Softball receives Championship Rings, cap off historic 2013 season

The 2013 LSU Eunice softball team celebrated its NJCAA National Championship on Friday, December 6, with players and coaches receiving their long-anticipated championship rings as they recalled the Lady Bengals' second title in the program's eight year history.

Overall, LSU Eunice has four national tournament appearances and a national runners-up finish in 2012 to go along with their 2011 and 2013 titles.

"It was a great night. It was exciting to see the players' faces when they saw the ring for the first time. I am so proud of these ladies. The hard work they put in all season came together and paid off," head coach Andy Lee said.

"It was a great feeling to get back on top and to put together probably the greatest season ever in LSU Eunice softball. This will go down as one of the greatest teams ever, and it was great to get everyone together again," Lee added.

LSU Eunice ripped up the program's record books and rewrote them following a 62-win spring, as the Lady Bengals set two different program-best winning streaks, first putting together 22 consecutive victories before rolling off 27 straight to close out the regular season and take into postseason play.

Despite a third-round setback in the Region 23 Tournament, LSU Eunice responded with three consecutive wins to comeback and capture the regional crown before spitting out five victories in a row in the national tournament for the title, outscoring their opponents 53-8 in Clinton.

Then-freshman pitcher Julienne Broussard was named Pitcher of the Tournament following her play in Clinton, while then-freshman Ashley Subervielle was tabbed as the tournament's Most Valuable Player and then-freshman Codi Covington was named Most Outstanding Offensive Player.

Head coach Andy Lee was named Most Outstanding Coach as well.

In addition for the new program benchmarks of 62 wins and 27-straight victories, the Lady Bengals rewrote history in several team categories, including doubles (153), triples (17), RBIs (432), and runs scored (525), while their team batting average of .365 tied the program record as well.

Outgoing sophomores Kelsey Hollier and Taylor Simon, both of Rayne, etched themselves into the program record books, with Hollier collecting 81 RBIs to break Haley McCall's mark of 73 set in 2011, while Simon connected for 30 doubles to pass Sloan Laiche's mark of 25 set in the program's inaugural 2006 season.

Broussard notched a pair of new records as well, jumping to the top spot for the most wins in a single season (30) and most strikeouts in a single season (205).

The Lady Bengals 62-5 record is the most victories (and fewest losses) in a single season for any team in school history, eclipsing the Bengal baseball team's 57 wins from 2012 (57-5, won National Championship), while their .925 winning percentage set a new standard as well (baseball, .919, 2012).

With the program's inception only eight years ago during the 2005-2006 school year, LSU Eunice already has two NJCAA National Championships after winning their first crown in 2011. The Lady Bengals are only the second school ever to win multiple NJCAA Division II titles (Phoenix – 8 championships).

The 2014 edition of the Lady Bengals open their season on the road February 3 & 4 in the Galveston College Tournament. They open their home schedule on Wednesday, February 12 against Alvin Community College.