LSU Athletics
BATON ROUGE, La. – It was an old-fashioned pitcher’s duel through four and a half innings before No. 16/13 LSU hung three runs in the fifth and five in the sixth to pull away with the 8-0 shutout against Nevada on Saturday night at Tiger Park.
LSU (4-0) notched its first shutout of the season, and pitcher Jayden Heavener logged her sixth career shutout. It was a bend, but don’t break night, before the Tigers erupted for all eight runs in the final frames. Although Nevada (2-2) outhit the Tigers 7-3, the Wolf Pack left 10 runners stranded thanks to timely strikeouts and defensive plays by the Tigers.
“I think they have the ability to stay very poised,” Head Coach Beth Torina said when asked about the perseverance of the team after consecutive games with late-inning heroics. “They know they have a great offense and that they are never out of a fight. There was never any panic, stress, or concern in our dugout, honestly. Credit to Jayden Heavener and the defense for making it not feel that way tonight.”
Heavener tossed her second complete game of the season, finishing with seven strikeouts, allowing seven hits, and three walks.
Nevada pitcher Hailey McLean (1-1) suffered the loss. McLean threw four innings of no-hit softball, where she struck out four batters and walked three. However, for the final 1.1 innings, she was on the hook for all eight runs, surrendered four walks and three hits, and had just two strikeouts. Her final line was six strikeouts, six earned runs, and seven walks in 5.1 innings.
Heavener fanned five batters through the first four innings, and the defense stood strong behind her, turning a double play in the second and leaving six runners on base in that four-inning span.
Outfielder Alix Franklin gave LSU its first hit in the fifth inning with a single through the right side. Utility player Destiney Harris entered the game as a pinch runner. After Harris advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt, outfielder Jalia Lassiter was hit by a pitch. Harris scored from second base on a single up the middle by infielder Sierra Daniel. Catcher Maci Bergeron followed immediately with a two-run double to right center that gave LSU a 3-0 advantage.
Nevada threatened in the top of the sixth with two runners in scoring position and no outs. Heavener and company were able to get out of the jam with a flyout to Lassiter that held the runner at third, Heavener’s seventh strikeout, and outfielder Char Lorenz’s flyout to get to the bottom of the inning.
From there, LSU walked its way to the run-rule victory, scoring five runs on no hits and one Nevada error to complete an 8-0 shutout. The game ended with the bases loaded and one out.
Up Next
The 2026 Tiger Classic will come to an end on Sunday with LSU facing Illinois (12:30 p.m. CT) and Lamar (3 p.m. CT).
**LSU PRESS RELEASE**
