Game Details
Tournament: The Evangeline Bank and Trust Invitational II
Date: Thursday, Feb. 24-Sunday Feb. 27
Location: Joe Miller Field at Cowgirl Diamond
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LAKE CHARLES- McNeese softball will host The Evangeline Bank and Trust Invitational II Thursday, Feb. 24-Sunday Feb. 27 at Joe Miller Field at Cowgirl Diamond.
Other teams competing include Sam Houston (3-6), University of Las Vegas (7-2), Manhattan College (0-0), Memphis (3-7), and UT-Arlington (4-6).
The Cowgirls (6-4) are fresh off their first week of road games falling to #11 Texas in Austin, and #1 Oklahoma, and Texas State during the Houston Classic. The Cowgirls swept the host team Houston 8-3.
"Softball has a lot of parody in it with unranked teams playing and defeating ranked teams. A lot of people get caught up in big name programs, but we forget that the unranked teams on the schedule are very good programs. Division I winning at all levels is hard to do." said head coach James Landreneau.
Tournament action will open with the Cowgirls facing former Southland Conference foe Sam Houston Thursday, Feb. 24 at 6. This will be the first meeting since the Cowgirls beat the Bearkats 3-1 in the first game of the 2021 Southland Tournament and since Sam Houston joined the Western Athletic Conference.
The Cowgirls will close out day two (Friday) against UNLV with the first pitch set for 7 p.m.
This will be the first meeting between the two teams in program history.
Former Cowgirl Emily Vincent is a member of the Rebels' coaching staff, serving as the pitching coach is now in her third season. The 2016 SLC tournament MVP played professionally for the Texas Charge before returning to McNeese as a volunteer coach for the 2018 season.
Saturday, Feb. 26, McNeese will play a double header against Manhattan College at 4:45 and Memphis at 7 p.m.
It has been four years since the only meeting between McNeese and Manhattan College which resulted in a 6-2 Cowgirl victory. The two teams met at the 2018 Eastern Michigan Beach Spring Invitational held at Madeira Beach, Florida.
Memphis is coached by former Cowgirl Natalie Poole. Following her collegiate athletic career, the 1998 Cowgirl graduate joined the McNeese staff as a graduate assistant in 1998 and served as an assistant coach from 1999-2001. Poole returned to McNeese in 2009 as the head coach for three years. The 2009 Southland Conference Coach of the Year led the Cowgirls to three straight 30-win seasons, including a school-record 38 wins in 2010 and Two Southland Conference Tournament championship games, winning the tournament title in 2010 and advancing to the NCAA Regional Tournament.
Saturday's game against Memphis will be two days short from the seven-year anniversary of the teams' last game at the 2015 Cowgirl Classic. The Tigers narrowly beat the Cowgirls 3-2 with Vincent being responsible for both Cowgirl runs by hitting two separate RBI doubles.
The final game of the tournament will be Sunday, Feb. 26 at 2:45 against UT-Arlington. Since 2019, the two teams have met five times with UTA winning three of the games.
Following the final McNeese game of each day, player autographs will be available behind the Cowgirl dugout.
The Evangeline Bank and Trust Invitational II
Thursday Feb 24
6 p.m. McNeese vs. Sam Houston
Friday Feb 25
10 a.m. Memphis vs. UT-Arlington
12:15 p.m. Manhattan vs. UT-Arlington
2:30 p.m. Manhattan vs. Sam Houston
4:45 p.m. UNVL vs. Sam Houston
7 p.m. McNeese vs. UNLV
Saturday Feb 26
10 a.m. Sam Houston vs. UT-Arlington
12:15 p.m. Sam Houston vs. UNLV
2:30 p.m. Manhattan vs. Memphis
4:25 p.m. McNeese vs. Manhattan College
7 p.m. McNeese vs. Memphis
Sunday Feb 27
10 a.m. UNLV vs. Manhattan
12:15 p.m. UNLV vs. Memphis
2:45 p.m. McNeese vs. UT-Arlington
