Pitcher Sydney Berzon tossed her third complete-game shutout of the season and second in as many appearances. LSU tallied its 13 shutout of the season.
BATON ROUGE, La. – Pitcher Sydney Berzon threw her second consecutive shutout and third of the season as No. 10/13 LSU defeated Liberty, 4-0, Friday night at Tiger Park.
LSU moves to 37-13 behind its 13th shutout of the year, and Liberty drops to 31-21 this season.
Berzon (17-7) earned the win with her third complete-game shutout of the season, fanning four batters with no walks while allowing five hits. Berzon and the LSU defense kept the Flames from gaining momentum throughout the game and had a stretch where they retired 13 of 15 batters faced.
“I thought she [Sydney Berzon] did a great job,” said Head Coach Beth Torina. “Any time you throw a shutout, it’s a good day. No walks tonight was one of her goals. She wanted to improve there and did a good job.”
Pitcher Elena Escobar (10-4) was charged with the loss, allowing two runs on three hits, four walks, and struck out four in 5.0 innings.
Four Tigers had hits in the contest, including pinch hitter Sierra Daniel, first baseman Raeleen Gutierrez, designated player Kelley Lynch, and outfielder McKenzie Redoutey. Outfielder Ali Newland and third baseman Madyson Manning joined Gutierrez with an RBI in the win.
“The key is finding ways to score,” said Coach Torina. “It’s never been about hits; it’s about finding ways to score. That’s the point of the game. It’s a team offensive approach. It’s a 1-9 approach and not an individual hitter approach. We did a good job of scoring tonight, and that’s the name of the game.”
LSU found itself in another pitcher’s duel, with both teams being held scoreless through the first four frames. Daniel recorded LSU’s first hit with a leadoff single in the fifth. Daniel advanced to second base on a sacrifice bunt by outfielder Ciara Briggs, and runners were placed on the corners after Redoutey ripped a ball back to the pitcher. Newland stepped to the plate and hit a ball deep enough to left field to score Daniel on a sacrifice fly, and Gutierrez followed with a run-scoring double to put the Tigers ahead 2-0.
The Tigers plated two runs on one hit and an error in the sixth inning. With runners on second and third base, Manning laid down a bunt that drove in her first career RBI, and an errant throw home by Liberty crossed another run to give LSU a 4-0 lead.
Up Next
Game two of the series will be Saturday at 6 p.m. CT.