LSU softball opens series with a walkoff win over Auburn

LSU junior Shelbi Sunseri picked up her bachelors degree Friday morning and before sunset she collected a pitching victory.

Sunseri threw a three-hitter that became a win on freshman Raeleen Guiterrez’s walk-off RBI sacrifice fly in the bottom of the seventh to give No. 13 LSU a 2-1 victory over Auburn in the opener of a three-game SEC series in Tiger Park.

Senior Amanda Doyle doubled to open the inning and was replaced by pinch-runner Akiya Thymes, who moved to third on Georgia Clark’s sacrifice bunt. Then, Thymes easily scored the game-winning run on Guiterrez’s deep fly to right field.

“It was a big moment for Raeleen, but I think the biggest moment was Amanda (Doyle) leading off with the hit,” LSU head coach Beth Torina said. “Add in the well-executed bunt from one of our best hitters, and it was really a strong team win. We found a way to execute and be productive at the right time, which is really important this time of year.”

LSU (30-17, 12-10 SEC) and Auburn (26-20, 6-16 SEC) meet in game two of the series at 6 p.m. Saturday.

LSU took a 1-0 run lead in the first inning when Aliyah Andrews singled, stole second and scored on Taylor Pleasants’ RBI single. Auburn tied the game at 1-1 with Aspyn Godwin’s third-inning solo homer.

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