After dropping seven of its last 10 games, the No. 11 LSU softball team is hoping to get back to its winning ways when it travels to North Oak Park in Hammond to play in-state foe Southeastern Louisiana at 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
The Tigers (29-12, 5-10 Southeastern Conference) dropped all three games against then-No. 16 Kentucky in their most recent series, and the team is just ready to get out on the field again, it said.
“That’s the best part about [softball]. There’s always another game,” said senior catcher Kellsi Kloss. “There is always another chance for us to do something great. Me and my teammates can’t wait to play softball again on Wednesday.”
The Tigers are looking to stay perfect this season in midweek games and put a streak of nine-straight midweek victories on the line, dating back to 2015. The team is 24-2 against non-conference squads this season and has won all four games against in-state opponents.
But outside of midweek contests, LSU’s offense has been stagnant and unable to find the hits needed to bring runs home and win games.
In eight of the Tigers’ 12 losses, their opponents managed three or fewer runs. Across all twelve matchups, LSU has stranded 95 runners combined on the basepath.
But an in-state matchup might be what’s needed.
Against Louisiana-based schools, the Tigers have averaged 12.3 runs per contest and look to control the Lions’ (19-20, 5-10 Southland Conference) pitching staff, which maintains an ERA of 4.08.
If the Tigers score runs against Southeastern, confidence could be regained in the struggling squad, which LSU coach Beth Torina said her team could use.
“We just need to continue to trust the process and be ourselves,” said Torina. We need to keep celebrating small successes and build their confidence back up any way we can.”
One ongoing issue that appears to be hurting the team’s confidence is when its opponents notch the first run.
In each of LSU’s losses this season they allowed their competition to plate the game’s opening run. Overall, the Tigers are 6-12 when opponents score first, but when the roles are reversed, the squad is undefeated with a 23-0 record.
“This season so far, every time a team has punched us in the mouth and scored first, we struggle a little bit coming back,” said senior infielder Bianka Bell. “I see our team get down a little bit when [opponents] first come at us.”
Bell said if the Tigers get their confidence back, bring the fight they had Monday against the Wildcats and score runs against the Lions, her team will be fine. LSU hitting coach Howard Dobson echoed the senior’s sentiments.
“Heaven forbid when we [get the offense going],” Dobson said. “We’ve had some stretches here where we haven’t swung the bat pretty well … But look out because this team is capable of swinging the bat well, and if we do get on fire at the right time, we could be someone’s worse nightmare.”