LSU Head Coach Beth Torina will take her No. 8 seed LSU (43-15) on the road to California to face t No. 8 Stanford (46-14) in a best-of-three-game series at the 2024 Stanford Super Regional May 24-26 at Boyd & Jill Smith Family Stadium in Stanford, Calif.
The 8-9 Supers matchup will begin at 9 p.m. CT on Friday, May 24, and will air on ESPNU with Mike Couzens and Kenzie Fowler on the call. The Voice of LSU Softball, Patrick Wright, will call the action on 107.3 FM and the LSU Sports Radio Network.
This LSU team got off to the hottest start in all of college softball with a 24 game win streak and were the last unbeaten team. Once LSU hit conference play it seemed as though this team had peaked and all of the bats went cold all at once. After going 12-12 in conference play they are seemingly coming out of that mid season slump and rounding into their early season form. Since postseason play has started, LSU has a 5-1 record, outscoring its opponent 24-6, outhitting them 42-25, and has a 0.89 ERA with 43 strikeouts and a .157 opposing batting average in 47.1 innings. In the Baton Rouge Regional, the Fighting Tigers went 3-0 and tossed two shutouts, finished the weekend with a 0.37 ERA with 21 strikeouts in 19.0 innings, and outscored their opponents 18-1 behind four home runs, including three in the 9-0 Baton Rouge Regional Final against Southern Illinois. For the entire season, LSU has a .290 batting average behind 443 hits, a 2.19 ERA with 363 strikeouts in 403.0 innings pitched, and has turned 28 double plays this season – the second most in a single season in program history (31 – 1998).
Players who will be key to LSU advancing back to the WCWS in Oklahoma City
2023 NFCA All-American and two-time NFCA All-Region First Team selection Sydney Berzon is 19-8 in the circle with a 1.62 ERA and has 177 strikeouts in 194.1 innings of work. Berzon has made 20 starts and has thrown 19 complete games, four saves, and three shutouts. Berzon’s 19 wins are the sixth most by a sophomore pitcher in program history.
Utility pitcher and 2024 NFCA South Second Team honoree Kelley Lynch (9-2) has thrown six complete game shutouts, including the program’s first no-hitter against an SEC team since 2007, and has a 2.68 ERA with 92 strikeouts in 96.2 innings while holding opposing batters to a staff-low .184 average. Lynch also has 23 hits and 15 RBIs in the batter’s box.
Pitcher Raelin Chaffin is 11-5 on the rubber and has a 2.71 ERA with 76 strikeouts in 87.2 frames. Chaffin has also spun three shutouts this season, including one this postseason.
Outfielder Ciara Briggs, a 2024 NFCA South All-Region Second Team selection, paces the team with 64 hits, a .330 batting average, 42 runs, 14 stolen bases, and 11 sacrifice hits this season. This season, she has 23 RBIs, 21 walks, and 19 multi-hit games.
First baseman Raeleen Gutierrez is batting .328 and has a team-high 25 extra-base hits, including 17 doubles, six home runs, and two triples. Gutierrez is second on the team with 55 hits and 40 RBIs and adds 27 runs. Gutierrez was recently honored to the 2024 NFCA South All-Region Third Team.
Outfielders Ali Newland and McKenzie Redoutey enter Super Regionals batting .305 and .301, respectively. Newland has 54 hits, including eight home runs, 38 RBIs, 34 runs, and 29 walks, while Redoutey has 50 hits, 38 runs, 18 ribbies, and 24 walks. Newland was placed on the NFCA South All-Region First Team for the second consecutive season, and shortstop Taylor Pleasants, who leads the team with 10 home runs and 46 RBIs, became a three-time NFCA All-Region selection after claiming a spot on the third-team this season.
LSU and Stanford last met in the NCAA Tournament in the 2007 Palo Alto Regional, a regional in which LSU won 3-0, including an 11-5 victory over Stanford, the regional host. LSU trails Stanford 3-4 in the all-time series, with five games played at a neutral site. The clubs last faced each other in 2019 at Tiger Park, where the Cardinal won 7-5.
About Stanford
Stanford will make its third consecutive Super Regional appearance and has reached this stage eight times in program history. The Cardinal was pushed to a game seven in the Stanford Regional but outlasted Cal-State Fullerton 4-2 in the decisive game thanks to a four-run, three-hit third inning. Stanford is led by a dominant pitching staff that has a 1.82 ERA with 444 strikeouts in 407.0 innings and allows a .212 opposing batting average. Offensively, the Cardinal bats .277 with 434 hits.
Stanford’s ace NiJaree Canady leads the staff with a 21-4 record, a 0.52 ERA with 292 strikeouts in 187.2 innings, and a .133 opposing batting average. Canady has six shutouts and five saves this season. Pitcher Regan Krause is 20-7 in the circle and has a 2.71 ERA with 102 strikeouts in 144.2 frames.
Outfielder Emily Jones has team-highs of 60 hits on a .347 batting average and 15 stolen bases. She has scored 31 runs and has 20 RBIs. Although shortstop River Mahler (.307) and outfielder Kyra Chan (.302) follow with productive bats, hitting over .300, catcher Aly Kaneshiro (.267) and infielder Ava Gall (.271) lead the team with 11 and 10 home runs, respectively. Kaneshiro leads the team with 39 RBIs and 94 total bases.
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