BEAUMONT, Texas – For only the second time in program history, Lamar University is playing for the Southland Conference title as it will travel to Lake Charles, La. to battle with its border rival, No. 2 McNeese, in a best-of-three championship series.
Games one and two will take place Thursday and Friday with first pitch set for 6 p.m. If necessary, game three will happen at 6 p.m. Saturday. All the games will be played at Joe Miller Field at Cowgirl Diamond and will be streamed on ESPN+.
PREVIOUSLY
The Cardinals went 3-0 in the Hammond, La. bracket over the weekend. LU began the tournament by coming from behind to beat No. 4 UIW, 7-5 Thursday. Then, LU defeated top-seed Southeastern Louisiana, 2-1, in eight innings for two consecutive games to advance.
CLUTCH HITS
In each of the three games, Big Red had a player deliver the big hit to either tie or put them ahead for good. Against UIW,
Roxy Thompson tied the game with a two-run triple in the sixth before she scored on a
Gracee Hess single. In the first SLU game,
Riley Whitley tied the game with a fifth-inning RBI single while
Sicily Windham delivered the go-ahead home run in the eighth. Sunday's game two victory was won thanks to
Isabella Flores, who singled to center in the bottom of the eighth.
ISABELLA SETTING MORE RECORDS
Flores' walk-off RBI single meant that she became the first Cardinal to record 50 RBIs in a single season. It was also her fourth walk-off hit of the season, which sets a new school record and ties teammate
Gracee Hess for second-most in a career.
SHE CAN GO THE DISTANCE
Reagan Smith earned three complete-game victories in the circle last weekend. She now has 15 wins on the season, which is tied with
Aaliyah Ruiz for third most. Smith also moved up to seventh all-time in complete games with 21.
EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT DEM CARDS!
The Cardinals are 5-1 this season in extra-inning games. Three of those wins came against teams in the RPI Top 50 – SLU (33) and Baylor (39).
NATIONAL NOTICE
The Cardinals appeared in two national polls over the weekend as they were ranked 24th in the SoftballAmerica.com Mid-Major Power Rankings and 25th in the D1Softball.com Mid-Major Rankings. This was the second time LU has appeared in each poll.
HISTORY IN SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
The Cardinals last competed in the conference championship game back in 2016 against McNeese. Although LU took the early 1-0 lead, the Cowgirls rallied to win 5-2.
LAST TIME VS. MCNEESE
The Cardinals were swept by McNeese in Lake Charles to open SLC play by scores of 8-2, 6-4 and 8-0. Whitley compiled four hits and three RBI in the first two games. All-time, LU is 9-43 against the Cowgirls and has won one road game in Lake Charles back on Apr. 21, 2017.
UP NEXT
Should the Cardinals win, they will advance to the NCAA Regionals, which will run from Friday, May 15th to Sunday, May 17th. The times and locations of the regionals will be unveiled on the NCAA Division I Softball Selection Show Sunday, May 10th at 6 p.m on ESPN2.
