Girouard, LSU expecting better draw this time

• By WILLIAM WEATHERS
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: May 11, 2008 - Page: 10C - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

• Print
• Email
• Save
• Share

• Del.icio.us
• Digg
• Facebook
• Reddit
• 

Fours days after winning the Southeastern Conference tournament last year, the LSU softball team found itself on a plane bound for NCAA competition in California.

“I’ve long stopped trying to figure that out,” LSU softball coach Yvette Girouard said of the decision by the NCAA’s Division I Selection Committee.

Although LSU is void of any regular-season or postseason championship this year, the Tigers (42-16) may have put together a better résumé with a higher Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) and Strength of Schedule — two components that ultimately weigh heavily in the eyes of that committee which unveils its 64-team NCAA softball regional bracket at 9 p.m. today.

The proceedings are scheduled to be carried on ESPNU with continuing coverage on ESPNews. LSU players will watch the NCAA Selection Show tonight in the Lawton Room in Tiger Stadium.

“We kind of know what it is, know what our RPI is where before we really never knew,” Girouard said.

“Ours is very high, and supposedly that’s what hurt us last year. Then our conference is ranked (second to the Pac 10 in RPI) so high this year. We’ve done everything they’ve (Division I committee) asked us to do, of course except winning every game we play. But you got to hope you’re in the top 16 (the cut off to host) in the country.”

LSU expects to receive an at-large berth to its ninth NCAA regional in the 12 years of the program.

The Tigers swept through the Stanford regional a year ago before falling in super regional play at Arizona State.

Double-elimination regional play is set to begin Friday on 16 campus sites with the winners advancing to super regional play May 24-25. The eight super regional survivors move on to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series that begins May 28.

LSU finished third to No. 1 ranked Florida and No. 3 Alabama during the SEC’s regular season and advanced to the league’s tournament semifinal Friday where the Tigers lost 7-4 to the Crimson Tide.

LSU is hopeful of parlaying an RPI listed as high as No. 12 according to the NCAA and strength of schedule rated eighth best into hosting a regional for the fourth time and first since 2006.

“You always want to stay at home,” Girouard said. “We’d like to think with our RPI that our body of work speaks for itself. We finished behind two of the countries top teams in the SEC. For the seven seniors maybe the can get to play one last time in the only park they know and love.”