcher Alex Salter (6-3) has a 2.27 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 58.2 innings pitched.
ON DECK
LSU concludes the regular season with a three-game series against Georgia May 5-7 at Tiger Park.
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