As both Louisiana Tech basketball teams continued Conference USA action this weekend, many of the outdoor sports – and some indoor – were/will be affected by Mother Nature and COVID-19. And some weren’t/won’t, so here is a look at what’s on tap – or tapped out – for this weekend.
SOFTBALL: The Lady Techster softball team opened up its season last night in near freezing temperatures, picking up a 3-2 win against ULM in the first day of the Best of the Bayou Classic at the Ouachita Sports Complex.
Audrey Pickett got the win in the circle, tossing the first four innings, before freshman Emma Hutchinson picked up the save working the final three frames. ULM had the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh with two outs when Hutchinson recorded her fifth strikeout of the game.
Freshman Caroline Easom homered in her first collegiate at bat and senior Madie Green drove in the go-ahead runs in the fifth inning.
Tech is scheduled to fact Top 10 ranked Oklahoma State at 3:30 p.m. today and then wrap up the event Saturday with a 1:15 p.m. first pitch against Lipscomb and a 3:30 p.m. rematch with OSU.
The Lady Techsters’ inaugural game at Dr. Billy Bundrick Field is slated for March 5 against Tarleton State.
VOLLEYBALL: Louisiana Tech saw its lone volleyball match for the week postponed following COVID-19 concerns within the Southeastern Louisiana program.
Coach Amber McCray’s team will return to play on Feb. 18 when they host Grambling State at the Thomas Assembly Center. It will be the first of three home matches over the course of a five-day span as Tech then Hosts C-USA foe Southern Miss (Feb. 21 and 22).
SOCCER: With the forecast calling for sub-freezing temperatures and a chance of precipitation, Louisiana Tech’s scheduled soccer match at UT Tyler set for today was canceled. The game will not be rescheduled.
Tech will travel to Thibodaux to face Nicholls State Sunday with kickoff slated for 1 p.m. (weather-permitting). The Lady Techsters (4-2) are coming off a 3-0 win over Belhaven College on Tuesday.
BOWLING: In its first action since moving up to No. 5 in the National Tenpin Coaches Association Poll last Friday, the Lady Techster bowling team hosts the Bulldog Classic in Dallas, Texas, starting today.
Louisiana Tech placed second at each of its first three tournaments of the 2020-21 season and finished first at the single-day event of the Lady Techsters Invitational on Jan. 15. Most recently, LA Tech finished seventh at the Prairie View Classic which included nine of the top 10 teams in the country.
TENNIS: Fresh off a doubleheader sweep over Grambling State and on the heels of a four-match winning streak, the Lady Techster tennis team will travel to the southern part of the state this weekend for a pair of games.
Coach Amanda Stone’s ladies (4-2) will face Southern Saturday at 10 a.m. in Baton Rouge before traveling to Thibodaux Sunday for an 11 a.m. start time against Nicholls.
Tech defeated Grambling last Sunday by scores of 7-0 and 4-0 to extend its winning streak to four matches. The Lady Techsters’ next home match is Feb. 23 against UNO.
Photo: courtesy LA Tech Athletic Communications