LSU softball team rebounds after defeat
LAS VEGAS — After losing 3-1 to DePaul, the LSU softball team responded Saturday by routing Cal State Northridge 11-0 in five innings in the Louisville Slugger Desert Classic at Eller Media Stadium on the UNLV campus.
“I was a little disappointed in how we came out against DePaul,” LSU coach Beth Torina said in a university news release. “We had to have an answer, and it was nice to see our team bounce back against Cal State Northridge. I put some pressure on them to clean some things defensively, and we started to swing the bats a little better.”
The 11 runs for No. 25 LSU (3-3) were a season-high, while the eight hits equaled a season’s best. The Tigers also had six stolen bases, turned two double plays and limited Cal State Northridge (0-8) to one hit.
Allison Falcon went 3-for-4 with a RBI and scored two runs while making her debut in the No. 2 spot in the lineup. The three hits for Falcon matched a career-high.
Ashley Langoni went 2-for-3 with three RBIs, while A.J. Andrews and Tammy Vermeulen notched their first career RBIs.
“Allison is doing an excellent job and has earned her spot at the top of the lineup,” Torina said. “I wish we had more players swinging the way that she’s swinging right now. I like the way she’s being aggressive and going after pitches.”
LSU raced out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning thanks to Langoni’s two-run single.
The Tigers added four more the third inning. Santos and Langoni got on base for Rikki Alcaraz, who ripped a two-run down the left-field line. Three batters later, Alcaraz scored on a wild pitch. Lauren Houston and Simone Heyward added sacrifice flies to make it 6-0.
Brittany Mack (1-2) tossed three innings of one-hit ball and recorded three strikeouts. Out of the bullpen, Meghan Patterson struck out three with one walk in two innings.
LSU ripped off five more runs in the fifth inning, highlighted by a Tammy Vermeulen’s two-run, bases-loaded single. Andrews, Falcon and Langoni also had RBIs.
DEPAUL 3, LSU 1: The Blue Demons broke a 1-1 tie with two runs in the seventh inning to beat the Tigers.
In the seventh, DePaul (5-3) used three straight infield singles to load the bases. Lynsey Ciezki drove in the go-ahead run with a single to left field. With the bases still loaded, Samantha Dodd hit a slow roller that hugged the first-base chalk to put DePaul ahead 3-1.
DePaul broke a scoreless tie in the fourth inning as Kirsten Verdun advanced to third base on a one-out single after an Ashley Langoni fielding error in left field.
Megan Coronado then doubled home Verdun.
LSU’s Juliana Santos doubled and scored in the sixth on an error to tie the score at 1-1.
Rachele Fico (2-1) got the loss. Fico gave up three runs, two earned, on eight hits. She struck out six.
Bree Brown (2-0) went the distance for DePaul and finished with five strikeouts and one walk.
LSU wraps up play in the tournament Sunday against No. 3 California at 1:15 p.m. CST and Utah State at 3:30 p.m. at Stephanie Lynn Craig Park in Las Vegas.