2025 LSU Softball Preview
Erik Trosclair • February 7, 2025
Lets get into it!
The 2025 LSU Softball team comes into the season as the 9th ranked team in the nation. The Tigers are coming off of a 44 win season, which is an improvement from the 42 win season before that. LSU faces 10 top 25 opponents this year. Coach Beth Torina is known for her tough scheduling. This team lost some big names last year, but the Tigers have names stepping up in those places.
Coach Torina is entering her 14th season as the head coach of the Tiger Softball team. She has over 500 wins as the head coach at LSU and over 600 wins in her head coaching career. Get familiar with this entire roster, as Coach Torina likes to use a true team effort approach with her teams.
RETURNING STARTERS
- Maci Bergeron, JR, C, 2 year letter winner. Maci brings plenty of experience to the catcher position, and she will come into the season as LSU’s all-time leader with a .996 fielding percentage on 530 chances.
- Danieca Coffey, R-SR, IF, 3 year letter winner. 2023 NFCA South All-Region 1st Team, 2022 NFCA South All-Region 2nd Team, 2022 All-SEC 2nd Team, 2022 LSWA All-Louisiana 2nd Team. Danieca had a great start before suffering a season ending injury last season. Danieca will be a leader on and off the field for this team.
- Mckenzie Redoutey, SR, OF, 3 year letter winner. 2023 All-SEC 2nd Team and 2023 SEC All-Defensive Team. Mckenzie had a .303 batting average and an amazing 1.000 field percentage last season.
- Sydney Peterson, R-JR, IF, 1 year letter winner. Sydney suffered a season ending injury early on last season. Sydney started 50 games at 2nd base in 2022.
RETURNING CONTRIBUTORS
- Jadyn Laneaux, SO, OF, 1 year letter winner. Jadyn appeared in 6 games last season, and she will provide outfield depth as well as speed on the basepaths for the Tigers.
- Mckaela Walker, JR, IF, 2 year letter winner. Mckaela has appeared in 30 games over 2 seasons for the Tigers. She will provide quality depth in the infield for the Tigers.
- Tori Edwards, R-FR, Utility. Tori made 3 appearances before her season was cut short due to an injury. She will provide quality depth for the Tigers.
- Abigail Savoy, JR, IF, 2 year letter winner. Abigail has appeared in 10 games over 2 seasons for the Tigers. She finished last season with a .333 batting average.
- Maddox Mckee, SO, Utility, 1 year letter winner. Maddox played in 32 games last season, while starting in 17 games at 3rd base. She came up big for this team last season. I would expect to see a lot of Maddox this season.
- Madyson Manning, SO, IF, 1 year letter winner. Madyson started in 18 games last season. She had a .320 batting average, .452 OBP, and .946 fielding percentage. Madyson should see a lot of playing time this season.
- Savanna Bedell, SO, Utility, 1 year letter winner. Savanna appeared in 20 games last season. Savanna will provide speed on the basepaths and quality for the Tigers.
- Maia Townsend, JR, OF, 2 year letter winner. Maia appeared in 25 games last season. She will provide outfield depth for the Tigers.
- Sierra Daniel, SO, Utility, 1 year letter winner. Sierra appeared in 40 games last season, and she made 32 starts at 2nd base, 3rd base, and designated hitter. She finished the season with a .300 batting average. I expect to see Sierra all over the field for the Tigers.
- Madilyn Giglio, SR, OF, 3 year letter winner. Madilyn will provide speed on the basepaths as well as quality outfield depth this season.
PITCHING STAFF
- Sydney Berzon, JR, 2 year letter winner. 2024 NFCA All-American 2nd Team, 2024 NFCA South All-Region 1st Team, 2024 All-SEC 1st Team, 2024 SEC All-Tournament Team, 2023 NFCA All-American 3rd Team, 2023 NFCA South All-Region 1st Team, 2023 All-SEC 2nd Team. Sydney is the clear leader of the pitching staff, in and out of the circle. Sydney’s calm demeanor while pitching is fun to watch. She always seems to be having fun. She has 34 wins, 7 saves, and a 1.84 ERA in her LSU career.
- Emilee Casanova, R-SR, 3 year letter winner. Emilee brings a strong arm to the Tiger rotation. She is sporting a 4-0 record and a 1.75 ERA in her Tiger career.
- Tatum Clopton, R-JR. Tatum was forced to sit out the last 2 seasons, but while at Oklahoma State, she made 2 Women’s College World Series appearances.
TRANSFERS
- Ashley Vallejo, R-SR, P, 4 year letter winner at McNeese. Ashley won 3 straight SLC championships with the Cowgirls. She was named the SLC Pitcher of the Year in 2022, and she is a 2 time All-SLC pitcher. She has 45 career wins, a 2.44 ERA, 306 strikeouts, 6 career shutouts, and two saves.
- Avery Hodge, JR, IF, 2 time National Champion at Oklahoma. Avery has a career .278 batting average.
- Jalia Lassiter, JR, OF. 2 time NFCA South All-Region selection. Jalia has a .302 career batting average and a .994 career fielding percentage.
INCOMING FRESHMEN
- Jayden Heavener, Pitcher/Utility. 2024 Florida 6A State Championship, 2024 Florida Gatorade Player of the Year, 2024 Max Prep National Player of the Year, 2024 Florida 6A 1st Team, 2023 FACA 6A Player of the Year and 1st Team All-American
- Sa’mya Jones, IF. MaxPreps #2 prospect and was the offensive MVP during her sophomore and junior seasons, and 1st Team All-District as a junior.
- Zoe Calvez, OF. 3 time FSHAA 7A All-State selection, 4 time FHSAA 7A All-Metro/District Softball Team, and West Orange Female Player of the Year, was ranked #9 in the class of 2024 by Extra Innings Softball and was ranked #4 at her position.
- Jada Phillips, Catcher/Utility. 3 time Player of the Year, Offensive and Defensive MVP, and 2 time All-State selection.
- Alix Franklin, IF. 3 time Louisiana 5A State Champion, 4 time All-State selection, and 2024 5A District 5 MVP.
- Destiny Harris, OF. 2024 Regional Player of the Year, 2-time Eastern District Player of the Year, and 2-time All-State and All-Region selection.
The Tigers are looking to hit the ground running this season. This will be an exciting team to watch!
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After a weather-delayed kickoff, loyal NOLA Gold fans were treated to a rollercoaster of a match that ended with a well-earned 44-36 victory over the Seattle Seawolves at the Shrine. This win moved NOLA Gold into 3rd place in the Major League Rugby Eastern Conference standings. Coach Danny Lee said of the team's response to the delay, “We just had to control the controllables. Once we told the boys the definitive time for kickoff, we had a plan ready to go. In terms of game plan, we had to be a little bit more direct, and we had to kick and adapt quickly.” NOLA Gold set the tone early, taking an initial 3-0 lead thanks to a steady penalty kick from Dorian Jones. Though Seattle answered quickly with a try to make it 7-3, the Gold launched into a dominant scoring stretch. Isaac Te Tamaki powered across the try line to ignite the offense, followed by back-to-back tries from the relentless Jonah Mau’u. Jones continued to add points from the tee, stretching the Gold’s lead to 27-7. Just before halftime, the Seawolves found a breakthrough and scored at the buzzer, narrowing the margin to 27-14. However, NOLA emerged from the locker room with purpose. Xavier Mignot wasted no time reestablishing momentum with a try that pushed the lead to 34-14. Seattle fought back with intensity, capitalizing on back-to-back tries to bring the score to 34-24. But NOLA responded with composure, as Jones added another penalty to keep the visitors at bay, 37-24. The closing stages of the match saw both teams exchanging blows. Seattle’s try was met by a decisive moment from Joe Taufete’e, who muscled through defenders for a critical score. Luke Campbell’s conversion extended the lead to 44-29. Though Seattle scored one final try at the buzzer, it wasn’t enough. With a final score of 44-36, NOLA Gold walked away with a crucial five-point win in front of a roaring home crowd and strengthens their postseason hopes with a firm grip on 3rd place in the East. Their next match will be on the road against the San Diego Legion on May 4th at 4:00 PM CT. For tickets and more details, please visit www.nolagoldrugby.com
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