After a crushing defeat by Duke the night prior, LSU softball returned on Saturday night with vengeance.
The No. 5 Tigers defeated Kansas 5-3 on the second night of the Tiger Classic, moving their record 2-1. Freshman Ciara Briggs hit her second career home run while Amanda Doyle got her third home run of the season after just three straight appearances.
“I thought they fought hard for this one. I think Kansas battled with us pretty hard,” Head Coach Beth Torina said. “You know, I tell this team all the time, I’ll take a team with guts over a team with talent every day, so I’m super proud of them for getting it done tonight.”
Senior Maribeth Gorsuch started on the mound and allowed the Warhawks to get a one-up on the scoreboard at the top of the 2nd. LSU tied the score in the same inning after Briggs knocked one out at centerfield. Good defense on both sides led to a scoreless 3rd inning. Shelbi Sunseri came straight into the fourth with a double to left-center. By the end of the inning, Anna Jones pinch ran home from third following Morgan Cummins’ hit and gave the Tigers the lead.
Refusing, to go down quietly entering the fifth, Kansas scored twice. The first run came from sophomore Haleigh Harper’s homer while the second followed after an error from LSU’s outfield. The bases were then loaded, but Sunseri entered the circle to put a stop to any more hits. The Tigers answered in the bottom of the fifth, starting play with a back-to-back by Doyle and Georgia Clark with an additional run across the plate by Taylor Pleasants. LSU clung to their 5-3 lead, shutting the Warhawks out for the next two innings.
Sunseri finished the night at 2-0 with a single strikeout while Gorsuch recorded two strikeouts in a total of four innings.
“I think we’re going to be learning a lot this weekend,” Doyle said. “We’ll definitely take everything that’s happened this weekend and build on it for weeks to come.”
Inclement weather canceled the final day of the Tiger Classic. LSU softball will face Louisiana Tech on Tuesday evening.
