The No. 11 LSU softball team will wrap up its non-conference schedule today in Hammond against Southeastern Louisiana University.
The game will start at 6 p.m. at North Oak Park.
The Tigers (35-5, SEC 10-2) have won 40 consecutive games against in-state opponents. Wednesday’s game will mark the first time LSU has traveled to Hammond.
“As we have seen with McNeese State, every [in-state] team is going to try to beat us because this is the biggest game on their schedule,” said junior pitcher Emily Turner. “They will probably have a lot of support out there tonight, and everyone wants to see us lose. We respect all of our opponents, and they could beat us if we don’t play well.”
Turner pitched a complete game shutout March 2 in Baton Rouge to beat Southeastern (9-21) 6-0 in a midweek game. The Tigers are a perfect 8-0 against the Lady Lions in history.
“Any time we play an in-state, midweek game, the team we are playing, no matter who they are, it feels like they are playing on steroids,” said LSU assistant coach Lori Osterberg. “They are playing on adrenaline because we are LSU. We just have to play our game and set the tempo for the game. If we get in a situation where we have to react to what they do, we could get into some trouble.”
LSU pulled out a 3-1, ninth-inning win in its only other in-state road game against McNeese State.
The Tigers overcame an early 1-0 Cowgirl lead and broke the tie on two Cowgirls’ errors in the ninth inning.
Sophomore Megan Jolly will step into the circle tonight for LSU. Jolly (4-0) is the only Southeastern Conference pitcher that has not allowed a run this season.
Jolly has tossed three shutouts and struck out 22 batters in seven appearances this season.
“She is always ready to pitch,” Turner said. “If some freak accident were to happen, she would be ready to pitch in a second.”
LSU’s 10-game winning streak includes sweeps of SEC foes Kentucky and South Carolina.
The Tigers did not allow the Gamecocks to score a run, winning 9-0 and 1-0 Saturday, and 8-0 Sunday in Baton Rouge.
Turner (14-2) won two games over the weekend by allowing no runs and three hits and striking out 16 batters in 10 innings.
Freshman Dani Hofer (12-3) picked up the other victory by allowing one hit and striking out seven batters in a seven-inning shutout.
LSU’s pitching staff has allowed only six runs over the 10-game winning streak.
“Our pitching staff is holding opponents to minimal amounts of runs,” Turner said. “That gives our hitters confidence because they can go out there swinging and not worry about having to catch up on runs.”
The Tigers’ bats also have come alive since the winning streak began. LSU has averaged more than six runs a game, scoring a total of 63 runs during its past 10 games.
“We have had different girls step up throughout the season,” Osterberg said. “Right now Leslie Klein has the hot bat and has been effective in primetime situations throughout the season. The rest of our batters are reaching their peak at this point of the season.”
Klein was the hero in Saturday’s doubleheader, hitting 5-for-6 with a run and an RBI.
Senior third baseman Lauren Delahoussaye came through in Sunday’s game, hitting 2-for-3 with a three-run homerun and four RBIs.
“We are all great hitters and can step up in different situations,” Delahoussaye said. “I felt confident and ready to hit last weekend. I saw the ball really well, and hopefully I can continue to do that.”
 
 
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