Softball tops USM 4-2

The LSU softball team secured a 4-2 victory over Southern Mississippi Tuesday, snapping a two-game losing streak. Although the Tigers won the game, the offense was once again sluggish out of the gate.

LSU looked to have some life early, after an Emily Griggs walk and Bailey Landry single eventually put runners on the corners with one out, only to have Amanda Doyle and Sydney Springfield fail to get the ball out of the infield. The spark for the Tiger offense on Tuesday came from a surprising source: the bottom of the lineup. A single from Shemiah Sanchez tied the game and then one batter later, Connie Quinn singled in Sanchez, giving the Tigers the lead. LSU tagged on another two runs after a Sydney Springfield single led to a fielding error by the Southern Miss left fielder, allowing Emily Griggs and Sahvanna Jaquish to score.

Sydney Smith had another strong outing, going the distance allowing one earned run on four hits, walking one and striking out seven. Unfortunately, Smith wasn’t aided by the LSU defense which appears to be back to it’s multi-error ways with two on Tuesday. One of those errors came in the ninth inning, leading to a USM run and putting the tying run at the plate with just one out. Thankfully, Smith secured the last two outs for the victory.

Tuesday’s game certainly didn't alleviate many concerns about the lineup, though seeing the bottom of the lineup spark the Tiger offense is certainly a good sign and hopefully the start of better days for that group of players. There is also a case to be made that Sydney Smith has been LSU’s best pitcher over the last few games, having given up just one earned run in her last three starts. LSU is back in Tiger Park this weekend for six games as part of the LSU Invitational.