The No. 4 ranked LSU Softball team took on the No. 23 ranked Kentucky Wildcats in Tiger Park to start off their SEC play. The Tigers got off to a strong start holding the Wildcats to a scoreless first inning.
Thanks to right fielder Mackenzie Roudity’s two RBI’s, the Tigers were leading 3-0 at the end of the first inning. As they plan to take on the Wildcats tomorrow, Roudity’s mindset going into the game is to see the middle three and swing big.
“My mindset going into my bats is always like seeing something middle three, and if I see it there, I’m going to swing,” Roudity said.
The Tigers would only score one more time in the second inning while still holding the Wildcats scoreless. It wouldn’t be until the third inning when the Wildcats would get on the board. Although they had three loaded bases, they could only score one run for the final score to be 4-1.
On the defensive side, the Tigers and the Wildcats made some impressive plays. They would go back and forth with strikes and outs, leaving both teams scoreless for the last three innings. Players like first basemen Tori Edwards and Catcher Maci Bergeron led the team in putouts, with Edwards having 11 and Bergeron having 6, making big plays to get the team back on offense.
Sydeny Berzon took things under her hands as she would have five strikeouts and 89 pitches, leading her team to victory. She is 10-0 since the start of the season and plans to keep building and improving as the season goes on.
“Just watching my own film and seeing what I can approve upon,” Berzon said. “Take what failures and turn them into opportunities and keep building from here.”
Coach Beth Torina is impressed with the offensive and defensive performance the Tigers put up. As they get deeper into SEC play, Torina says the offense is prepared and has done a good job of setting the tone so far in the season.
“I think our offense has done such a good job of being prepared,” Torina said. “They really focused on their early work and their warm-up. They were really prepared for what’s coming. They did a great job of just setting a tone.”
Looking to carry this momentum into their next match up tomorrow, the Tigers are looking forward to exceeding expectations as they play the Wildcats at 5 p.m.