Damn
After dropping a tough extra innings game Friday night, the LSU baseball team tried to save face and at least take a game off the No. 1 ranked Arkansas Razorbacks.
As they had in each of the first two games of the series, LSU grabbed an early lead. But, just as they did on Thursday and Friday, the Tigers couldn’t hold onto it and the result was a 7-5 defeat and a series sweep to the Hogs. LSU has now lost all three of their SEC series and are 2-7 in the league.
Thursday evening LSU led 2-1. Friday they led 2-0. Saturday was the biggest sin as the Tigers squandered a 4-1 lead. Tommy White, batting lead off today, got LSU on the board in the first with a leadoff homer. Next, Ashton Larson hit his first career home run in the third inning to give LSU a 3-1 lead; finally, Mac Bingham would hit the first of two solo homers in the fourth and give LSU that 4-1 lead. Bingham would homer again in the seventh to bring LSU to within two.
But the three-run cushion wouldn’t be enough because the LSU pitching staff once again couldn’t hold a lead. With the exception of Griffin Herring on Friday night, nobody on this staff had a good outing. Gage Jump got the start for LSU and only went 3.2 innings before being pulled for Nate Ackenhausen. Jump may not have been charged with the loss, but his seven hits, two walks, and four earned runs certainly spoiled whatever dream LSU had of getting at least one game off of Arkansas.
Ackenhausen pitched a clean fifth inning, but allowed the Hogs to score three runs in the sixth. Ack’s day was done after two innings and he was charged with three earned runs, walked two and gave up two hits.
Gavin Guidry came on in relief of Ackenhausen. On the one hand, he didn’t allow a run but on the other he walked three of the eight batters he faced. For the day, LSU walked seven Arkansas batters and 23 for the series.
“We had a tough loss last night, so I wanted a competitive response from our team today, and we got that,” said LSU coach Jay Johnson. “They fought hard, they care, and they’re not going to quit. We’ve just got to get better at baseball. We just played the best team in the country, and anyone can see that.
“Our players competed hard today, and collectively, our at-bats were better. We need to keep fighting, one day at a time.”
LSU had a chance to reclaim the lead in the ninth inning as Tommy White just missed a go-ahead three run shot that hooked foul. White would then hit into a game-ending double play and it was the third DP White hit into of the game.
Up next LSU will return home to Baton Rouge to lick their wounds against Southern. They should win that one. After that, LSU will host Vanderbilt in what feels like a “gotta have it series” for the Tigers. At 2-7 in league play, I’m not sure they can make the postseason if they lose a fourth consecutive conference series.