Weather limits P&G Challenge
After Friday’s day-long monsoon, bracket play in the Purple and Gold Challenge was thrown out.
So when Sunday came around and each team had two games under its belt, Mother Nature took the tournament into her own hands.
With snow flakes visible, a wind chill at 19 degrees and wind gusts sometimes over 25 miles per hour, there was no choice for LSU head coach Yvette Girouard.
So Girouard went up to McNeese State head coach, Scott Eastman, during the second inning of Sunday morning’s game. The two had a discussion and decided to cancel the remainder of the game and the tournament.
“We talked about [the situation] before the game in the bullpen,” Girouard said. “I told him if he felt like it was too cold, he could call [the game] without a forfeit.
“The temperature kept going down. I promised myself that I would never put myself or my athletes through that. It’s a matter of survival.”
Friday and Sunday’s cancellations meant the Tigers played only two games in the tournament. No. 5 LSU (14-5) scored a 3-0 victory over UAB and a 15-0 run-rule win over Long Island University.
All-American Britni Sneed hurled a one-hit shutout against the UAB Blazers.
Third baseman Julie Wiese and center fielder Trena Peel provided the offense for the Tigers. Wiese came through with runners in scoring position, stroking a two-run first inning single. Peel, who was 2-for-3 on the afternoon, shot a ball off the top of the right-field wall for a triple to drive in one run.
Girouard said Sneed’s performance shows she has her All-American domination in the circle back.
“She was very confident in herself in the last [few] innings and came back with her change up,” Girouard said. “She was shaking [our pitches] off and going with what she wanted to go with. That’s a good thing when she has that much confidence in herself, then she’s going to be in a groove.”
LSU continued its dominating pitching as sophomores Kristin Schmidt and Sarah Meadors combined for a one-hit shutout against Long Island University.
Freshman Tessa Lynam had two hits, scored three runs and drove in four to pace the Tigers on offense. Three of Lynam’s RBIs came on a home run to center field.
Left fielder Sara Fitzgerald and second baseman April Janzen each added two RBIs.
Girouard said Lynam responded well to being benched for the first contest. She liked what she saw out of Lynam.
“What I really like about it is that we took her out of the lineup the first game of the day,” Girouard said. “I wanted to see how she was going to react to that. She obviously stepped it up and made a statement for herself.”
Despite playing two games, Girouard wanted to compete more before the Southeastern Conference schedule begins with LSU hosting Florida on Friday.
The Tigers will get their chance to play another game before Friday when LSU travels to Nicholls State tonight.
“We just want to play,” Girouard said. “We always want to concentrate on ourselves. That’s what we look at game in and game out.”
LSU beat the Colonels 12-0 Feb. 20 at Tiger Park. Game time is scheduled for 5 p.m. in Thibodaux.
Chris Gibson