Sophomore third baseman Sahvanna Jaquish pulls her helmet down and steps into the batter’s’ box against Louisiana Tech in the bottom of the
seventh inning Tuesday night. 
The Tigers are trailing by one run, and their best start since 2007 is on the line. Sophomore right fielder Bailey Landry is on third base, and junior shortstop Bianka Bell is on second. 
On the fifth pitch of the at-bat, Jaquish slams a walk-off, three-run shot over the left field wall, catapulting LSU to 11-0 with her fourth homer of 2015. 
“It felt amazing,” Jaquish said. “[LSU coach Beth Torina] told me before I went up to bat that I didn’t have to win it with one swing, but I kind of wanted to a little bit. But when I went up there it was like I wasn’t alone, it felt like there were 21 other girls behind me. Just the noise that was coming from the dugout was comforting to me. I knew we were going to win.”

Jaquish’s home run is an example of the power hitting Torina has built into the Tigers’ lineup since arriving in 2012 taking over a team that tallied only 13 home runs. This season, LSU will depend on veteran power hitters and newcomer freshman pitcher Allie Walljasper to propel the Tigers into the upper echelon of the Southeastern Conference.
In 2014, LSU broke the program single-season record with 65 home runs. Junior catcher Kellsi Kloss, Bell and Jaquish hit 40 of the 49 of homers hit by returning Tigers. 
Last year, Jaquish burst into the spotlight breaking the LSU single-season home run record as a freshman with 17 home runs and 55 RBIs. 
Despite being a freshman, Jaquish stepped up when the Tigers needed her most in the NCAA Tucson Regional. In LSU’s five games in Tucson, Jaquish hit four home runs.  
Jaquish said she understands there will be a target on her back after becoming the first Tiger named an NFCA All-American as a designated player. Jaquish has hit four home runs in the Tigers’ first 11 games, including three three-run homers. 
“I’ve been working on being an all-around better [batter] at every pitch — inside, outside, high and low,” Jaquish said at media day on Feb. 2. “Just limiting my weakness and limiting the chance of them trying to get me out.” 
Bell enters 2015 as the Tigers’ most consistent and experienced power hitter after notching her second-straight season with more than 10 home runs in 2014. 
In her freshman season in 2013, Bell was named the SEC Co-Freshman of the Year and led the Tigers with 12 home runs and 50 RBIs. 
 In 2014, Bell stepped up with a three-run, walk-off homer against then-No. 2 Tennessee to lead the Tigers to their first SEC series win and their first series win against a ranked team. 
Through the Tigers’ 11 games, Bell leads the team with five home runs and 17 RBIs. 
“It’s a really good feeling,” Bell said after LSU beat North Carolina State on Feb. 8. “I still have a lot to work on, so I’m just going to go really hard this week at practice.”
Although Bell and Jaquish hit a combined 31 home runs in 2014, Kloss and sophomore infielder Constance Quinn bring a combined 17 career home runs to the plate for LSU. 
In her two complete seasons, Kloss has slammed 14 home runs and tallied 50 RBIs. 
Quinn’s 5-foot-5 frame and speed makes her better at slapping, but she notched three homers in her freshman season in 2014. 
Against Louisiana Tech, Quinn hit her first home run of 2015 in the second inning despite struggling at the plate early in the season with a .154 average. 
“A lot of people say little ol’ me can’t really [hit home runs], but knowing that God has blessed me with that power,” Quinn said. “I can’t give that to myself. It’s an awesome thing to be a part of.” 
Despite their historic home run counts last season, the Tigers’ power hitters struggled in the second and third games in conference series when top pitchers began to figure out how to pitch around them. 
Against the 2014 national champion Florida, Jaquish hit two home runs in game one, but Bell and Jaquish did not hit a homer in games two 
or three.  
In  games one and three of the Tigers’ three-game series against national runner-up Alabama, the Tide’s former pitcher Jaclyn Traina shut down LSU’s power hitting completely. Jaquish and Bell did not hit a homer against Alabama in three games last season. 
Jaquish said the addition of Walljasper will add another power hitter to the lineup, making it difficult to pitch around any one particular hitter.
Walljasper hit a .488 average, 18 home runs and 70 RBIs in her prep career. In her senior year alone, she hit six home runs and 21 RBIs.  
Against N.C. State on Feb. 7, Walljasper hit her first career home run in the bottom of the second inning, sparking the Tigers’ to a 7-0 win against the Wolfpack. 
“If you just sit and watch her practice, she hits them over the berm,” Jaquish said. “I have to shag on the other side of the fence, it’s crazy.”
You can reach Morgan Prewitt on Twitter @kmprewitt_TDR.