CLEARWATER, Fla. – The two-time reigning Southland Conference Tournament champion Southeastern Louisiana University softball team went toe-to-toe with No. 13 Clemson before ultimately falling, 5-3, in eight innings Thursday evening in the 2026 season opener for both teams at the NFCA Leadoff Classic at the Eddie C. Moore Complex.
Southeastern (0-1) broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the sixth inning, as
Cydnee Schneider singled home
Chloe Magee to give SLU a 1-0 lead over the Tigers.
Clemson (1-0) answered in the top of the seventh inning after Lady Lion pitchers
Haley Crawford and
Hallie Burns had combined to hold CU to one hit through the first six innings. After a leadoff single by Corri Hicks, Burns retired the next two Tigers and SLU was on the verge of defeating Clemson for the third time in the past three seasons.
However, Jamison Brockerbou ripped the first pitch she saw over the right field fence to give the Tigers a 2-1 lead.
Southeastern mounted a two-out rally in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Shelby Morris drew a walk, advanced to second on a Magee single and scored when Detillier laced a double just inside the left field line to knot the game at 2-2.
Clemson broke the tie with an RBI single by Marian Collins in the top of the eighth inning. Hicks would follow later in the frame with a towering two-run home run to give the Tigers a 5-2 cushion.
Ka'Lyn Watson singled a run home to cut the lead to two in the bottom of the eighth inning and SLU loaded the bases with one out. Sierra Maness was able to force Morris to ground out to close out the game and earn the save.
Detillier led Southeastern at the plate, finishing 3-for-4.
Tyler Oubre (0-1) took the loss in the circle for the Lady Lions. Abby Dunning (1-0) earned the win in the circle for Clemson, scattering three hits in 2.1 innings of relief.
Southeastern will return to action Friday, facing South Alabama at 3 p.m. (CST) and Longwood at 6 p.m. (CST). Both games can be streamed via the Game Changer app.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Softball, follow @LionUpSoftball on X and Instagram, like /SLUathletics on Facebook.
HOME RUN CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the softball program are encouraged to join the Home Run Club. Lady Lion softball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
All membership fees and donations to both the Home Run Club and S Club (softball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern softball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
TICKETS
For ticket information, please contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit
www.LionSports.net/tickets. Southeastern offers mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets. All tickets will be available via e-mail in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics has a clear bag policy for all ticketed events. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit
www.LionSports.net/clear.
