With the 2004 season set to kick off this weekend, the LSU softball team will look to combine superior speed and a strong defense, especially in the outfield, to get back to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series. The Lady Tigers have not been to the WCWS since 2001.
With Camille Harris, LaDonia Hughes and Lauren Castle set to manage the outfield, coach Yvette Girouard said she is confident in how her defense will play.
“I think that their maturity is incredible and I’m amazed by them every day,” Girouard said. “They take the best angles of any outfield that I’ve ever coached.”
Harris, who played at second base her freshman year, finished the 2003 season with a .337 average, but missed the final 15 games due to a broken arm suffered against Auburn.
As a member of the second team All-Southeastern Conference team, as well as a first team All-Louisiana selection, Harris led the team in slugging percentage as a freshman.
“LSU is always known for its speed,” Harris said. “Our biggest thing this year is speed, good angles, and just catching the ball.”
Harris said the offense could surprise some people this year.
“We’re hitting the ball really hard so a lot of teams are going to be shocked at how hard we hit the ball,” Harris said. “As far as defense, we’ll just make every play we can.”
Hughes, a senior from Farmville, VA, will be in centerfield.
Hughes was the No. 32 overall pick by the San Antonio Armadillos of the National Fastpitch League.
As a junior, Hughes was named the 2003 Louisiana Newcomer of the Year.
Hughes led the team in stolen bases, runs scored, triples and sacrafice bunts, and was second on the team in batting average and hits.
Hughes finished the 2003 season with a .284 average, starting 66 of the 68 games played last season.
“This year we’re a lot faster,” Huges said. “We’re more together as in communication. Our outfield is pretty concrete right now.”
Hughes also believes the offense will do some good things this season.
“As a team, we’re going to do pretty good [offensively],” Hughes said. “We’ll be pretty good.”
Rounding out the outfield will be sophomore transfer Lauren Castle, who transferred from the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.
As a freshman at ULL, Castle contributed to the Lady Cajuns run to the WCWS.
Finishing the year with a .248 average, Castle finished the year with two doubles, one triple and 17 RBIs.
Castle’s highlight of the year came in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, in which she knocked in the winning run in a 2-1 win over Western Kentucky.
“We have a lot of speed and a variety of hitters,” Castle said.
Castle added that she thought the outfield would be a strong part of this season’s defense.
Serving as reserve outfielders will be junior Amber Brooks and freshman Leslie Klein.
Brooks, a transfer from Okalossa Walton Community College in Niceville, FL, helped lead the Lady Raiders to a 47-17 record and a second-place finish in the Panhandle Conference.
Klein, from Sunrise, FL, served as a two-time first team all-state selection. With a high school career average of .523, Klein was named to the all-country team three consecutive years.
With the Lady Tigers trying to get back to Oklahoma City, Girouard said she belives this year’s outfield is comparable to the 2001 team.
“The outfield is as good as the outfield we had when we went to the College World Series,” Girourd said. “They have tremendous reads off the bat and can play the angles as quick as any team I’ve ever coached.”
“We’re pretty solid all the way around but that outfield could be a shining star.”