Bulldogs Close Out Lengthy Road Trip At 11th-Ranked LSU
May 25, 2016 | Softball
The Bulldogs (30-19, 4-13 SEC) will renew their rivalry with the Tigers (41-7, 14-4) for the 36th time when the two squads meet one another in a series-opening Wednesday doubleheader at 5 p.m., before closing out the set on Thursday in a 5 p.m. single game on the LSU campus. The game can be followed in progress via a live stats link at the official Internet home of the MSU athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com. No local radio broadcast will be available for the series.
Riding its longest losing streak in more than 23 years, State will look to snap an 11-game skid against a team it has had glimpses of success against as of late. T he Bulldogs took their first series victory all-time against the Purple and Gold by winning two of three in Starkville last season.
The Bayou Bengals have proven victorious in 15 of their last 17 outings this season, including a series victory at third-ranked Alabama over the weekend. LSU is now just two games back of the Crimson Tide in the race for the SEC West crown with SEC East-leading Georgia on tap for UA this weekend. The Tigers lead the all-time series with MSU by a 30-5 count, including a 13-1 edge in Baton Rouge.
(Tiger Park) is a fun place to play because the crowd gets into the game and I think the kids enjoy playing there, but it's also a tough place to play at also, said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. We're looking forward to going down there because of that. We've got our work cut out for us playing top 10 teams in each of our next three series. It's a huge challenge that, hopefully, our kids will get up for.
Boasting one of the conference's top hitting teams, the Tigers will bring a .323 team average into the series, as well as a 1.00 team ERA. Leading the way for the Tigers offensively is junior Leslie Klein who possesses one of five LSU batting averages at or above the .313 mark. In 47 games this year, the Sunrise, Fla., native has tallied a .415 batting average with five home runs and 38 RBI. She also leads the team with 14 stolen bases in 16 attempts.
LSU has gotten tremendous success from its pitching staff as well. Junior righthander Emily Turner (17-3, 0.51 ERA) has amassed a strikeout-to-walk ratio of better than 5-to-1, holds opponents to a paltry .169 batting average and has allowed just 12 total runs in more than 124 innings of work. Rookie Dani Hofer, the 2005 National High School Gatorade Player of the Year, is 13-4 with a 1.72 ERA and has struck out 137 batters in 114 innings from the circle.
Following its series in Baton Rouge on Wednesday and Thursday, the Bulldogs will make a long anticipated return to Starkville this weekend when they open up a seven-game homestand by facing sixth-ranked Tennessee (41-6, 12-6) in a three-game series at the MSU Softball Field. Saturday's series opening doubleheader has been slated for a 1 p.m. first pitch, with Sunday's 1 p.m. weekend finale scheduled to be broadcast live on Fox SportsNet South (SEC-TV).
