No. 6 LSU Set to Host the 2024 Tiger Classic

Boise State enters the weekend on a four-game winning streak and has a 3-0 mark in the road games. The Broncos have a .283 batting average and 77 hits, including 15 home runs this season. Boise State’s defense has turned five double plays, and the pitching staff has a 3.48 ERA with 59 strikeouts in 66.1 innings.  

Freshman outfielder Sophia Knight is the team’s top hitter with a team-high .500 batting average on 18 hits (No. 8 in NCAA) and is 3-for-3 in stolen bases. Infielder Sydney Groves follows, hitting .393 and ranks No. 5 in the NCAA with five home runs and No. 8 with 15 RBIs.

Pitcher Taylor Caudill is 5-1 in the circle with a 2.45 ERA and has 35 strikeouts in 34.1 innings to lead the staff. Pitcher Jenna Bloom has thrown 18.1 innings, registering 16 strikeouts, and has a 5.73 ERA. 

Houston has played all 11 games at home and is currently on a seven-game winning streak. The Cougars rank No. 7 in the NCAA and No. 2 in the Big 12, with a .388 batting average, and has 102 hits and 90 RBIs. The pitchers have a 2.86 ERA as a unit and have 27 strikeouts in 66 innings pitched. 

UH has five batters hitting over .400, including utility player Kennedy Thomas, who leads the team with a .500 average on 15 hits and has scored 13 runs. Utility player Bree Cantu is batting .464, ranks No. 2 in the NCAA with 20 RBIs, and has four home runs this season.

Lefty pitcher Shelby Smith is 5-0 in the circle and has two complete games with one shutout. Smith has a staff-high 12 strikeouts in 26.1 innings with a 3.46 ERA. Pitcher Paris Lehman (3-0) has a 1.12 ERA in 18.2 innings pitched, and pitcher Tamya Waiters (1-0) has 10 strikeouts in 13.1 innings pitched.  

LSU has won five of the last seven head-to-head meetings against Houston, but both teams are 2-2 in the previous four games, with all four runs being decided by one run. The last time the two clubs faced off against each other was in the 2018 Baton Rouge Regional when the Tigers defeated the Cougars 1-0 on May 19, 2018.

Austin Peay is 5-1 this season and has played all its games on the road. The Governors hit .294 in the box through the first two weekends of the season and have tallied 42 hits and 30 RBIs. APU has also outscored its opponents 33-9 thanks to a pitching staff with a 1.70 ERA and logged 27 strikeouts and two shutouts in 33.0 innings this season.  

Lexi Osowski is the team’s leader with a .500 batting average and eight hits. She also has six RBIs and four runs. Infielder Kylie Campbell (.462) has a team-high nine RBIs, and two home runs with a .923 slugging percentage, and catcher Mea Clark (.412) rounds out the top hitters with seven hits, including three extra-base hits. 

Pitcher Jordan Benefiel has a 0.98 ERA and has struck out 22 batters in 21.1 innings. Benefiel has thrown two complete games and one shutout while holding opposing batters to a .189 average. Pitcher Samantha Miener has also seen time in the circle and has a 3.00 ERA with five strikeouts in 11.2 innings.