The LSU softball team brought out the brooms Sunday in Fayetteville, Ark., and swept Arkansas (10-28, 1-15) for the Tigers’ first sweep of a Southeastern Conference foe this season.
LSU (21-12, 5-6) survived a pitchers’ duel Sunday to hold on for a 1-0 victory to complete the sweep. Sophomore pitcher Rachele Fico (7-8) threw her second shutout of the series, striking out 11 and allowing just three hits in the victory.
Fico fanned five in the opening game of the series, an 8-0 victory for LSU.
“It’s kind of hard to beat a team three times,” said LSU coach Yvette Girouard. “I thought we played really great and intense. We go home feeling a whole lot better about ourselves.”
Junior first baseman Anissa Young provided the only run the Tigers needed Sunday, driving in freshman outfielder Simone Heyward with a fifth-inning single to centerfield. Fico slammed the door on the Razorbacks and allowed only one baserunner in the final three frames.
Fico and junior pitcher Brittany Mack had no trouble shutting down the Arkansas offense that had a combined .248 batting average entering Sunday’s game. The pitching duo only allowed one run and combined for 27 strikeouts.
“We just offset each other so well,” Fico said. “We throw so differently. It shakes the other team up and leaves them off balance. We both threw great games and we’re hitting our spots and working hard.”
The Tigers’ offense clicked to score 18 runs in the series’ first two games. Junior infielder Juliana Santos tied an LSU single-game record with a 5-5 performance Saturday and recorded three RBIs in a 10-1 victory for the Tigers.
“Our big hitters did well and they all did it in different areas this weekend,” Girouard said. “It’s a good sign that the bats are starting to come around.”
LSU has now won 15 of its last 16 meetings with Arkansas. The Razorbacks last defeated the Tigers in 2009.
The Tigers have also now won six straight games, with five-straight SEC victories after starting conference play with a six-game losing streak. Fico said the team’s confidence has picked up as they continue to win.
“We know how good we are,” Fico said. “But we just need to play like that all the time. We’re hoping to continue what we’ve got going right now.”
LSU hosts Nicholls State on Wednesday, the third meeting between the teams this season. The Tigers will then face No. 1 Alabama in a weekend series at Tiger Park.
“We have Alabama coming in, and they’re the number one team in the country,” Girouard said. “We’re just going to have to play lights out to be successful.”
 
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