Trisha Ford's No. 3 Aggies prepare for top-10 series at Davis Diamond

Rising to No. 3 in ESPN.com/USA Softball's Poll, Trisha Ford's Aggies are rolling, winning 12 of their last 13 games. The head coach joined Wednesday's edition of TexAgs Live to preview the Maroon & White's upcoming test hosting No. 6 LSU in Aggieland.

Key notes from Trisha Ford interview

• We had an extra 48 hours in Georgia. Who's counting? It's alright. We got two wins and played two games. Now, we are back here at Davis Diamond, and we have LSU.
   
• We talked about this during our non-conference week. We were able to fine-tune some things. Our question to the team was, "Can you take that into this next weekend?" I thought they did a tremendous job and taking the things they worked on into SEC play. That part I was really happy with. Emiley Kennedy was really dominant. It was really nice to see her back to her old form.
   
• We all know to play the bat and ball sports, there are moments where you can't buy a hit. That's what we would say. KK Dement stuck with it. She kept working. She was working with Jeff Harger. She was doing a great job staying calm, and it was going to come. There is a famous Babe Ruth quote where he says, "I am one swing away from my next home run." You, as a hitter, have to think that. This weekend, you could see her start to feel it. She got her first hit. She feels like it has been forever. It's like the monkey is off her back. I thought she looked different in the box. The ball looked like a balloon to her, and I hope this weekend it looks the same.
   
• In the first game, we didn't play clean defense in the beginning, and we didn't execute some pitches. I thought Emily Leavitt was the story of the game and the ability for her to get two big strikeouts, stop the bleeding, and then our offense went to work. I went out there, and Kennedy Powell looked at me and went, "We are alright, coach. Four runs are not going to be enough for us today. I said, "OK, I am going to hold it to you, KP."
   
• Mya Perez, Allie Enright and KK Dement all hit home runs. It was a great weekend offensively. Georgia, you have some things you have to worry about. We have a lot of lefties in our lineup. Georgia had two dominant left-handed pitchers, so you are trying to figure out what that looks like. I thought we did a great job of executing our game plan.
   
• It sounds really simple, but it is hard to execute. It is the ability to really hunt pitches over the white. There are so many pieces of this game that are mental, and that is one of them. Being able to stay patient and funnel that into being able to hit pitches over the middle of the plate.
   
• Using Kennedy less was the plan going into it. You are going to look really smart or really dumb. I think Kennedy is starting to find her footing and get into her rhythm, which is great for us. You want her to start getting better, better and better as the year goes by. This is really calculated in how we did it. This preseason was different for her. She pitched in every hard game for us because we wanted it to callus her. There is a physical part of this game, but there is a huge mental part. Being able to go up mentally and go up in every pitch count, I think that she got so many reps with that that you are starting to see that comfort as we go through this stretch.
   
• When we got here, Koko Wooley was a short gamer. We sat down with her and she was like, "I really want to swing away a little bit." Our first approach was, “Let's see what we got. Let's see what the short game is.” We know she is super dynamic and athletic, and so it was one of those conversations where we evolved as the years have evolved. One thing we told her about her short game was that her bunting could not go away. This year, she started off at the top of our lineup. Now, she has been in more of an RBI role. That has been the key. She's just a chameleon. We need you to short game. We need you to bunt. We need you to squeeze. She can do it. We need you to hit doubles. She can do that as well. Wooley is just a special athlete, and I tell her, "I am going to enjoy this last year with her because I am not going to take this for granted."
   
• We might have talked about being swept by LSU once or twice. It's digging in at me. Georgia beat us the last time they were here as well. We have some payback. We have to put a good game together. LSU is obviously a very good team. A lot of our numbers match. They are very close. It is going to be who makes the least amount of errors and who takes advantage of some opportunities.
   
• I think we are OK on errors and clean defense. There are some things we can still do with really picking the right hops and getting our feet settled when we make throws. It is just little things that creep up. Today is our defense-heavy day, so we will work on that. Sometimes, especially when playing on different fields, you get some crazy hops. Wooley got a ball where she was right there, and all of a sudden, it hit, picked up speed and skirted to the left. There is nothing you can do about that. Sometimes, that is the way it is, but I think giving out outfielders some opportunities to throw home makes them feel fresh because I think there will be some plays at the plate this weekend.
   
• We are in a great spot. I want it to be loud. Tickets are hard to come by this weekend, and I want there to be a home-field advantage. That is the beauty of playing at Davis Diamond. It is the best venue in college softball. I think we have the best fans in college softball. I want them to come out this weekend. Be loud and help win us the series.
   
• We have a lot of different types of leaders. I would say Amari Harper is one. She is a quiet leader. We talk about Enright. She does her stuff with her work ethic. Ojo Johnson is another kid. She does a great job. She knows a lot of our players. She played in Texas. There are your normal ones. Your Kennedy in the bullpen. The one thing we talked about on our retreat in the winter break is we don't have to have one leader. “What are you really good at?” That's what I need you to lead this team in. We talked about what our strengths were, and when those opportunities come up, it's then, "Hey, that's what I am really good at. I need to address that." That's what I feel like we do a really good job of.
   
• Harger and Russ Heffley will sit down before the season starts, and they have their over/under where they think we are going to be, and I stay out of it. I am very much where my feet are. In the moment and trying to get the best out of them today and what that looks like.
   
• I talk to them about the horse blinders. That's really how I approach the season. I really want them to approach that because you can't really do anything about the last at-bat, last pitch or the last ball, but you can do something about the present, what is coming at you. For me, that is what this summer is after this season is for. I reflect back. Things I thought we did really well and things I thought we could have done better.
   
• I think it is important to live in the moment and be all bought into what we are trying to do. So, this week, it is about how we beat LSU, how we take a series, and what we need to do to be successful.