BEAUMONT, Texas – Lamar University will compete in its final non-conference tournament of the season by heading out to Hattiesburg, Miss. for the Southern Miss Hub City Classic. LU will take on the Golden Eagles Saturday at 2 p.m. but will also meet with Morehead State (2/27 – 9 a.m., 3/1 – 10 a.m.), Chattanooga (2/27 – 2 p.m.) and Jackson State (2/28 – 9 a.m.).
PREVIOUSLY
The Cardinals dropped four of their five games at the UL Monroe Best of the Bayou Tournament. Their lone win was a 9-1 run-rule victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff in five innings.
NO. 1 COULD BE THE ONE IN NO. 1
Cimara-lei Wessling batted .500 (7-of-14) in Monroe, which included four RBIs, two homers and a double. She is currently third in the conference in batting average (.442) and slugging percentage (.860), tied for second with seven doubles and is sixth with three homers this season. Wessling leads the Cardinals with 19 hits and has recorded a hit in the last seven games.
IT'S NOT HOW YOU START OR FINISH, BUT HOW YOU USE THE FOURTH.
The Cardinals have done most of their damage in the third through fifth innings, scoring 53 of their 81 runs this season. Twenty-six of those runs have occurred in the fourth inning, which LU has outscored the opposition by 10. In each of its seven victories, Big Red has led after the fourth inning.
OPPONENT INFO: Morehead State
Time: Friday at 9 a.m., Sunday at 10 a.m.
Series Record: First Meeting
ABOUT THE EAGLES
The Eagles (0-9) are still in search of their first win of the season after losing a wild 11-10 contest against North Carolina A&T at the Blues City Invitational in Memphis, Tenn. Maddy Christopher's team-leading 13 hits has her up to a .394 batting average, while Taikibrea Campbell has driven in nine RBIs, including three homers. Ainsley Stubbs leads the pitching staff with 21 strikeouts.
OPPONENT INFO: Chattanooga
Time: Friday at 2 p.m.
Series Record: UTC leads 1-0
Last Meeting: UTC, 5-4 (2/22/25)
ABOUT THE MOCS
The Mocs (8-6-1) recently took three of five games in their own Frost Classic against both Cornell and Illinois-Chicago. Seven players have double-figure hits, including a team-high 16 from Mia Leone, who also leads with 16 RBIs. Pitcher Taylor Long already has 54 strikeouts to go along with three wins in the circle.
OPPONENT INFO: JACKSON STATE
Time: Saturday at 9 a.m.
Series Record: LU leads 6-1
Last Meeting: LU, 16-7 (3/16/16)
ABOUT THE TIGERS
The Tigers are 7-5 after winning three of their four games at the HBCU Softball Classic in Montgomery, Ala. JSU has two players hitting over .400 in Meah Almarez (.410 BA, 16 hits, 9 RBIs) and Jace Jackson (.405 BA, 15 hits, 10 RBI). Jorgina Gant (2-1) has a team-low ERA of 3.50 with 18 strikeouts.
OPPONENT INFO: SOUTHERN MISS
Time: Saturday at 2 p.m.
Series Record: USM leads, 2-0
Last Meeting: USM, 5-4 (3/1/25)
ABOUT THE GOLDEN EAGLES
USM (8-8) came away with a 7-3 win over Nicholls Wednesday. Among the Golden Eagles' top hitters are Kinsley Gordon-Sivley, who leads with a .390 batting average and 11 runs scored. Hannah Christian has a team-high 20 hits, while Nealy McManus has driven in 15 RBIs. Kayla Giardina leads USM's pitching staff with a 2.56 ERA, four wins and 24 strikeouts.
UP NEXT
The Cardinals will open the home portion of their schedule Tuesday when they host Sam Houston at the LU Softball Complex. First pitch is scheduled to be delivered at 5:30 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+.
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