Watch out for the small hurdle. Three Southeastern Conference series separate the LSU softball team from the SEC tournament, NCAA regionals and potential glory. Also standing in the way is the final midweek contest of the season. The McNeese State Cowgirls (24-23) travel to Baton Rouge on Wednesday in what could be the final true tune-up game of the 2010 slate for No. 15 LSU (36-9, 14-5). But don’t tell the Tigers that. “We take every team that we play seriously, and with McNeese State being an in-state school, we know that they’re coming to compete,” said LSU senior outfielder Rachel Mitchell. “We’ll be ready.”LSU coach Yvette Girouard acknowledged the “trap game” feeling. She said it’s common in sports for teams focusing on grander games to slip up against a lesser opponent in any sport, especially softball. “There’s always concern,” Girouard said. “Any time you step onto the field you can get beat. Even in tiddlywinks, if you take your opponent for granted you can always get beat.”The Tigers come into the midweek affair riding a seven-game winning streak after trouncing Arkansas three times during the weekend. But the wins weren’t easy. Arkansas pushed LSU to the limit in Saturday’s contest, a 10-inning bonanza capped by sophomore outfielder Ashley Langoni’s walkoff double. Langoni’s heroics gave the Tigers a 3-2 win. The late-inning experience could prove invaluable down the stretch. “It’s good to know the team will fight for the win and not give up,” Girouard said. “Even though it’s discouraging to them for their bats to be ineffective the first three times they come up, maybe they can win the game on their last one. That’s what they always have to remember.” Junior designated player Ashley Applegate agreed. Applegate, who went 2-for-3 in Sunday’s 3-2 win including an RBI single to tie the game, said the experience is imperative for a Women’s College World Series run. “We need those games, and it’s great to get experience in clutch situations before we get to the big show — the College World Series,” Applegate said. “That’s our goal.”As sweet as the sweep was, the lack of firepower could be a concern. LSU’s bats only mustered 10 runs all weekend against the Razorbacks to Arkansas’ six. Yet LSU’s pitching staff has held the boat steady in the last two series. Senior Cody Trahan, sophomore Brittany Mack and freshman Rachele Fico have aided the Tigers in posting a 1.25 ERA on the season. Fico was honored with LSQWA Pitcher of the Week for her efforts against Arkansas.Girouard’s squad averaged 6.58 runs per game during their 24-game winning streak earlier in the season that saw sweeps and runs galore. The Tigers ran their ranking as high as No. 13 during the stretch. “It’s been kind of a concern all year long,” Girouard said. “Timely hitting is more important I guess than a jillion runs. We got three W’s, and that was the goal.” Mission accomplished. After the date with McNeese, LSU closes out the season with a home series against Georgia sandwiched between away series at Kentucky and Tennessee, respectively. Mitchell, LSU’s second leading hitter with a .344 average, isn’t worrying about the dearth of runs.”We didn’t, but we did win all the games,” Mitchell said. “We’re not going to score a million runs every week. We did what we wanted to do — we won. That’s all that matters.” —-Contact Chris Branch at [email protected].