The undefeated No. 3 LSU softball team faces its toughest test to date as the team travels to face fellow unbeaten No. 1 Florida for a three game weekend series beginning at 5 p.m. today.
The Tigers (25-0, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) cruised through their non-conference schedule and got off to a quick start in league play sweeping Arkansas in last weekend’s series. The Gators (27-0, 0-0 SEC) also swept every team in their non-conference slate, recording wins against No. 2 Oregon twice, No. 3 Michigan twice, No. 18 Arizona, No. 23 Kansas and No. 25 North Carolina State three times.
LSU coach Beth Torina said the series is bigger than just the two teams playing.
“What is so neat about it is that it’s so good for the sport,” Torina said. “A matchup like this just hasn’t happened in as long as I can remember in this league, so it’s good for the sport. Everyone will be watching it whether they’re in the SEC [or] out of the SEC because things like this don’t come along very often.”
Both teams have been in good hands no matter who has started in the circle this season. The Tigers and the Gators have both boasted strong pitching rotations that, so far, have proved unbeatable.
LSU’s “Fantastic 4” has a combined record of 25-0 and a 0.86 ERA, and the latter figure is good enough to rank third in the nation. Freshman pitcher
Allie Walljasper leads the team in wins (8), ERA (0.43) and innings pitched (48.1).
Freshman pitcher Carley Hoover is 6-0 with a 1.15 ERA and leads the team in strikeouts (58). Sophomore pitcher Kelsee Selman is 5-0 with 1.13 ERA, and sophomore pitcher Baylee Corbello is 6-0 with a 0.88 ERA, holding opponents to a batting average of .159. Corbello is coming off the first no-hitter of her LSU career in her last start against Northwestern State on March 3.
The Gators counter with a pitching staff that is a combined 27-0 and has an ERA of 0.76, putting them just ahead of the Tigers at second in the nation. Senior Lauren Haeger leads Florida’s rotation with an 11-0 record, a 0.59 ERA and 85 strikeouts.
Freshman Aleshia Ocasio and sophomore Delanie Gourley round out the Florida pitching staff. Ocasio is 9-0 with a 0.69 ERA and Gourley is 7-0 with a 1.06 ERA.
Sophomore second baseman Constance Quinn said she believes LSU’s lineup will be up for the challenge Florida’s pitching depth will pose.
“It’s going to be a good test,” Quinn said. “We have the slappers, we have the power hitters, we have the speed. It might be a little challenging, but we have the lineup that can match with it and the lineup that can get the job done.”
LSU is fifth in the nation in batting average at .375, has a slugging percentage of .610 and has outscored opponents, 199-28, through 25 games.
Sophomore infielder Sahvanna Jaquish leads the nation in RBIs (45), is tied for the lead in sacrifice flies (5) and is tied for third in home runs (11), one off the NCAA lead. Senior center fielder A.J. Andrews leads the nation in triples (7) and checks in at 10th in the nation with an on-base percentage of .633, although nobody ranked ahead of Andrews in the latter category has as many at-bats.
The Gators’ lineup has been lethal, too. Florida has outscored opponents, 212-28, batted .323 and hit 42 home runs in the process.
Not only does Haeger bolster Florida’s pitching staff, she gets it done at the plate. Haeger is hitting .380 and leads the team in home runs (9) and RBIs (34).
Despite Florida being the highest-ranked opponent LSU has faced, Corbello said the Tigers will play the same way they always have.
“I don’t think we’re going in with a scared mentality at all,” Corbello said. “We’re just going to go in, just play our game and just do what we’ve been doing all year.”
You can reach Jack Woods on Twitter @Jack_TDR.