BATON ROUGE, La. – A new chapter of the season will begin on March 14-16, when fourth-ranked LSU opens its SEC schedule with its first Top 25 series against No. 23 Kentucky at Tiger Park.
The series opener will be at 6 p.m. CT on Friday, March 14, and the first pitch for game two is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT on Saturday, March 15. The series finale will be at 1 p.m. CT on Sunday, March 16. The weekend series SECN+ broadcast will include the LSU Sports Radio Network call with Patrick Wright, The Voice of LSU Softball, and Yvette Girouard.
LSU (24-1) holds a 47-19 advantage in the all-time series against Kentucky (17-7, 3-0 SEC) and has won three of the last four series, including last season’s sweep in Lexington, Ky. The Tigers are 23-4 in SEC openers and are on a six-game winning streak in said matchups. LSU is also 19-8 in home SEC openers and has won two of the last three openers at Tiger Park.
The Tigers dominated in its last appearance on the diamond – a 14-0 one-hit shutout over in-state rival UL Lafayette. LSU will enter the weekend with a 5-0 record against Top 25 teams this season, riding a nine-game winning streak.
LSU has one of the most prolific offenses in the nation, ranking inside the top five with a .496 on-base percentage (No. 1), 132 walks (No. 2), .384 batting average (No. 4) and 209 runs (No. 9). Eight LSU starters bat over .300 and four over .420, led by infielder Danieca Coffey who ranks No. 2 in the NCAA with a .561 average and .680 on-base percentage, and leads the country with 29 walks. Coffey has a team-high 37 hits and is on a 35-game reached-base streak dating back to last season.
The Tigers’ pitching staff and defense have also been elite early in the season, sitting at No. 3 in Division I softball with a 1.59 ERA and No. 4 with a .980 fielding percentage. The LSU pitching staff has totaled 173 strikeouts and 11 shutouts this season, led by two-time All-American Sydney Berzon, who is 9-0 in the circle with a 1.06 ERA (No. 4 in the SEC) and has 53 strikeouts and four shutouts in 53.0 innings. Freshman pitcher Jayden Heavener (7-1) ranks No. 5 in the SEC with 78 strikeouts and has turned in four games with double-digit strikeouts this season. She also has a league-low .124 opposing batting average, and her 11.5 strikeouts per seven innings ranks third in the nation.
For the latest news and information on Tiger softball, visit www.lsusports.net/softball. Fans can follow the team on its social media outlets, such as www.facebook.com/lsusoftball and @lsusoftball, as well as on Instagram and X.
