The No. 14 LSU softball was predicted as the second-best team in the Southeastern Conference prior to the season, according to the SEC coaches preseason poll.
They currently sit 10th in the league standings 18 games into the conference slate.
After a brief absence from SEC play against Northwestern State on Wednesday, the Tigers (33-13, 7-11 SEC) look to finish the season strong with two league series remaining. They will end the SEC regular season in a road bout against Arkansas, but first is a home series clash with South Carolina starting at 6 p.m. on Friday.
“Our biggest thing right now is wins,” said junior infielder Constance Quinn. “Unfortunately, the way our season has been going this year, we are kind of at the bottom [of the SEC], but we’ve got to move our way to the top. Every single girl on this team down from one to 23 want a National Championship.”
LSU’s offensive play has perked back up, after a being held to two runs or less in seven of their 11 conference losses. Five of the first six opponents the Tigers faced were ranked in the top-16, which didn’t help the squads’ cause.
But the team is optimistic it’s slump at the plate is over.
“We are on our upward mountain climb there,” said senior infielder Sandra Simmons. “The offense is doing much better.”
Although the hits and runs have started to come together, the team still is stranding numbers of runners on the bases. LSU left nine players on base on Wednesday.
The Tigers have left 37 runners on the basepath throughout the last three contests, including a program-record 20 against Mississippi State on Saturday. But LSU coach Beth Torina is not concerned with the figure and said it is a byproduct of the offensive improvements.
“The better your offense is, the more runners you’ll leave on base, because the more you hit,” Torina said. “It’s not something I’m concerned about honestly. It actually means we are doing better.”
Carolina’s primary two pitchers, juniors Nickie Blue and Jessica Elliott, gunslingers have both pitched more than 142 innings, tallied at least 97 strikeouts and have earned at least 15 wins, in 2016. The only large disparity in their stats is Blue is tabbed with 10 losses, while Elliott has recorded just three.
“They’re a really solid team. They have been for several years,” Torina said. “On the mound, Nickie Blue is capable of a great game any day … She’s a special pitcher.”
Unlike its pitching rotation, the South Carolina offense uses plenty of deadly hitters to win ballgames. Six hitters of the nine everyday starters are hitting above .300.
Junior infielder Kaylea Snaer boasts the team’s best batting average with a .397.
“They swing big. They hit a lot of stuff well. Their offense has had a lot of great moments [this season],” Torina said.

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Wingate Jones

LSU junior infielder Constance Quinn (5) bats during LSU's 2-0 victory against the Nicholls State University on Tuesday, March 22, 2016 at Tiger Park