Offense versus defense: It’s a battle that has defined sports matchups throughout history.The Southeastern Conference’s No. 1 offense will square off Saturday against the conference’s No. 1 defense when No. 18 Tennessee welcomes No. 16 LSU to Lee Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn.The Lady Volunteers (39-11, 15-7) lead the league in batting average with a .335 team average and hits with 444. The team’s 342 runs are the second most in the SEC behind No. 4 Alabama’s 370.Tennessee has four players in the top 14 in the SEC in batting average — freshman outfielder Raven Chavanne ranks No. 3 with a .485 batting average, freshman outfielder Kat Dotson ranks No. 6 with a .426 batting average, junior outfielder Kelly Grieve ranks No. 12 with a .373 batting average and sophomore third baseman Jessica Spigner ranks No. 14 with a .367 batting average.Chavanne is also No. 2 in the SEC in hits with 80 hits and is No. 4 in the nation in both runs scored with 54 runs scored and stolen bases with 30 stolen bases.”It’s kind of interesting to see these young hitters coming up and doing as well as they are,” said LSU senior pitcher Cody Trahan. “At the same time, as a pitcher you’re going up there thinking, ‘I’m not supposed to get this girl out. Well, watch me do it.'”But LSU (41-11, 19-6) has been dominant on defense.The Tigers have the No. 1 pitching staff in the nation, boasting an ERA of 1.32. The LSU pitching staff has also given up the fewest walks in the conference (104) and the second fewest hits in the SEC (256).Freshman pitcher Rachele Fico, Trahan and sophomore pitcher Brittany Mack have the lowest ERAs in the conference with a 1.09 ERA, a 1.12 ERA and a 1.59 ERA, respectively.”It’s all about hitting your spots and working ahead,” Girouard said. “If the pitcher is doing what they need to do, you don’t have to worry about the opponent.”The Tigers are going to have to rely on Fico and Trahan while in Knoxville. Mack will be sitting out of the series with a sore arm, according to Girouard.LSU also has the highest fielding percentage in the league with a .976 fielding percentage. The team’s 35 errors are the fewest in the SEC, and the Tigers have allowed the second fewest stolen bases with 26 allowed.LSU senior center fielder Kirsten Shortridge provided much of the offense for the Tigers this season with a team best .421 batting average and 42 stolen bases. The current SEC Player of the Week suffered a neck strain during LSU’s series win against Georgia. Shortridge has been receiving treatment this week and is listed as probable for the series against Tennessee.Even without Shortridge, LSU is trying to build on its momentum from the victories in the series against Georgia. “When we beat Georgia when we weren’t expected to win, it was a big confidence booster for the team,” said sophomore second baseman Juliana Santos. “It’s very important for us to continue that through this series and even more important to continue through postseason.”The matchup between LSU and Tennessee is the last series of the season for both teams before the SEC Tournament begins May 13. 
 
 
 
—-Contact Jarred LeBlanc at [email protected]