The No. 12 LSU softball team took a breather from their SEC schedule, but the McNeese State Cowgirls did not let the Tigers catch their breath.
A two-run ninth inning propelled LSU to a 3-1 victory over McNeese State at Cowgirl Diamond in Lake Charles.
The ninth-inning rally started with Camille Harris’ single up the middle of the defense.
Harris advanced to second base on a ground out by Lauren Castle.
After a walk by Vanessa Soto, two consecutive McNeese State errors allowed two LSU runs.
Leslie Klein reached first base on an error by the second baseman, and Harris scored.
Stephanie Hill put the ball in play in the next at-bat, but an error by the first baseman allowed Soto to score from third.
“We took McNeese’s best shot tonight,” said coach Yvette Girouard. “They finally cracked after nine innings. [Jessica Dunham] used her changeup to get ahead in the count, and she saved herself on several occasions with good defense.”
Emily Turner (8-1) struck out a season-high 14 batters and scattered six hits over nine innings and allowed only one run to earn the win. Turner retired 18 of the final 20 batters after she allowed the run in the bottom of the third inning.
McNeese State’s Jana Jones put the Cowgirls on the board first with a single that scored Brooke Broadhead from second. The Cowgirls had only one more runner in scoring position for the remainder of the game.
The Cowgirls held the Tigers scoreless for five innings, but LSU catcher Killian Roessner scored pinch-runner Shannon Stein in the sixth inning to tie the game at one.
Roessner was the only Lady Tiger to have more than one hit.
“Killian has been hitting like that all fall,” Girouard said. “When she has a high level of confidence, she is a tremendous hitter as well as handling the pitchers.”
LSU (25-3, 3-0 SEC) is bringing a nine-game winning streak into this weekend’s series in Baton Rouge against the No. 12 Georgia Bulldogs.
Both teams are tied at No. 12 in the national rankings.
Georgia (22-6, 5-1 SEC) beat LSU four times last season.
In 2004, Georgia became the first team to win a series against LSU in Baton Rouge in school history.
The Bulldogs have yet to defeat a top-25 team (0-3), while the Tigers have four victories against ranked opponents.
“We definitely have a revenge mindset because Georgia has won three straight series against us,” Girouard said. “We have to defend our home turf by executing well. It’s time for the Tigers to take a series.”
The series starts with a Saturday double header at 1 p.m., and the finale starts at 1 p.m. Sunday.
 
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