LSU shut out Virginia Tech 8-0 in six innings on May 16 at Tiger Park, and Cece Cellura delivered the best start of her career when the Tigers needed it most. The win sent LSU back into the Baton Rouge Regional final against Virginia Tech at 1 p.m. CT on Sunday, with the Tigers carrying a 16-0 edge over the field after two 8-0 six-inning victories.

Cellura allowed two hits and one walk in 6.0 innings, struck out three batters and opened the game with three hitless innings, including two one-two-three frames. It was her first career complete-game shutout, a clean performance that matched LSU's broader control of the regional. The Tigers improved to 39-17 and pushed their season total to 12 shutouts.

Maci Bergeron supplied the biggest swing. She went 3-for-3 with a go-ahead home run, scored once and drove in two runs, giving LSU the separation it never surrendered. Bergeron hit her third homer of the season and her fourth career home run in the NCAA Tournament. Kylee Edwards added a 2-for-3 day with one run scored and two RBI, while Char Lorenz had two hits in three at-bats, scored once and drove in one.

LSU scored three runs in the second inning, one in the fourth and four more in the sixth, turning a tight early game into another run-rule finish. Virginia Tech starter Emma Mazzarone took the loss and fell to 16-6 after allowing three runs on two hits and five walks in 1.0 inning. LSU's 28th double play of the season also tied for the second-most in a single season in program history, another mark of how cleanly the Tigers controlled the game on both sides.

Coach Beth Torina said the Tigers have spent all season looking for a complete game, and this one came as close as any. She praised the way LSU executed its plan against a quality Virginia Tech team and singled out Cellura for controlling a dominant offense. Torina also said Bergeron's day was the kind that makes her heart want to explode and called her the ultimate Tiger, special to everyone in the program.

LSU has now outscored opponents 16-0 through two 8-0 six-inning wins in the 2026 Baton Rouge Regional, and Sunday’s final brings the same opponent back to Tiger Park with the regional title on the line. For LSU, the path is simple: keep pitching like Cellura did, keep swinging like Bergeron did, and one more win sends the Tigers on.