The LSU softball team faces Nicholls State tonight in Thibodaux, La., with a chance to bounce back from a tough weekend in Oklahoma.
The Tigers (10-7) dropped three of four games last weekend — two against No. 8 Oklahoma and one to No. 22 Oklahoma State — but view a midweek contest against Nicholls State (4-15) as a chance to get back on track.
“It would be nice to bounce back after having two losses in a row,” said LSU senior pitcher Brittany Mack. “We faced them in the fall, so we know what we’re up against, and we know we can beat them.”
LSU coach Beth Torina said the Tigers, who beat the Colonels 9-0 in a fall exhibition contest, need to be prepared to play their best game of the season, no matter the opponent.
“At this point in our season, every win is crucial to what we’re trying to do,” Torina said. “Every time we take the field, we have to be concerned with making sure that we’re getting the wins we need to put ourselves in the postseason at the end of the year.”
After a weekend in which the Tigers’ bats struggled — opposing pitching shut out LSU in each of its three losses — Mack said the team will take a different approach at the plate.
“If we have to, just swing for the fence and get in our heads that we know we’re good hitters,” Mack said. “I want us to take [Nicholls] as a tough team, don’t take them lightly, and go out there and push ourselves to the best of our ability.”
Freshman third baseman Kailey McCasland said her mindset at the plate will be simple.
“We’re not playing too tough of an opponent, so we just need to kill them to get our confidence up,” McCasland said. “We just need to go out there and crush.”
McCasland shone as a bright spot at the plate for the Tigers over the weekend, batting 2-for-2 Saturday morning against Oklahoma State, striking for a two-run double and her fist career home run.
“Kailey was great,” Torina said. “She’s been swinging really well in practice. That’s why she got the opportunity, and it definitely proved to be correct.”
LSU emerged the victor in 22 of its previous 23 contests against the Colonels, including each of eight meetings in Thibodaux, La.
Starting with tonight’s contest against Nicholls State, Torina said LSU’s March schedule lends itself to the Tigers’ success.
“I’m excited about the month of March,” Torina said. “I think we have a lot of games that we’ll be able to compete in and get things rolling again. Hopefully we can get confident again.”
 
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