The LSU softball team is set to host its second consecutive weekend tournament, kicking off the Purple and Gold Challenge on Friday against North Dakota State.
The No. 10 Tigers (5-1) will host five games in three days, playing two games against Virginia (2-1) and individual matchups with Memphis (1-4) and Nicholls (3-2) in addition to Friday’s opener.
LSU finished its season-opening Tiger Classic last weekend with a 4-1 record, its only blemish coming in a 3-1 loss to No. 22 North Carolina in the final game of the tournament.
The Tigers were led by solid performances from senior pitcher Rachele Fico and junior pitcher Meghan Patterson. The two combined for 29 strikeouts in as many innings of work, while only giving up three earned runs.
Despite collecting the loss against North Carolina, Patterson pitched five innings and surrendered only three hits, but she left two runners on base that eventually scored after she was relieved by Fico.
LSU coach Beth Torina said she couldn’t expect more from Fico or Patterson.
“[Patterson] was fantastic all last weekend,” Torina said. “I hope she doesn’t change one thing about her performances. She was one of the bright spots of the first weekend.”
Patterson’s loss came in a game where run support was minimal, which has been a rarity for a Tigers’ lineup averaging almost five runs per game.
In the Tigers’ 9-1 rout of Ole Miss in a rare non-conference matchup Wednesday, LSU launched four home runs accounting for seven RBIs.
The offensive outburst in the first seven games of 2013 is a welcome change from the fewer than three runs per game the Tigers averaged last season.
“Anytime you pitch on a team that hits that way, it gives you a big comfort level, and anytime you have that kind of run support, it gives you the freedom to work on things more as a pitcher,” Fico said.
Impressive performances from the Tigers’ group of true freshmen has sparked the lineup. Bianka Bell, Sandra Simmons, Kellsi Kloss and Hailey Smith have combined to drive in 10 of the Tigers’ 29 runs.
But perhaps the most significant addition to the Tigers’ offense so far this season is the breakout performance of junior third baseman Tammy Wray.
Wray struggled in 2012, amassing just 19 hits in 125 at bats. This season, Wray is leading the team with two home runs and seven RBIs, which is just two short of her total from last season.
With little time to prepare or rest before each opponent, generating runs is the easiest way to beat multiple opponents in a short amount of time, Fico said.
The Tiger ace, who will have most likely started five games in less than a week-and-a-half by the end of this weekend, said the added run support gives her confidence that the Tigers can have success in another busy weekend.
“We’re trying to make the most of the practice we do have because we have so many games now,” Fico said. “We need to make sure we really get quality reps in before the games.”
