LSU softball’s sophomore first baseman Tori Edwards made herself a name across softball networks for the entire duration of Week 11.
But this isn’t the first time Edwards has come in clutch for the Tigers when they needed her the most. Edwards’ big breakout dates back to her freshman season.
Being named the youngest of the three permanent team captains for the 2026 season, Edwards’ accomplishments as a freshman and her leadership earned her the role of leading her team.
“It’s hard to come around people like that — her mentality and just how she works every day,” senior Jalia Lassiter said about Edwards’ freshman season. “To be around her and her mentality, it makes you want to work harder. It makes you want to learn from her.”
During her redshirt freshman season with the Tigers, Edwards was named the 2025 SEC Freshman of the Year after starting all 58 games of the season at first base.
Edwards’ freshman season would go down as one of the best in LSU softball’s program history when she set a program record for slugging percentage at .802 and for grand slams in one season at four. She also tied a program record for single-season home runs, hitting 18.
In addition to the program records she set during her first year, Edwards finished the season with a .375 batting average overall. The then-freshman scored 52 runs and added 73 RBIs on 62 hits during the season. She also drew 37 walks with an on-base percentage of .495.
Heading into her sophomore season this year, Edwards was named one of the two pre season All-Americans alongside senior catcher Maci Bergeron, and also earned accolades as the No. 2 first baseman and No. 18 player in the country.
So far this season, Edwards had a slow start, but quickly eased into a crucial role as the Tigers look to wrap up conference play and head into the post-season.
This season, Edwards boasts a .281 average in her 121 at-bats. She leads the team with 36 RBIs and 11 home runs, adding 30 runs and 34 hits. Edwards also leads the team in stolen bases with eight.
Across the weekend slate versus Ole Miss, Edwards had herself a performance in all three games. In specific, the sixth inning of all three games were where she shined and where her bat came to life.
In the first game alone, Edwards hit a go-ahead inside-the-park grand slam to hand the Tigers the series opener. She was 2-for-3 in that game, and later went on to go 3-for-3 in the series finale, crushing two solo home runs.
“She is really, really special,” head coach Beth Torina said about Edwards before the season. “Her ability to control the strike zone, to have the mentality to attack this, being the person that people know. As just a freshman, she was already the one that was highlighted and circled on our lineup card.”
Now, in the final few weeks of regular season matchups, it’s even more evident why Edwards’ name was circled on that lineup card last year.
