The Texas A&M softball team will look to take the momentum from its midweek victory into Baton Rouge this weekend to face No. 3 LSU in an important three-game series. If they win, the Aggies will be the first to blemish LSU’s 28-0 home record.
The No. 23 Aggies (33-12, 8-7 SEC) are coming off a 13-run offensive explosion against Lamar Wednesday and will put their hot hitting to test against a talented LSU pitching staff. Head coach Jo Evans said it will be important to carry that confidence into Tiger Park this weekend.
“It’s good for us to get our confidence back and good to be swinging the bat well throughout the lineup,” Evans said. “We’re in a good frame of mind going into this series knowing that we’re going to face great pitching. I feel good about what we did against Lamar and I feel good about how that makes our team feel in terms of confidence and where we’re at at this point in time.”
The Tigers (39-5, 11-4 SEC) have run roughshod over their competition this season, with their only series loss to No. 16 Kentucky in late March. LSU starters Bianka Bell and Bailey Landry each hit above .400, with Bell being second on the team in homers with 13 and RBIs with 56. The clubhouse leader is Sahvanna Jaquish, who paces the Tigers with 16 home runs and 62 RBIs.
The Aggies are led by freshman Tori Vidales, who has been a model of consistency for Evans. Vidales leads the club with 15 home runs and 45 RBIs. She said she enjoys the challenge of beating LSU on it home field.
“We always feel like we’re always the underdog,” Vidales said. “It’s a nice feeling to know that we’re not supposed to win so that if we do, we can open up some eyes.”
The Tigers are spearheaded by an excellent pitching staff, all of which hold ERAs below two. Carly Hoover and Allie Wallijasper are tied for the lead in wins with 11.
A&M senior pitcher Rachel Fox said she understands the depth of their pitching staff and said it will be important to string together quality innings.
“All we have to do is to pay attention to detail,” Fox said. “As pitchers, all we have to do is control what we can control and not worry about the LSU pitchers.”
First pitch on Saturday is scheduled for 6 p.m.
