JOURNAL SPORTS
BATON ROUGE – Louisiana Tech fans have a short walk if they want to take in home baseball and softball games happening on the same day, even the same time in Ruston.
This evening in Baton Rouge, it won’t take long for them to bounce between ballparks, either.
The Tech teams are visiting their counterparts from LSU in a softball-baseball doubleheader. The softball contest has a 6 p.m. first pitch at Tiger Park; baseball’s start is 30 minutes later a four-minute drive away at Alex Box Stadium.
The Tigers’ softball team is the only nationally-ranked LSU team, coming in as high as No. 19 in polls this week. LSU’s baseball squad, which debuted at No. 1 in most preseason polls, has skidded recently, losing eight of its last 13 contests.
Both games will be carried on SEC Network+.
BASEBALL: The Diamond ‘Dogs (15-10 overall, 4-2 CUSA) face an LSU team that is 16-9 overall and 2-4 in league play after losing SEC series at Vanderbilt and at home to Oklahoma.
The Bulldogs hope to snap a two-game losing streak to the Tigers, having previously fallen to LSU in Red Stick in 2024 and 2025. The last time Tech defeated LSU dates back to 2022, when the ‘Dogs swept a two-game home-and-home series.
The ‘Dogs look to snap a two-game losing skid ending a CUSA series at New Mexico State to conclude the road trip. Tech will open a brief four-game homestand following tonight’s game.
LSU’s Jake Brown has been one of the nation’s top sluggers, ranking among the top 15 nationally in home runs and RBI. He is also 32nd in Division I and sixth in the SEC with a .794 slugging percentage.
Freshman catcher/first baseman Omar Serna Jr. batted .400 (6-for-15) in LSU’s four games last week with two doubles, two homers and four RBI.
The Bulldogs are led at the plate by infielder Trey Hawsey, who is hitting .320 with five doubles, one triple, nine homers and 25 RBI. Infielder Colby Lunsford is batting .319 with nine doubles, eight homers and 24 RBI, and outfielder Cade Patterson has a team-high 29 RBI with three doubles and four home runs.
SOFTBALL: LSU (21-10, 3-6 SEC) aims to extend its 29-4 all-time record over Louisiana Tech (17-14, 3-6 CUSA), including a 23-2 advantage in Baton Rouge. The Tigers have won 26 straight against the Bulldogs since 1982.
In their latest action, the Tigers took down South Carolina in a three-game series, 2-1, to earn their first SEC series victory of the season. LSU has a .259 batting average with 205 hits, and its 155 walks rank third in the league and fifth in the nation. The Tigers’ offense has produced 23 home runs and ranks No. 2 in the SEC with 48 stolen bases.
The pitching staff has a 2.87 ERA, 152 strikeouts, and five shutouts. The defense boasts a .973 fielding percentage and has turned 19 double plays, the seventh-most in the nation.
Quitman freshmen Cali Deal is 1-0 in the circle, collecting seven strikeouts in 9.0 innings.
Sierra Daniel leads LSU at the plate with a .337 batting average.
The Bulldogs were swept at Jacksonville State this past weekend by a combined seven runs, one loss coming in extra innings.
Reagan Marchant leads Tech with nine homers and is up to 27 in her LA Tech career, which ranks as the sixth most in program history. Marchant leads the team in RBI with 28 while Bradi Gallaway sits one behind with 27 runs driven in.
Airline product Elena Heng, a sophomore, registered her 100th career hit against Jax State on Saturday. Heng leads the team with 42 hits, which is tied for third most in CUSA. She led the team with four hits in the series against the Gamecocks.