# 2020 LSU Tigers softball team

The 2020 LSU Tigers softball team represented Louisiana State University in the 2020 NCAA Division I softball season. The Tigers played their home games at Tiger Park. The 2020 softball season was cut short due to the 2020 Covid-19 Pandemic. As a result, LSU had not played any conference games when the season ended on March 11, 2020. One notable highlight of the season was the program's first ever 7-inning perfect game thrown by Maribeth Gorsuch in a 4-0 victory over the Belmont Bruins on February 22, 2020.

## Previous season

The Tigers finished the 2019 season 43–19 overall, and 14–10 in the SEC to finish in a tie for second in the conference. The Tigers hosted a regional during the 2019 NCAA Division I softball tournament and later advanced to the Minneapolis Super Regional against Minnesota. The Tigers were defeated by the Golden Gophers 0 games to 2 as Minnesota advanced to the WCWS.

## Preseason
### SEC preseason poll

The SEC preseason poll was released on January 15, 2020.
Media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team |
| 1 | Alabama |
| 2 | Tennessee |
| 3 | LSU |
| 4 | Kentucky |
| 5 | Florida |
| 6 | Georgia |
| 7 | Arkansas |
| 8 | Ole Miss |
| 9 | South Carolina |
| 10 | Missouri |
| 11 | Auburn |
| 12 | Mississippi State Texas A&M |

## Schedule and results

2020 LSU Tigers Softball Game Log :
Regular season :
February :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record |
| February 6 | Central Arkansas | No. 11 | Tiger Park Baton Rouge, LA | W 3–2 | S. Sunseri (1–0) | R. Sanchez (0–1) | A. Kilponen (1) | SECN+ | 1,356 | 1–0 |
| February 7 | No. 13 Oklahoma State | No. 11 | Tiger Park | W 1–0 | S. Wickersham (1–0) | C. Eberle (0–1) | A. Kilponen (2) | SECN+ | 1,536 | 2–0 |
| February 8 | Florida A&M | No. 11 | Tiger Park | W 8–0 (5) | S. Sunseri (2–0) | N. Zenteno (0–1) | | SECN+ | 1,685 | 3–0 |
| February 8 | No. 13 Oklahoma State | No. 11 | Tiger Park | W 3–2 | M. Gorsuch (1–0) | K. Maxwell (1–1) | | SECN+ | 1,934 | 4–0 |
| February 9 | Florida A&M | No. 11 | Tiger Park | W 16–0 (5) | A. Kilponen (1–0) | B. Boatwright (0–2) | | SECN+ | 1,361 | 5–0 |
| February 14 | Samford | No. 7 | Tiger Park | W 4–0 | A. Kilponen (2–0) | T. DeCelles (1–1) | | SECN+ | 1,356 | 6–0 |
| February 15 | at No. 13 Louisiana | No. 7 | Lamson Park Lafayette, LA | L 1–2 | M. Kleist (3–1) | M. Gorsuch (1–1) | | ESPN+ | 3,107 | 6–1 |
| February 16 | North Dakota | No. 7 | Tiger Park | W 8–0 (5) | S. Wickersham (2–0) | J. Jones (1–3) | | SECN+ | 1,398 | 7–1 |
| February 16 | No. 13 Louisiana | No. 7 | Tiger Park | W 4–3 | A. Kilponen (3–0) | M. Kleist (3–2) | | SECN+ | 2,246 | 8–1 |
| February 19 | Louisiana Tech | No. 6 | Tiger Park | W 9-2 | M. Gorsuch (2-1) | B. Hernandez (2-2) | | SECN+ | 1,297 | 9-1 |
| February 21 | Belmont | No. 6 | Tiger Park | W 4-0 | A. Kilponen (4-0) | B. Lee (0-1) | | - | 1,295 | 10-1 |
| February 21 | Sam Houston State | No. 6 | Tiger Park | W 12-0 (5) | S. Wickersham (3-0) | K. Sanchez (0-2) | | SECN+ | 1,295 | 11-1 |
| February 22 | Sam Houston State | No. 6 | Tiger Park | W 20-4 (5) | Shelbi Sunseri (3-0) | Darby Fitzpatrick (2-2) | | SECN+ | 1,345 | 12-1 |
| February 22 | Belmont | No. 6 | Tiger Park | W 4-0 | Maribeth Gorsuch (3-1) | Brittany Kennett (1-3) | | SECN+ | 1,535 | 13-1 |
| February 27 | vs. Loyola Marymount | No. 4 | Anderson Family Field Fullerton, CA | L 0-1 | Linnay Wilson (4-3) | Ali Kilponen (4-1) | | FLOSOFTBALL | 235 | 13-2 |
| February 27 | vs. No. 25 Texas Tech | No. 4 | Anderson Family Field | W 6-5 | Shelbi Sunseri (4-0) | GiGi Wall (1-2) | | FLOSOFTBALL | 435 | 14-2 |
| February 28 | vs. California | No. 4 | Anderson Family Field | W 5-1 | Shelbi Sunseri (5-0) | Chloe Romero (4-4) | | FLOSOFTBALL | 201 | 15-2 |
| February 28 | vs. No. 2 Washington | No. 4 | Anderson Family Field | L 1-3 | Pat Moore (6-0) | Shelby Wickersham (3-1) | | FLOSOFTBALL | 389 | 15-3 |
| February 29 | vs. Colorado State | No. 4 | Anderson Family Field | W 6-2 | Shelby Wickersham (4-1) | Taylor Gilmore (3-3) | | FLOSOFTBALL | 376 | 16-3 |
March :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | TV | Attendance | Overall record |
| March 6 | Campbell | No. 4 | Tiger Park | W (21-0) (5) | Shelbi Sunseri (6-0) | Megan Richards | SECN+ | 1,349 | 17-3 |
| March 7 | Campbell | No. 4 | Tiger Park | W (5-1) | Ali Kilponen (5-1) | Georgeanna Barefoot (5-6) | SECN+ | 1,571 | 18-3 |
| March 7 | Illinois State | No. 4 | Tiger Park | W (5-1) | Shelby Wickersham (5-1) | Morgan Day | SECN+ | 1,693 | 19-3 |
| March 8 | Illinois State | No. 4 | Tiger Park | W (9-1) | Maribeth Gorsuch (4-1) | Amanda Fox (1-3) | SECN+ | 1,474 | 20-3 |
| March 10 | South Alabama | No. 4 | Tiger Park | W (11-1) (5) | Ali Kilponen (6-1) | Jenna Hardy | SECN+ | 1,362 | 21-3 |
| March 13 | at South Carolina | | Carolina Softball Stadium Columbia, SC | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 14 | at South Carolina | | Carolina Softball Stadium | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 15 | at South Carolina | | Carolina Softball Stadium | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 18 | Northwestern State | | Tiger Park | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 21 | Mississippi State | | Tiger Park | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 22 | Mississippi State | | Tiger Park | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 23 | Mississippi State | | Tiger Park | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 25 | Southeastern Louisiana | | Tiger Park | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 27 | Georgia | | Tiger Park | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 28 | Georgia | | Tiger Park | Cancelled | | | | | |
| March 29 | Georgia | | Tiger Park | Cancelled | | | | | |
April :
| Date | Opponent | Site/stadium | Score |
| April 1 | Louisiana–Monroe | Tiger Park | Cancelled |
| April 3 | at Ole Miss | Ole Miss Softball Complex Oxford, MS | Cancelled |
| April 4 | at Ole Miss | Ole Miss Softball Complex | Cancelled |
| April 5 | at Ole Miss | Ole Miss Softball Complex | Cancelled |
| April 7 | Lamar | Tiger Park | Cancelled |
| April 10 | at Alabama | Rhoads Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL | Cancelled |
| April 10 | at Alabama | Rhoads Stadium | Cancelled |
| April 11 | at Alabama | Rhoads Stadium | Cancelled |
| April 17 | Tennessee | Tiger Park | Cancelled |
| April 18 | Tennessee | Tiger Park | Cancelled |
| April 19 | Tennessee | Tiger Park | Cancelled |
| April 21 | Nicholls | Tiger Park | Cancelled |
| April 24 | Missouri | Tiger Park | Cancelled |
| April 25 | Missouri | Tiger Park | Cancelled |
| April 26 | Missouri | Tiger Park | Cancelled |
| April 28 | at McNeese State | Joe Miller Field Lake Charles, LA | Cancelled |
May :
| Date | Opponent | Site/stadium | Score |
| May 1 | at Auburn | Jane B. Moore Field Auburn, AL | Cancelled |
| May 2 | at Auburn | Jane B. Moore Field | Cancelled |
| May 3 | at Auburn | Jane B. Moore Field | Cancelled |
Post-season :
SEC Tournament :
| Date | Opponent | Seed | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | SECT Record |
| May 6–9 | | | Rhoads Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL | Cancelled | | | | | | | |
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Cancelled Bold = LSU team member :
    Source:
*Rankings are based on the team's current ranking in the NFCA poll.

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking т = Tied with team above or below :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Final |
| NFCA / USA Today | 11 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Softball America | 13 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| ESPN.com/USA Softball | 11т | 7 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4т | | | | | | | | | | | |
| D1Softball | 11 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | |