LSU Survives Elimination, Beating CCSU, 6-5 in Ten Innings, Walk Off Fashion

Photo By: LSUsports.net

6/5/2021
By: Terrill J. Weil
DA BOOT SPORTS!


   EUGENE, OR: LSU would go into Saturday's elimination contest against Central Connecticut State hoping to keep Paul Mainieri's coaching career extended to another game and that they did.  The Tigers would have the bases loaded with two outs in the bottom of the 10th and Giovanni DiGiacomo at the plate. DiGiacomo came through with a single up the middle to bring home the winning run in walk off fashion...  


    After a horrible offensive performance on Friday night in their 3-0 loss to Gonzaga, the Tigers bats came alive early in the bottom of the 1st inning. 
    Dylan Crews would electrify the LSU crowd in attendance with a leadoff solo homerun bomb over the left field wall. Cade Doughty would follow with a single to left center, before being able to advance to second on a poor pitch by Andrew Braun. 
     Tre' Morgan would step up to the plate next and single to right center, scoring Doughty to give LSU a 2-0 lead. 

    CCSU would answer with an explosive five run second inning. The inning would start with Hilliard walking the first two Blue Devils hitters. 
   Matt Bertochi started the scoring with a single to center field scoring Pasqualini from second base. Next up, Dan Covino would rip a one out double to left field scoring Elliot Good and Bertochi to give CCSU the lead, 3-2.
    Noah Martinez would then launch a two run blast over the right field wall to extend the Blue Devils lead to 5-2.

    Dylan Crews would leadoff the 3rd inning the same way he did in the 1st, with a solo homerun to left center field, cutting the Bulldogs lead to 5-3.
    Tre' Morgan and Zach Arnold would find themselves on base, each on a corner with Drew Bianco stepping up to the plate. Bianco would come through with a two RBI double down the left field line evening the score up at 5-5 to end the 3rd. 

    After the first three innings, both teams would find themselves struggling to score until LSU would in extra innings to claim the win. The big story of the game was the LSU bullpen. 
    With Ma'Khail Hilliard's up and down performance lead to only four innings of work before Mainieri would go to the bullpen to bring in Garrett Edwards.
    Edwards would pitch five fantastic scoreless innings to keep the game even into extra innings, before Devon Fontenot would enter the game in the top of the 10th to pitch a quick three up-three down frame. 

    The Tigers will now wait on the conclusion of Saturday night's game between Oregon and Gonzaga to determine who their next opponent will be on Sunday afternoon at 3:00pm. 
   

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