Lady Bengals put a ring on title season

There were plenty of laughs, hugs and a few tears shed last Friday night as the LSU Eunice Lady Bengals celebrated their 2014 softball title all over again during the championship ring ceremony.
The Lady Bengals cruised to an impressive 64-3 record while earning the program’s third NJCAA Division II national crown in four years.
“It is nice to sit down and enjoy what we did,” head coach Andy Lee said. “I am always so busy worrying about the next game and the next season.”
LSU Eunice finished with a perfect 29-0 record at home, 12-1 on the road and 23-2 at neutral sites.
The Lady Bengals defeated Jones County twice — including 8-6 in the decisive game — on May 17 to win this year’s NJCAA Division II tournament in Clinton, Miss.
“It is so amazing what you ladies accomplished,” Lee told the team. “The sophomores won a ton of games and two national titles.”
The sophomores went 126-8 on their Lady Bengal careers with 62-5 finish in 2013.
“You accomplished so much on the field and had a 3.2 team GPA,” Lee said. “This was an amazing year.
“It started in Galveston with Kayla Davidson pitching in the freezing cold,” the coach reflected. “It ended with Elizabeth Delafield in the circle, winning her second national championship - with plenty of Raven Cole and Destin Vicknair in between.”
LSU Eunice led NJCAA Division II in both overall and first-team NFCA All-Americans with five total selections: pitcher Cole, infielder Brooklyn Clark, outfielders Emily Nolan and Codi Covington and utility player Vicknair.
“We had great team chemistry,” Lee said. “Everyone had a great role the whole season - it was an exciting journey.”
An NJCAA DII National Championship All-Tournament Team selection, Cole put up the third-most strikeouts overall with 217 to go along with a sparkling 27-1 record, an 1.09 ERA and 19 complete games over 166.2 innings.
Clark was tabbed as the national tournament’s Most Valuable Player, wrapping up a campaign that saw her bat at a .534 clip with 74 runs scored, 16 stolen bases, 25 doubles, eight home runs and 71 runs batted in.
“It is twice as nice,” Clark said of her two rings. “It shows that hard work pays off.”
Nolan, winner of the Marucci Elite Hitter Award, led NJCAA DII in homers (21) and rated second in RBI (102), hitting .452 with 65 tallies, 25 doubles, 28 walks and a .931 slugging percentage.
All-American and All-Tournament Team selectiion, Covington batted .407 with 68 runs, 24 extra-base hits, 23 thefts and 34 RBI.
“I am so proud of what my teammates and I have accomplished,” Covington said after the ceremony. “We have a unbreakable bond and friendships that will last a life time.
“As a sophomore it’s sad to see it come to a end with playing with each of these girls, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.
“Us sophomores leaving the school with a 126-8 record and 2 national championships is a incredible feeling.
“We made history!”
A true utility player, Vicknair registered the third-most pitching victories in NJCAA Division II (28) against just two defeats, fired 21 complete games and struck out 150 over 180 frames, while batting .410 with 41 runs scored, 16 doubles, 15 HR’s and 60 RBI.