Da Boot Sports 5/16/2022 LSU Sports Communications By: William Franques BATON ROUGE, La. – Ole Miss broke a 3-3 tie with a pair of two-run homers in the top of the fifth inning Sunday, and the Rebels went on to defeat LSU, 8-5, in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field. Ole Miss improved to 31-19 overall, 13-14 in the SEC, while LSU dropped to 33-18 overall and 14-13 in conference play. The Tigers return to action at 6:30 p.m. CT Tuesday when they play host to Northwestern State in a game that will be carried on the LSU Sports Radio Network and streamed on SEC Network +. “Ole Miss has very good players, and they played extremely well this weekend,” said LSU coach Jay Johnson. “They made it really tough on us, and we did not play our best. We have work to do, and that’s not unexpected. The SEC is a tough league, and we took our lumps this weekend. “The good news is that everything we want to accomplish is directly in front of us, but we’re going to have to play well. We’re looking forward to preparing our team for the coming week.” A solo homer by LSU first baseman Tre’ Morgan in the bottom of the fourth inning tied the contest at 3-3, but the Rebels responded with four runs in the top of the fifth against reliever Eric Reyzelman. First baseman Tim Elko led off the fifth with a single, and after Reyzelman retired leftfielder Kevin Graham, designated hitter Kemp Alderman lined a two-run homer to right-center field, giving the Rebels a 5-3 advantage. Rightfielder Hayden Leatherwood later drew a two-out walk, and second baseman Peyton Chatagnier followed with a two-run shot, increasing the Ole Miss lead to 7-3. The Tigers narrowed the gap to 7-4 in the fifth when third baseman Collier Cranford tripled and scored on rightfielder Josh Pearson’s double. Pearson, who launched a two-run homer in the third inning, finished the game with three RBI. Graham’s RBI single in the top of the eighth expanded the lead to 8-4, and LSU catcher Tyler McManus cut the margin to three runs with a solo homer in the bottom of the frame. Reyzelman (1-2) was charged with the loss as he allowed four runs on three hits in one inning with one walk and one strikeout. Ole Miss left-hander John Gaddis (3-1), the third of four Rebel pitchers, earned the win as he worked 2.0 innings and allowed one run on one hit with one walk and one strikeout. Brandon Johnson picked up his ninth save of the season, limiting LSU to one hit in 1.1 scoreless innings with two walks and four strikeouts. Photos Below By: Michael Bacigalupi
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Da Boot Sports 5/14/2022 By: Terrill J. Weil BATON ROUGE, LA - An Ole Miss team battling for their postseason life came to Alex Box Stadium this weekend and played some of their best baseball of the season winning the series, defeating LSU in both games, one and two. The Tigers fell to the Rebels in game one, 5-3 which began on Friday night, but was called in the bottom of the third inning until Saturday morning due to inclement weather. At the time, Ole Miss held a 4-2 lead. Game one resumed at 11:00am Saturday morning with Ty Floyd taking the bump for the Tigers in place of Ma'Khail Hilliard who started the contest on Friday night. Floyd pitched six innings, giving up one run on two hits while striking out three. Friday night's starter for Ole Miss, Dylan Delucia returned to the mound on Saturday morning throwing seven innings while giving up three runs on three hits. Brandon Johnson recorded the save for the Rebels. Ole Miss embarrassed the Tigers in game two on Saturday afternoon blasting them, 11-1. The Rebels pounded out twelve hits, including four home runs on the day. LSU used six pitchers in the contest with Devon Fontenot (2-2) taking the loss. Ole Miss also took advantage of three costly LSU errors. “We just couldn’t get enough going on offense in both games, and we didn’t pitch very well in the second game.” LSU coach Jay Johnson said. “All of the games count the same, so we want to go out and get that game tomorrow. We’ll get the players ready to go as best we can, and we’ll get some guys out there competing for us a little better than they did today.” With the two losses, #17 LSU falls to (33-17, 14-12) while the Rebels improve to (30-19, 12-14) The Tigers will look to rebound in game three on Sunday to avoid the sweep. First pitch is set for 1:00pm. The contest will be available on SEC Network+ Photos Below By: Jonathan Mailhes Da Boot Sports 5/11/2022 By: David Penn BATON ROUGE, LA - With the regular season winding down and the Tigers treating every game like a playoff game, the excitement and energy the team is exuding is palpable. The final score isn’t from a Saturday night in Death Valley, it’s the product of a baseball team focused on attaining its goals, which include hosting a regional in front of the LSU faithful. The tone was set with the first LSU at bat when Gavin Dugas sent the second pitch for a ride into the left field bleachers. Sam Dutton started for LSU on the bump and pitched the first three innings, limiting Southeastern to one run on two hits, walking no batters and striking out two. Bryce Collins took the mound in the fourth and fifth inning and gave up two runs on two hits, but only walked one batter while striking out five of the eight batters he faced. Blake Money also pulled middle relief work, going 1.2 innings and allowed no runs or hits and struck out three of five batters faced with no walks. Trey Shaffer would face the final Lion of the night and earn the K. Offensively the Tigers continued to be aggressive at the plate following a 12 run outburst in Tuscaloosa with seventeen runs on twelve hits. Tre’ Morgan and Tyler McManus each had three hits Tuesday night, Morgan collected five RBIs and McManus plated two of his teammates. LSU exploded for a nine run fourth inning where Dugas batted in McManus and Jordan Thompson on a single, Dylan Crews would ground out to third base but scored Collier Cranford, Morgan singled to score Josh Pearson and Dugas. DH Brayden Jobert roped a double over the third baseman to score Cade Doughty and Morgan. McManus’ second at bat of the inning scored Jobert on a single, and Cranford would finish the scoring in the fourth inning by batting across Jordan Thompson. In the home half of the sixth inning LSU would score a pair of runs on bases loaded walks and Morgan would cap off the scoring for the Bayou Bengals with a three RBI double. The game was concluded in seven innings with LSU owning a fourteen point edge on the scoreboard, triggering the NCAA run rule. Andrew Yuratich was charged with the loss for the Lions. Christain Garcia cracked a solo homer in the second inning to tie the game for Southeastern. Evan Keller slugged a two run shot in the fifth inning to give the Lions their final margin. The Lions have an important battle against Nicholls up next for control of the Southland Conference. Up next for LSU is a home series this weekend vs Ole Miss that will kick off on Friday night. LSU is looking to continue its winning streak on the weekends and lock up a national seed for the NCAA tournament. The current projection from D1 Baseball has the Tigers slated as the 15 seed, hosting a regional at the Box. “We’ve handled what’s come our way, both success and failure over the past few weeks, and we’ll need to continue to do that over this stretch run of the season." Coach Jay Johnson said. "I’m really looking forward to this stretch, and I know our players are also.” Da Boot Sports 5/9/2022 By: Davis Penn TUSCALOOSA, AL - LSU took game three of their weekend series at Sewell-Thomas Stadium in Tuscaloosa on Sunday placing the team closer to its goal of hosting a regional. LSU is now 31-15, 14-10 on the season with two series to play before the team heads to Hoover, AL for the SEC tournament. Sam Dutton started on the mound for the Tigers but quickly gave way to Jacob Hasty who was credited with the win. Dylan Crews and Tyler McManus concluded solid weekends at the plate with the two accounting for seven RBIs between them. Crews hit his fourth homer of the weekend, and McManus added two on Sunday to bring his season total to seven. Hasty came on in the first inning with a runner on second and two outs and record the final out of the inning to preserve LSU’s 3-1 advantage. Hasty worked four innings and allowed no runs on two hits, walked no batters and earned four Ks. Eric Reyzelman and Riley Cooper would take the Tigers from the end of the fifth through the eighth innings and limited Bama two a pair of runs as Reyzelman would get one strikeout. For the Season Reyzelman and Cooper have the most appearances for the Tigers on the mound. Devin Fontenot would pitch the final inning and retire the side with no runs allowed, one hit and one strike out. Dylan Crews batted .500 on the day and collected three RBIs with a double and a homer for the game. McManus went 2-4 at the plate but made the most of those two, sending them both into the seats and picking up four RBIs. All but two batters for LSU collected at least two hits as the bats were live all game Sunday. LSU produced three run innings four times during the contest. “Our approach at the plate today was awesome." LSU coach Jay Johnson said. “The players’ commitment to our plan was awesome, and they played with great enthusiasm. This is one of my favorite wins of the year. We didn’t flinch, we focused on our play, and we attacked. I’m really proud of our guys.” Alabama starter Grayson Hitt, who was charged with the loss, went 4.2 innings and though he struck out six batters, he allowed six runs on nine hits. Caden Rose and Eric Foggo each had late inning home runs for the Tide. Up next, LSU will take on Southeastern on Tuesday night at Alex Box Stadium before hosting the Ole Miss (insert mascot here) for their final home SEC series of the year. The Tigers improved to a ranking between #15 and #17 depending on publication and look like they are well on their way to hosting postseason baseball on Skip Bertman Field. Da Boot Sports 5/8/2022 By: David Penn TUSCALOOSA, AL - Early inning woes plagued #20 LSU in Tuscaloosa on Saturday night as the Tigers dropped game two of the series to the Crimson Tide 8-3. Blake Money (2-4) started on the mound for the Tigers but returned to the dugout after only thirteen pitches, failing to record an out. The defense committed three errors and Bama raced out to a 5-1 lead after only two innings. The teams will meet for the rubber match today in a game the Tigers need to win if the team wants to keep its goal of hosting a regional at Alex Box Stadium alive. Money allowed two runs on two hits and walked a pair of Bama hitters before being relieved in favor of Grant Taylor. Taylor and Ty Floyd would pitch four innings apiece for the Tigers and combine to give up six runs (two unearned) on five hits. Taylor walked five and struck out four, while Floyd walked one and earned five Ks. The lone bright spot on offense for the Tigers was Dylan Crews who opened scoring in the first with a solo home run and then lifted a two run shot in the seventh to provide all the scoring the Tigers could muster. Tiger hitters struck out twelve times in the game. “This wasn’t a good game for us. We dug ourselves an early hole, but Dylan Crews was outstanding. He showed why he’s one of the best hitters in the country, so that was a positive." Jay Johnson said. "We had a few good at-bats, but we’ve got to pitch better and limit the mistakes on defense. We can’t make those mistakes against good teams. We’re actually in a better position with our pitching tomorrow than we were at this point last weekend. I’m excited to get our pitchers out there competing on the mound tomorrow.” Alabama pitcher Jacob McNairy went 5.2 innings for the Tide and only gave up one run on four hits and struck out seven Tigers, while throwing 102 pitches. Dominic Tamez had a pair of hits for Alabama and William Hamiter was one of two Tide players that collected a pair of RBIs. The series will conclude on Sunday at 1:00pm CT at Sewell Thomas Stadium. LSU dropped to 31-15, 13-10 and Alabama improved to 26-21, 10-13. The rubber match is pivotal for both teams as LSU is looking to ascend to a national seeding and the Tide are hoping to play summer baseball. Da Boot Sports 5/6/2022 By: David Penn TUSCALOOSA, AL - Ma’Khail Hilliard started on the mound for #20 LSU, and has not lost a start in the last three seasons. The Tide would strike first, scoring a run in the first and third innings, but LSU would put up five runs in the visitor half of the fifth frame. Alabama answered with three runs in the bottom of the fifth but the Tigers would get add the go ahead run in the sixth for the final margin of the game. Hilliard went four innings on the bump for LSU and began the fifth inning. He allowed five runs (one unearned) on eight hits, walking no batters and striking out four. Riley Cooper (4-2), Eric Rayzelman, and Jacob Hasty drew middle relief assignments with Cooper and Rayzelman each pitching 1.2 innings. Reyzelman would earn Ks on the first four batters he faced. Paul Gervase drew closing honors and earned the save and Cooper was credited with the win. Coach Jay Johnson reflected on his team playing close games, “Fundamentals, competitiveness and character are going to decide one-run games, and I think we showed all of those tonight. Our pitchers did a great job throwing strikes, we strung together some quality at-bats and we made some nice plays on defense. We didn’t have a great flow to the game early, but we stayed with it, and that showed the competitiveness and character of our team.” The offense was led by the bat of first baseman Tre’ Morgan who went 3-5 with a homerun and two RBIs. Catcher Tyler McManus also sent an offering into the seats for his fifth homerun of the year which is what started the scoring for the Tigers in the fifth inning. Jacob Berry and Josh Pearson each had a pair of hits in the contest. Brock Guffey was credited with the loss for the Tide, coming on in relief and giving up a run on four hits, two walks, and two Ks. Jim Jarvis got Alabama on the board in the first inning with a single, then advanced to second on a wild pitch, arrived at third on a sac fly, and scored on a passed ball. A pair of doubles in the third inning would give Bama the 2-0 edge and five straight singles in the bottom of the fifth got the Tide to a 5-5 tie after five innings. LSU improved to 31-14, 13-9 on the season and Alabama dropped to 25-21, 9-13. Game 2 of the series will be Saturday at 7:30pm CT and will be broadcast on the SEC network as well as the LSU Sports Radio Network. Da Boot Sports 05/03/2022 By: David Penn BATON ROUGE, LA - There was no need for late game dramatics on Tuesday night at Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field as the LSU Tigers opened up scoring in the second inning and kept the pressure on the Colonel’s pitching staff throughout the game in a 10-6 victory. Freshman Josh Person would blast a couple pitches over the wall and collect five RBIs on the evening. Bryce Collins earned the start for LSU and pitched 2.2 innings, walking one and striking out two while allowing no hits or runs. Jacob Hasty drew the first middle relief assignment and pitched 1.1 punching out four batters while giving up no hits, runs, or walks. Ty Floyd would come on for 2.1 innings and fan four NSU hitters, allowing one hit, no runs and giving up no walks. Trey Shaffer pitched 1.1 innings, giving up one run on three hits and striking out a pair. Michael Fowler would strike out the final batter of the eighth but two runs would come across in the ninth before Fowler would give way to Will Hellmers. Trent Vietmeier would stride out to the bump with runners on second and third and record a pair of outs but not before Nichols would plate those two base runners. Eric Reyzleman would come in and retire the final out of the game for LSU. Josh Pearson would start the scoring off for the Bayou Bengals when he scored Tyler McManus in the second inning. Jacob Berry followed Pearson’s single with a single of his own that scored Josh Stevenson. The Tigers bats would heat up in the home half of the third inning where the offense would put up five runs. Stevenson’s single in the third would score Jordan Thompson. Pearson would then come up and crush a three run shot that scored Stevenson and McManus. Two pitches later Berry would send his fifteenth homer into the seats. Pearson obliterated a first pitch offering in the fifth inning that easily cleared the 405 marker in center field. McManus then drove a single down the left side in the sixth inning that scored Luke Leto who was in for at first base for Tre’ Morgan. With Leto in the batter’s box, Jack Merrifield would score on a wild pitch in the seventh inning. Nicholls would get a solo shot from Xane Washington in the eighth inning and start a ninth inning rally with Basiel Williams and Parker Coddou gaining RBIs off their hits, Williams would get across home plate on a wild pitch. Dane Simon collected an RBI on a sac fly which would cap the scoring for the Colonels. Next up for LSU is a weekend trip to Tuscasloosa where LSU will take on the Crimson Tide beginning Friday night where the Tigers look to continue to build toward gaining a national seed and host a regional for the LSU faithful. Da Boot Sports 5/1/2022 By: David Penn BATON ROUGE, LA - The LSU bats continue to send balls into the bleachers to the delight of everyone in attendance and the only question is “Who will hit the next bomb?” Dylan Crews hit his twelfth and thirteenth homeruns on Sunday, and Cade Doughty sent his tenth into the seats to walk off the Bulldogs 4-3 in game three of what was a crucial series for the Tigers. Sam Dutton got the start for the Tigers and went 4.2 innings in what was his longest outing of the season thus far. For the weekend the Tigers did well matching up with an evenly matched offensive team from Georgia. The #22 Tigers entered the weekend only two games behind Arkansas in the standings and each team held their ground. The Tigers have nine conference games left to attempt to take the top spot in the west heading into the SEC tournament in Hoover, AL. The #14 Bulldogs gave LSU all they could handle this weekend, but it was LSU that persevered and found ways to clinch the series. Sam Dutton only gave up two runs on four hits, struck out four Bulldogs, while not issuing any walks. Devin Fontenot gave the Tigers three innings of relief, walking no batters and also striking out four. Paul Gervase took the final inning of work and earned the 'W', allowing no hits or runs and striking out one hitter. The stage was set for LSU to end the game in dramatic fashion as the Tigers were down 3-2 and had Crews, Berry, and Doughty due up. Crews, who’d already hit two solo shots, was first to bat and came just short of hitting his third. Jacob Berry, who leads the teams in HRs was next and hit a single to left field. Cade Doughty then strides into the batter’s box and takes the first pitch for a ball, count is 1-0, Georgia closer Jaden Woods would then give Doughty his second offering and Doughty gladly accepted, sending it into the bleachers and crossing home plate to a hero’s welcome from his teammates. “I am extremely proud of our team today,” said LSU coach Jay Johnson. “This was a great victory against a Top 5 RPI team, and to win two out of three here at home is awesome. I felt like we deserved to win the game with the way we played today. We maybe didn’t play our best, and it was hard, but I thought we deserved to win. It was great getting Cade up in the ninth with a chance to do it; I just looked at him and thought, ‘Man, we’re going to win this game right now.’” With the win LSU now sits at 29-14 overall, 12-9 in SEC play. The Tigers will host Nicholls Tuesday night at Alex Box Stadium before heading to Tuscaloosa for a weekend series against the Crimson Tide. Photos Below By: Michael Bacigalupi |
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