LSU Softball Head Coach Beth Torina was perplexed with her team having to make the journey to California to face No. 8 seed Stanford in the NCAA Super Regional. Even though Torina is excited about the matchup, she pondered about what her team 'deserved.'
In a press conference ahead of the tournament, Torina stated the team's credentials should have been more than enough for the No. 9 seed to host the tournament in Baton Rouge.
"I think our team’s resume was really strong," Torina said. "I’m not sure why we’re going on the road. We had every number in the season that says we shouldn’t have been.
I think we did all of the things we need to do for this committee. We had the highest RBI in the SEC the entire season. I don’t know if we deserved more, or didn’t, but it’s disappointing."
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Stanford's run against the top 25 teams was better than the LSU Tigers. In addition, their end-of-season run was stronger than the Tigers. According to the chairperson of the NCAA Division I softball selection committee Kurt McGuffin, this gave the Cardinal the edge over LSU and consequently the No. 8 seed.
"With LSU, it was more how they ended their season," McGuffin said. "They ended the season 17-15, 5-5 of their last 10. So it was really how they ended that season that caused us to move Stanford to that 8 spot."
LSU HC Beth Torina remains optimistic about the Tigers' spirit
Despite their current circumstances, Torina remained positive about the team's desire to win the Super Regional, which they will be competing in for the first time since 2021.
"I know the team’s excited. I know they’re ready for the next opportunity and we’ve done it the hard way many times. That’s kind of how we like to do it around here. We’ll get ready and we’ll show up and just continue. Our goal is to be in Oklahoma City at the end of next weekend," Torina added.
The Super Regional will take place from May 24th to May 26th at Boyd & Jill Family Stadium. Following their Baton Rouge Regionals victory, the Tigers will be keen to carry that momentum and win the Super Regional.
However, the Cardinal, who have a 46-14 overall record, proved they will be tough competition for the Tigers with their recent performance in the Stanford Regional.
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