The No. 10 LSU softball team will hosts a NCAA Regional for the third time in four years when it opens the event against LIU Brooklyn at 6 p.m. on Friday in Tiger Park.
When the Tigers (45-15) and Blackbirds (30-25) clash, it will be the first time the two programs have battled on the softball diamond. LSU players insists they are not looking ahead to a tougher opponent in the squad’s second contest.
“From the day, last year, when we lost to Michigan [at the Women’s College World Series] we’ve been really hungry,” said senior catcher Kellsi Kloss. “The World Series is our goal, but we can’t look past Regionals or Super Regionals. So, we’re taking it one game at a time, but we are so excited just to get it going.”
Both teams enter the Regional after ending the season on a high note. LSU went 15-2 during the final its 17 games, while LIU Brooklyn were winners in 14 of its final 15 contests.
The Tigers’ lineup looks to swing past the Blackbirds pitching staff, which has struggled this season. Their batting order averages .321 at the plate and features seven starters hitting over .300.
The LIU Brooklyn’s rotation primarily uses a two-hurler system. Sophomore Erynn Sobieski and freshman Tallie Woodson lead the charge from the circle.
“They have two pretty good arms, a lefty and a righty. They are used in combination quite a bit,” said LSU coach Beth Torina. “We’ve seen them battle down to the wire. … They have guts and the ability to fight.”
Sobieski serves as the Blackbird’s ace with an ERA of 3.05 and 213.2 innings thrown. She has notched 145 strikeouts, but has allowed 246 hits.
Woodson has seen significantly less time in the circle as the No. 2 hurler with 119 innings and a 4.06 ERA. She allows a .327 batting average and given up 169 hits.
LSU Sophomores Carley Hoover and Allie Walljasper lead the Tigers’ efforts from the circle as the top two pitchers and have started nearly half of the team’s games. Freshman Sydney Smith has entrenched her role as the No. 3 gunslinger, while junior Baylee Corbello can provide quality innings, if called upon, but has not seen game action since April 13.
“The better Allie pitches, the better Syd pitches, the better Baylee pitches, the more effective I am,” Hoover said. “We all kind of go off each other. If one person is doing really well, it’s usually making other people better, because the other team’s don’t know who to prepare for.”
The Tigers’ second game Saturday will depend on Friday’s result. They will play at 12 p.m. if they win or 3 p.m. if they lose.
Their opponent will either be McNeese State or Arizona State, depending on the outcome of their game at 3 p.m. on Friday. LSU defeated the Cowgirls (42-14) in a midweek matchup earlier this season and played against the Sun Devils (30-24) in the 2015 NCAA Regional.
“Hopefully, we’ve played the whole season like we were playing these games, so we’re well rehearsed for this moment,” Torina said. “That’s the plan. To not make them bigger than they and just go out and compete the same way we’ve competed all year long.”
