The LSU softball team battled through a midweek doubleheader against Georgia Southern on Tuesday, taking both games to extend its current winning streak to seven straight.
“Some things we’ve been waiting on to happen happened tonight,” said LSU coach Beth Torina. “Add that to the win streak that we’re on, and I think we’re in a really good spot.”
LSU (25-5, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) used two high-powered innings in game one to wrap up a five-inning, run-rule victory against the Eagles (14-16).
The Tigers stormed out to a 5-0 lead in the second inning with an impressive display of power. Freshman shortstop Bianka Bell and sophomore designated player Rikki Alcaraz started the inning with back-to-back solo home runs.
After freshman first baseman Sandra Simmons and senior catcher Lauren Houston reached base later in the inning, sophomore outfielder and leadoff hitter A.J. Andrews knocked a triple off the center-field wall that scored Simmons and Houston.
Junior utility player Jacee Blades finished the Tigers’ five-run outburst in the second, driving in Andrews with an RBI single.
Bell started the Tigers’ fifth inning in similar fashion, launching her second solo home run of the game. Alcaraz couldn’t follow Bell with another home run the second time around, but she did reach base on a single to tie her career high in hits with a perfect 3-for-3 day.
After Simmons and freshman infielder Hailey Smith reached to load the bases, Houston ended the game with a two-RBI single.
The second game proved to be a much closer contest, with LSU winning, 3-2.
Georgia Southern grabbed an early two-run lead in the top of the first inning. The Eagles put runners on first and second with a walk and help from an LSU error. Then, Eagles first baseman Tabby Douberley drove in both runs with a double to left field.
The Eagles’ lead didn’t last long, as LSU answered with two runs of its own in the bottom of the first inning.
Both teams remained scoreless until the third inning when Bell came through for the Tigers once again. Bell sent a double into the left field gap that scored junior infielder Allison Falcon, who reached base on a walk earlier in the inning.
“Today I was just seeing the ball really well,” Bell said. “I was just trying to stay within myself and stick to the plan. Today the plan worked.”
Bell struggled offensively in the Tigers’ most recent series against Kentucky, so Torina said she was pleased to see the freshman standout bounce back mentally from a poor weekend.
“She doesn’t have to get hits to lead us,” Torina said. “Just her approach at the plate leads us, so when she actually is able to come through, it’s even more dangerous.”
LSU’s bats went cold for the remainder of game two, but Bell’s go-ahead RBI proved to be all the Tigers needed as junior pitcher Meghan Patterson delivered a solid final six innings after giving up the two first-inning runs.
Patterson found herself in multiple jams throughout the game but saved herself from any additional damage, stranding six Georgia Southern runners in the game.
Patterson loaded the bases in the sixth inning, but Torina said she never thought about pulling Patterson because the first-year starter needed the confidence boost of working through jams.
“I think she understands that she has missed a couple of pitches here and there,” Torina said. “This is the SEC, and when you make mistakes, you’re going to pay for it.”
The Tigers’ game one pitcher, senior Rachele Fico, breezed through the Georgia Southern lineup, allowing only two hits for a five inning shutout and her 15th win of the season.
LSU will continue its SEC schedule this weekend when it hosts South Carolina for a three-game series starting on Friday.
