NIL
Preview: LA Tech at Conference-USA Tournament
Story Links RUSTON – Louisiana Tech softball is set for the Conference USA tournament after ending the regular season at 30-23 (15-12 CUSA). The Bulldogs enter this week’s tournament as the No. 4 seed and will open with New Mexico State on Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. for their first-round matchup. […]
RUSTON – Louisiana Tech softball is set for the Conference USA tournament after ending the regular season at 30-23 (15-12 CUSA). The Bulldogs enter this week’s tournament as the No. 4 seed and will open with New Mexico State on Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. for their first-round matchup.
The six-team tournament is a double elimination event, with the top two seeds earning first-round byes. Liberty is the No. 1 seed, followed by WKU (No. 2), Jax State (No. 3), LA Tech (No. 4), New Mexico State (No. 5) and SHSU (No. 6).
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Date: May 7-10
Time: Wednesday – 2:30 p.m. vs. No. 5 New Mexico State
Location: WKU Softball Complex (Bowling Green, Ky.)
Watch: ESPN+
CUSA Tournament History: 11-12
CUSA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
This will be LA Tech’s 10th appearance in the CUSA Tournament. The Bulldogs have made every tournament since joining the league except for 2014. LA Tech is 11-12 in CUSA tournament games after going 1-2 in last year’s CUSA tournament. LA Tech has won two CUSA Tournament Championships (2017, 2019). The Bulldogs went 4-1 in the 2017 tournament and defeated FIU 1-0 in the Championship game. The 2019 tournament saw the Bulldogs go 3-0 with a 3-1 win over Marshall in the Championship game.
ABOUT LA TECH
LA Tech concluded its regular 53-game season at 30-23 (15-12 CUSA). The Bulldogs went 1-2 this past weekend in Huntsville, winning the middle game of the series 5-4 in eight innings.
The win marked number 30 for the Bulldogs, giving head coach Josh Taylor 30+ wins in each of his first four seasons at the helm. It also marked the 27th time in program history that the Bulldogs have finished with 30+ wins.
The Bulldogs had three players finish with 50+ hits in the regular season, and five players with a .300 average or better. Alexis Gilio leads the team with 55 hits, followed by Elena Heng (54), and Nicole Hammoude (53). Claire Raley (49) and Reagan Marchant (47) were the only other two Bulldogs to finish with 45+ hits. Hammoude’s .353 batting average leads the team, followed by Marchant (.322), and Gilio (.318).
Three LA Tech player’s drove in 30+ runs, with two driving in 45+. Marchant leads the team with 49 RBI, followed by Hammoude (42), and Raley (33). The Bulldogs launched 36 home runs this season, with 17 of them coming off the bat of Marchant. Hammoude finished second with eight long balls, followed by Raley who hit six. Marchant hit her 17th home run this past weekend against SHSU to tie the program’s single season home record. The redshirt sophomore just needs one more to set a new mark.
Allie Floyd finished the season 21-13 after earning a win and taking a loss against SHSU. The right-hander led CUSA in wins (21), complete games (17), innings pitched (195.1), and strikeouts (177). She recorded three shutouts and was the only pitcher in the league to record more than 145 strikeouts. She became the program’s all-time single season record holder with 13 CUSA wins this season, while she became the 18th Bulldog to record 20+ wins in a single season.
Laney Johnson finished with a 5-4 record in the circle during the regular season. The true freshman was second on the team in wins, innings pitched (69.1) and finished tied for second with 21 strikeouts.
Alyssa Martin and Mattison Buster both earned two wins this season. Martin had a career day in the season finale against SHSU as she carried a perfect game into the bottom of the seventh inning. The former walk-on registered a career-high 6.0 innings, while allowing one run and one hit.
ABOUT NEW MEXICO STATE
The Aggies enter this week’s tournament as the No. 5 seed after recording a 27-25 (14-13 CUSA) mark.
New Mexico State had two players finish with 50+ hits in Kristiana Watson (60) and Desirae Spearman (53). Watson led the team with 47 RBI, followed by Spearman with 44. Spearman led the team with 19 home runs while Watson blasted 15.
The Aggies are batting .299 as a team with 67 total home runs this season. Opponents are batting .297 against the NMSU pitching staff, which carries a 4.46 team ERA.
In the circle, Faith Aragon led the team with 12 wins, followed by Spearman with 11. Aragon tossed a team-high 122.1 innings, followed by Spearman’s 108.0. Spearman led the staff with 112 strikeouts while Aragon fanned 83.
The Bulldogs went 1-2 against the Aggies when they made a visit to Ruston during the regular season (Mar. 7-9). NMSU won the opener 5-0, while defeating the Bulldogs 3-1 on Saturday. LA Tech defeated NMSU 10-4 in the series finale. Floyd earned the win in the circle after allowing four runs on 11 hits with seven strikeouts. Heng collected three hits, while Raley had two base knocks in the win. Addison Snyder drove in three runs followed by Hammoude with two.
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