RUSTON, La. – Louisiana Tech baseball head coach Lane Burroughs spoke with the media Tuesday. He recapped No. 18 LA Tech's two-game series against No. 24 Old Dominion this past week and previewed this week's 2021 Air Force Reserve Conference USA Baseball Championship held at J.C. Love Field.
 
The Bulldogs, the No. 2 seed, will open the tournament against No. 7 seed UTSA at 4 p.m. on Wednesday.
 
Lane Burroughs quotes
 
Opening statement:
"Old Dominion is a really good club, and there's not a whole lot of separation between us, Southern Miss and them. We haven't seen Charlotte yet, but I was really impressed with their [Old Dominion's] lineup. It's a lengthy one. Guys 1-9 can hit the baseball. I was very surprised with their bullpen arms. They were really good out of the bullpen. Their starters were really good, too. I was very proud of our hitters. I thought they grinded both games and found a way to get a lead after getting behind, and unfortunately, we gave it up. You have to give them credit for coming back on us, and even after we gave up the lead in both games, we set up two innings to come back. Ultimately, we lost the games, and that's unfortunate. We played to win, and I thought out guys played hard. We just didn't get a stop out of the bullpen. We met and told the guys that they had two days to get off their feet. I wanted everybody to leave and didn't want anybody in the facility. We've got a big tournament this week, and we're very fortunate to be hosting the conference tournament. We've also got four teams ranked inside the top 25, so there's some good baseball to be played this week, and anybody can win it. If you're in Northern Louisiana, Southern Arkansas, Mississippi or Texas and you're a college baseball fan, then it'd be a good idea to drive over to Ruston this week. It's going to be a good tournament. We had a great practice yesterday with a lot of energy, and we'll practice today and get ready to hook it up tomorrow against San Antonio."  
  
On what hosting the conference tournament means to the program and Louisiana Tech as a whole:
"We're going to be on the camera. You're going to see that state T in center field and Bulldogs behind home plate. Just the fact that it's an infomercial for the next four or five days for Louisiana Tech and our baseball program means a lot. People that haven't seen our beautiful new baseball park will see it. Word will spread. You can't put a price tag on that, and it's ultra-important that we have this here. That's why you want to host postseason events because a lot of people are watching to see your product front and center."
 
On how he feels entering the tournament with this year's squad:
"This team is more mature than other teams, and that doesn't mean older. It just means they've played more ballgames and have had more at-bats and been in the postseason. These guys have been ranked all year, and they've played with that, if you want to call it, pressure. You're the hunted now, not the hunter. I just feel like these guys have got some toughness with everything they've been through. They've played all year with people being on them, and I honestly think we're past all that. It's a new season, and we're just going to go out and play the best we can. It's a more weathered ball club because they've been through so much. They're just a really good group of kids that take care of things on and off the field and in the classroom. They're a joy to coach, and I look forward to seeing them compete again."