BEAUMONT, Texas – The Lamar University Cardinals are hoping that home is not only where the heart is, but where the wins are.
 
The Cardinals (2-8) open the home portion of their 2017 schedule when they host Alabama A&M (3-6) at 4 p.m. Thursday in the first game of the second annual Cardinal Classic at the LU Softball Complex, where the Cardinals have a 28-8 all-time record since the stadium opened in 2015.
 
"We're really looking forward to playing at home for the first time this season," said LU coach Holly Bruder, who has seen her team drop six straight contests. "We play well here. We take pride in our facility and in showing it off. And, we have great fan support. They always come out and support us."
 
Five of LU's losses have been by one run, two of them to 19^th-ranked Texas A&M, while the Cardinals lost to Baylor by two runs this past weekend.
 
"We've had our chances, but we haven't come up with the big hit, or we've made a costly defensive mistake," Bruder said. "But we're a young team. We started five freshmen last weekend. We're playing tough teams, and we're learning from this and getting better."
 
The Cardinal Classic will feature 15 games over four days. In addition to the host Cardinals and Alabama A&M, the field includes perennial powers Kansas (7-3) and Tulsa (4-6) along with Northern Illinois (2-2) and South Dakota State (3-7).

The Cardinals face South Dakota State at 4:45 p.m. Friday, Kansas at 4:45 p.m. Saturday, Northern Illinois at 10:15 a.m. Sunday and Tulsa at 2:45 p.m. Sunday in the final game of the tourney.
 
"We want to put on a first-class event," Bruder said. "We're excited that teams such as Kansas and Tulsa are coming to Lamar University. We want to continue to bring quality teams to our place every year."
 
If the Cardinals are to put an end to their skid, their bats need to come alive. LU is hitting just .225 over the first 10 games of the season. What's more frustrating to Bruder is that when the Cardinals do get base runners, they can't bring them home. LU has stranded an average of seven runners per game this season.
 
"We have to make better adjustments to pitchers during the game," Bruder said. "We also have to find ways to score runs when we have the bases loaded."
 
Senior center fielder Brittany Rodriguez leads the Cardinals with a .364 batting average. Rodriguez was named to the all-tournament team at the Getterman Classic held at Baylor last weekend, as she hit .500 over the five games. Brynn Baca is hitting .300, with the team's only home run. Baca and Caitlyn Terrazas are tied for the team lead in RBIs with five apiece.
 
Ciara Luna (0-5/4.12) and Laura Napoli (1-3, 4.27) are expected to start the majority of the games for the Cardinals this weekend. The right-handers have been hurt by a lack of run support so far this season.
 
"Our pitching has kept us in a lot of games, but I know it can do better," Bruder said. "Our pitching and our defense have to step up games when we have the lead late in the game."
 
ROUND-TRIP TICKET, PLEASE: Ashley McDowell enters the weekend with 19 home runs, tied with Casey Cromwell for the all-time LU record.
 
TICKETS: For tickets for all LU home games, call 409-880-1715, or CLICK HERE. Tickets are also available at the LU ticket office, located in the Montagne Center, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. Tickets will be available at the ticket window at the LU Softball Complex starting one hour prior to first pitch. Tickets for Thursday's game are $7 for reserved seats, $5 for general admission and $3 for child/senior citizen general admission. Single-day passes for Friday, Saturday and Sunday are $15 for reserved seats, $12 for general admission and $!0 for child/senior general admission. LU students receive free admission when they present their Cardinal One card.
 
POSTERIZED: The official 2017 Lamar University softball poster will be distributed all weekend.
 
MEAL DEAL: Chartwells will offer a $5 meal deal all weekend. For that price, fans receive a hot dog, a 24-ounce drink and a box of popcorn.
 
UP NEXT: The Cardinals travel to Fayetteville, Ark., next weekend to play five games in a tournament hosted by the Arkansas Razorbacks. LU returns home to open Southland Conference play by hosting Northwestern State in a three-game series March 10-11.
 
The entire tournament schedule is listed below.
2017 Cardinal Classic Schedule
Thursday, Feb. 23
Alabama A&M at Lamar University, 4 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 24
Alabama A&M vs. Tulsa, 10 a.m.
Northern Illinois vs. Alabama A&M, 12:15 p.m.
South Dakota State vs. Kansas, 2:30 p.m.
South Dakota State at Lamar University, 4:45 p.m.
Kansas vs. Northern Illinois, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 25
South Dakota State vs. Alabama A&M, 10 a.m.
South Dakota State vs. Northern Illinois, 12:15 p.m.
Northern Illinois vs. Tulsa, 2:30 p.m.
Kansas at Lamar University, 4:45 p.m.
Tulsa vs. Kansas, 7 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 26
Alabama A&M vs. South Dakota State, 8 a.m.
Northern Illinois at Lamar University, 10:15 a.m.
Alabama A&M vs. Kansas, 12:30 p.m.
Tulsa at Lamar University, 2:45 p.m.
 
Team listed second is the home team