RUSTON – The Louisiana Tech Softball team resumes Conference USA play with a three-game series against Western Kentucky this weekend.
The next two CUSA series for the Bulldogs could have major CUSA Regular Season Championship implications as LA Tech, WKU, and Liberty are all tied for first in CUSA with 5-1 records.
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Friday, March 22, 6 p.m. | Saturday, March 23, 2 p.m. | Sunday, March 24, Noon
Location: Dr. Billy Bundrick Field (Ruston, La.)
Watch: Game 1 |
Game 2 |
Game 3
Stats: LATechSports.com/Stats
ABOUT LOUISIANA TECH (20-5, 5-1 CUSA)
Louisiana Tech is 20-5 this season and coming off a thrilling 5-3 win over UL-Lafayette on Wednesday. The Bulldogs' victory was their first over the Ragin' Cajuns since April 25, 1998, snapping a 31-game ULL winning streak in the series.
Alannah Rogers hit a three-run home run and drove in a career-high four runs in the victory.
Lauren Menzina picked up the win with 2.2 innings of scoreless relief pitching.
The Bulldogs enter the matchup having won six in a row at home, their longest home winning streak in a season since they won 12 straight from April 3-May 8 of 2022.
Center fielder
Alexis Gilio has been the Dogs' most consistent hitter this season. She leads LA Tech with a .421 batting average and 32 hits, 12 RBI, 13 Runs scored, nine walks and a team-leading eight stolen bases. Defensively Gilio has not committed an error in 43 chances.
Second baseman
Caroline Easom is batting .382 with 29 hits, five doubles, 17 RBI, and six runs scored this season.
Alannah Rogers is batting .361 with 22 hits, one home run, 14 runs scored, 14 RBI and 10 walks. She owns a .451 on-base percentage. Rogers' three-run home run in the 5-3 win over UL-Lafayette was the first of her career.
Third baseman
Claire Raley leads LA Tech with three home runs and four triples this season.
As a team, LA Tech has already recorded 10+ hits in eight games this season after doing it eight times a year ago.
Opponents are hitting .227 against the Bulldogs' pitching staff in 2024. LA Tech holds a team ERA of 1.76 and a 1.07 WHIP in 171 innings pitched this season. The Bulldog pitchers have held opponents to two runs or less in 45 of their 81 games in the last two seasons.
Allie Floyd leads LA Tech in innings pitched (72.1) and strikeouts (51) this season while owning a 1.45 ERA. She has a 9-1 record and four saves this season. Floyd has already surpassed her 2023 win total of eight.
Brook Melnychuk is 7-3 this season with a 1.24 ERA, .94 WHIP, and 33 strikeouts. Opposing hitters are batting .181 against her. In the win over the Ragin' Cajuns, Melnychuk picked up her second save of the season.
Melnychuk and Floyd rank 31st and 49th nationally in earned run average. Louisiana Tech is one of 10 programs with two pitchers in the top 50 nationally, joining Oklahoma, Tennessee, Oklahoma State, Clemson, Duke, Florida, Alabama, Texas, and Florida Gulf Coast.
Catcher
Brooke Diaz has effectively limited opponents on the base paths. Her nine runners caught stealing this season rank eighth nationally.
The Bulldogs checked in at No. 36 in the latest NCAA RPI Rankings on March 18, ranking first among all CUSA programs. Louisiana Tech is off to a 20-5 start this season, its best since 1989.
LA Tech is led by head coach
Josh Taylor, who is 91-49 in three seasons at Tech and 324-217 in his career. He previously served as head coach at Nevada (2017-2021) and Feather River College (2009-2012).
ABOUT WKU (19-8-1, 5-1 CUSA)
WKU is 19-8-1 this season and coming off a 9-0 run-rule win over Morehead State on Wednesday.
The Hilltoppers are batting .331 as a team with 234 hits, 37 doubles, three triples, 22 home runs,154 runs scored, and 142 RBI this season.
Morgan Sharpe leads WKU with a .467 batting average, 42 hits, five doubles, two triples, and 22 RBI this season. TJ Webster is also batting above the .400 mark at .442. Webster has 34 hits, two doubles, one home run, and nine RBI. Taylor Sanders possesses the most dangerous bat in the lineup, with a team-leading 10 home runs and 32 RBI. Her 10 round-trippers rank 13th nationally.
The Hilltoppers are led in the circle by Katie Gardner, who is 7-4 this season with a 1.64 ERA and 58 strikeouts in 79.2 innings pitched.
Amy Tudor is in her 11th season as head coach of the Hilltoppers, with a record of 321-203-1. Tudor has a career head coaching record of 538-409-3, with prior stops at Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne (2010-13), Belmont (2007-09), and Ohio Wesleyan (2005-06).
SERIES HISTORY
The Bulldogs and the Hilltoppers will be meeting for the 18th, 19th, and 20th times this weekend. LA Tech leads the all-time series 10-7. The Bulldogs took the last meeting 6-3 (13 inn.) on May 6, 2023.
Brook Melnychuk threw eight shutout innings in relief to earn the win.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For all the latest in LA Tech Softball, follow us on Twitter (@LATechSB), Instagram (@LATechSB), and Facebook (LATechSoftball).
