LSU softball releases 2015 slate

Three home tournaments, along with an out-of-conference matchup with a Big 12 power and the SEC’s signature event in May, highlight the 2015 LSU softball schedule announced by head coach Beth Torina and the team Monday.
Coming off an NCAA regional final berth in 2014, the Tigers will square off with 14 teams that made the NCAA Tournament last season, with three advancing to the Women’s College World Series and the eventual national champion also scheduled in the Florida Gators. There will be more than 30 opportunities to see the Tigers in action in the spring, with more information on tickets for the upcoming season being announced in the coming months.
“This year’s schedule will be exciting for our team and for the fans in Baton Rouge,” Torina said in a news release. “It is a great mix of teams from all over the country and from many different conferences that will challenge us from day one and will make sure we are ready to go from the start.”
Tiger fans will have multiple opportunities to see the team up close this season, as the squad will host three tournaments in the first four weeks of the year while participating in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Palm Springs, California, to finish up the tournament portion of the season in February.
It likely won’t be the last for the group, as the league announced that the 2015 SEC Softball Tournament would be held in Tiger Park for the first time, May 6-9, in Baton Rouge, too.
“The crown jewel of the season will be the finale and hosting the SEC tournament at Tiger Park,” Torina said in the release. “We are so fortunate to have such an amazing event on our campus and to be able to showcase the best softball in the country for our fans in Louisiana.”
LSU opens the season hosting the NC State Wolfpack and Memphis Tigers Feb. 6-8, before turning around the next week and welcoming Central Arkansas, Hofstra and Notre Dame Feb. 13-15.
A single game with Louisiana Tech is scheduled a few days before the Tigers travel to California.
The team will return to host Florida Atlantic, Ball State, Stephen F. Austin and Northwestern State Feb. 27-March 1.
The Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, one of the showcases of the early softball season, will feature a rematch of last year’s Tucson Regional final with Arizona, among matchups with San Diego State, Cal State Fullerton, Nebraska and Northwestern scheduled for Feb. 20-22.
March opens with a return date for the Lady Demons of Northwestern State, as throughout the season the team will continue its local and regional rivalries with Nicholls (March 17), South Alabama (March 24), ULM (March 31) and Southeastern Louisiana (April 28), all at home, with a doubleheader set against McNeese State in Lake Charles (April 15).
One of the biggest non-conference home series will feature the return of a Big 12 Conference foe in the Oklahoma Sooners March 20-21 at 6 p.m., both days in Tiger Park.
Fans also will see a familiar face in the Mississippi State Bulldogs for an in-season home-and-home series, as Mississippi State is not in the rotation of league games this year.
The 24-game SEC slate will prove to be another stiff challenge for the Tigers this season, as LSU opens league play March 6, hosting the Arkansas Razorbacks.
The Tigers also will welcome Ole Miss, April 3-4, Texas A&M, April 18-20, and Auburn, May 1-3, to Tiger Park for the regular season finale as well as Senior Day presentations.
The road portion of the league slate will start with a bang as LSU travels to Gainesville, Florida, for a three-game series against the defending champion Gators, March 13-15.
The next trip has the team scheduled for a three-game set against SEC tournament finalist and Women’s College World Series participant Kentucky, March 27-29.
The Volunteer State is up next for the Tigers during SEC play, taking on Tennessee, April 11-13 in Knoxville.
The final road series for the squad will have the team in Columbia, Missouri, for a three-game set against Mizzou, April 24-26.
Only the top 10 teams at the end of the regular season will qualify for the conference tournament in May, with the opening round of action taking place May 6.
The single-elimination tournament will run through Saturday night, as the tournament champion earns the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Campus sites will serve as the backdrop for the NCAA Regional and Super Regional rounds the weeks of May 15-18 and 22-25, with the Women’s College World Series taking place in Oklahoma City, May 29-June 4.
For all of the latest news and information on Tiger softball, visit www.lsusports.net/softball. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/lsusoftball, along with @lsusoftball and @BethTorina on Twitter and @lsusb on Instagram.