Senior leadership. It’s a phrase that’s thrown around like beads during Mardi Gras.  Teams loaded with seniors think they have it. But the LSU softball team believes leadership is about quality, not quantity. Two of the three senior Tigers, Kirsten Shortridge and Rachel Mitchell, patrol the outfield. Shortridge, a pitcher the majority of her career, played outfield last season when the team needed it. She was ranked in the Southeastern Conference’s top seven in hits (80), batting average (.426), multi-hit games (26) and stolen bases (26). The numbers are staggering considering last season was her first in center field.”Luckily, with great coaching it wasn’t as tough a transition to outfield,” Shortridge said. “Other than that, you just catch a ball. I’ve been catching a ball my whole life.”Shortridge will start in center field again this season, joined by Mitchell, who led the team with 38 RBIs last season, in right field and sophomore Ashley Langoni in left field. Mitchell and Shortridge are constants from last season, while Langoni was used more as a utility player last season when she saw action at second base, third base, right field, left field and designated player. LSU associate head coach James DeFeo, who coaches the outfielders, said Langoni will be a strong addition to the outfield.”We’re really excited to have Lang in left,” DeFeo said. “She’s coming off a huge regional tournament for us last year.”Langoni had two monster games against then-No. 9 Arizona State at the NCAA regionals last season. She had a grand slam in the Tigers’ 10-2 win against the Sun Devils on May 16 and belted two home runs in the Tigers’ 6-4 loss on May 17.Shortridge said the outfield is solid and has the speed and range to get to almost any ball. “We’re very quick,” Shortridge said. “Adding Langoni out there gives us a lot of depth. She’s very aggressive and competitive.”DeFeo said Mitchell and junior Ashley Applegate will rotate in right field. Mitchell will see the majority of the action, but when Shortridge pitches, Mitchell will move to center field and Applegate will take Mitchell’s spot in right field.”Having Mitch in center, we’re not going to skip a beat,” DeFeo said. “Of course with [Applegate] out in right, she’s played there before. We’ve got no problems with those interchangeable parts.” DeFeo said Langoni has stayed healthy and Shortridge is near perfect after persevering through a nagging arm injury last season. “The only thing we’ve got is Mitchell and Applegate battling some back issues,” DeFeo said. “So that’s why platooning them in right is going to be a good thing. But I think they’ll be good to go for pretty much the whole season.”LSU head coach Yvette Girouard said the loss of outfielder Jazz Jackson won’t affect the team.”I don’t think it’s going to hurt us a bit,” Girouard said. “The outfield has clicked better this year than probably since the 2004 team. There is a real chemistry out there.”Langoni said the seniors are unmeasurably valuable to the team’s future success.”They’re our biggest leaders on the team,” Langoni said. “They’re our top players, and without them I don’t think we could do it.”—————Contact Rowan Kavner at [email protected]