The No. 7 LSU softball team goes on the road this weekend, traveling to Las Vegas to face several top-ranked teams in the University of Nevada-Las Veagas Softball Classic.
LSU (3-2) opens play Friday at 11 a.m. against 10th-ranked Cal State Fullerton (6-3). The Titans have defeated five Top 25 teams this season, including a 2-0 win over No. 1 UCLA. The Tigers face the top-ranked Bruins (5-1) at 1:30 p.m.
On Saturday, LSU faces Cal Poly (6-6) at 11 a.m. and then Utah (2-3) at 6:30 p.m. CT. The Tigers close out the tournament against Central Michigan on Sunday at 11 a.m.
“To start out with Cal State Fullerton and UCLA on the first day is a challenge for us,” said LSU head coach Yvette Girouard. “[But] this is a College World Series caliber tournament, and we are going to have to be on the top of our game,” Girouard said.
The Tigers have faced UCLA in a big game before, falling to the Bruins 1-0 in the 2001 Women’s College World Series. Girouard said the team welcomes the challenge of playing the nation’s best team and said the experience will help them when the Southeastern Conference schedule begins.
“We’re going to go through a lot of fires this season before the SEC stops, and that will be a good thing for this team,” Girouard said.
Third baseman Julie Wiese remembers the loss to UCLA, and she said LSU is prepared to face the Bruins and will not take them lightly.
“We played Oklahoma the night before in 13 innings late,” Wiese said. “And we just met them and ran out of gas. Hopefully, we’ll have a better showing this time.”
Junior Kristin Schmidt and sophomore Tessa Lynam will split time for LSU in the circle. Girouard hopes to get good production again from Lynam, who went 2-0 in the opening series.
“Coming back from her injury, it was tremendous for us to have Tessa go out and get some quality innings of work in the circle,” Girouard said.
Offensively LSU will try to improve on its hitting. The Tigers struggled in losses to DePaul and Stephen F. Austin and did not score in the final two games.
Sophomore shortstop Blair Smith and Wiese led LSU at the plate, combining for seven hits, three doubles and three RBIs.
“I felt good,” Wiese said of her weekend performance. “I felt like I was seeing the ball well, and I felt comfortable in the box.