Tiger Rag News Services
No. 16/13 LSU downed NC State, 11-3, on Thursday night at Tiger Park, marking its 12th consecutive season-opening victory.
LSU (1-0) had an impressing showing at the plate with 10 hits, including four players with multiple hits, with nine RBI, and for the second consecutive season, sophomore pitcher Jayden Heavener (1-0) pieced together a double-digit strikeout performance and held NC State (1-1) to two hits in her first victory of the 2026 campaign.
“I thought we were very prepared,” said head coach Beth Torina after the win. “We showed that we have a lineup that is going to be deep. You see that with Alix Franklin in the eight-hole, hitting two triples. It just showed that we have a lineup that will be potent. You didn’t get to see much from the defense, but they are going to be solid, too. It was a good start.”
Heavener punched out 10 batters in 5.0 innings of work and allowed three runs with three walks. It is Heavener’s sixth career game with double-digit strikeouts.
Offensively, sophomore right fielder Alix Franklin dazzled in her second career start with two triples, two RBI and one run. The two three-baggers tie a program single-game record, making her the first LSU Tiger to log multiple triples in a game since 2017 (Constance Quinn vs. Bethune-Cookman).
Senior center fielder Jalia Lassiter (2-for-2) had a game-high three RBI and drew one walk, junior second baseman Sierra Daniel (2-for-4) chipped in two RBI, and junior infielder Ally Hutchins (2-for-3) had one run to round out LSU’s multi-hitters.
NC State’s Charli Orsini (0-1) was charged with the loss as she relinquished six runs on seven hits and walked one batter in 1.2 innings pitched.
The Tigers started out strong on both sides of the field. Heavener struck out five of the first six batters she faced, including striking out the side in the second inning, and LSU scored six runs on seven hits through the first two stanzas. The Tigers plated two in the opening frame, highlighted by Daniel’s RBI double, and proceeded to put up four runs in the second thanks to three consecutive RBI hits from Lassiter (single), Daniel (double) and senior catcher Maci Bergeron (double). Bergeron capped the inning by scoring on an NC State error.
The Wolf Pack got on the board in the top of the third courtesy of a couple of wild pitches, but the Bayou Bengals responded in the bottom half with a two-run triple by Franklin, her second triple of the game, and a sacrifice fly by Lassiter that gave the Tigers a 9-1 lead.
NC State’s catcher Hannah Church opened the fourth inning with a solo shot to center field, but LSU answered the call once again with redshirt sophomore left fielder Char Lorenz’s RBI single through the left side. Later in the inning, Lassiter walked in a run to stretch the Tigers’ advantage to 11-2. A two-out single from infielder Kendall Simmers scored one final run for NC State in the fifth, but a couple of batters later, a pop-up to the shortstop ended the game.
Up Next
Day two of the Tiger Classic will be a doubleheader for LSU as it takes on Nevada and NC State at 3 p.m. CT and 5:30 p.m. CT, respectively.
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