Junior Josh Adams (Jacksonville, Fla.) snapped a 2-2 tie with a two-out, two-run double in the seventh inning as No. 4 Florida (40-12/22-7 SEC) clinched its first Southeastern Conference title since 2005 with a 5-2 victory over No. 6 South Carolina (42-13/20-9 SEC) before a record crowd of 8,242 fans at Carolina Stadium on Friday night. Freshman Steven Rodriguez (Miami, Fla.) (1-0) earned his first career win by working 1.1 scoreless innings in which he registered three strikeouts and junior Kevin Chapman (Coral Springs, Fla.) nailed down the victory with 1.2 scoreless and hitless innings to collect his 10th save, second in as many nights.
The Gators secured their 11th SEC crown in school history and league-best 20th divisional championship by overcoming a pair of one-run deficits and secured their first series win in Columbia since 1996 by taking the first two matchups against the Gamecocks. Third-year skipper Kevin O’Sullivan became the seventh head baseball coach at UF to bring home the SEC’s top prize and the Orange and Blue established a single-season mark with their 22nd league triumph. Florida’s current seven-game winning streak matches its season high and the Gators have now claimed 14 of their last 15 outings. In addition, the squad reached the 40-win plateau for the 19th time.
Tonight’s victory for Florida also secured the number one seed for next week’s SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala., that will begin on Wednesday. The Gators will face the eighth seed in the third game at Regions Park at 5:30 p.m. The double-elimination tournament bracket will be revealed tomorrow night following the conclusion of the regular season.
With the contest deadlocked at 2-2 in the seventh, freshman Brian Johnson (Cocoa Beach, Fla.) (1-for-3) led off with a base-hit up the middle off junior right-hander Sam Dyson (5-5). Sophomore Daniel Pigott (Ormond Beach, Fla.) followed with a bunt in which junior pinch runner Bryson Smith (Watkinsville, Ga.) was called safe at second and Pigott reached first. Sophomore Ben McMahan (Windermere, Fla.) executed a sacrifice bunt to move both of his teammates into scoring position and Dyson countered with a strikeout of sophomore Tyler Thompson (Tequesta, Fla.). Adams (3-for-4, three RBI) grooved a 1-1 pitch into the gap in right center to score both Smith and Pigott and collect his second two-bagger of the night. Adams provided the Gators with a valuable insurance run in the ninth by coming through with a two-out, two-strike RBI single into right field that brought in McMahan. McMahan had reached on a throwing error by junior third baseman Whit Merrifield with one out and took second on the play. Sophomore Steven Neff replaced junior Jose Mata (0.2 IP) and had senior pinch hitter Jonathan Pigott (Ormond Beach, Fla.) fly out to right field for the second out. Moments later, Adams drove in his third run of the game on a 0-2 count to give the visitors some breathing room.
In the bottom of the ninth, freshman pinch hitter Evan Marzilli reached on a fielding error by Adams to start the frame. Chapman answered with a strikeout of Merrifield and had sophomore Jackie Bradley, Jr. (3-for-5) ground out, pushing Marzilli to third base. Moments later, the southpaw induced a game-ending fly ball by freshman Christian Walker that senior center fielder Matt den Dekker (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) snared to trigger a massive celebration on the diamond.
Back in the opening frame, the Gamecocks had two runners aboard with one down in the first against freshman Hudson Randall (Atlanta, Ga.) but were held at bay. Bradley, Jr. extended his hitting streak to eight games with a one-out single and Walker reached on a fielding error by freshman shortstop Nolan Fontana (Winter Garden, Fla.), just his second miscue of the season. A fly ball by senior Jeffery Jones nudged Bradley, Jr. to third but Randall caught junior Adrian Morales looking on strikes to end the frame.
Sophomore Adam Matthews (3-for-4, two runs) provided the hosts with a 1-0 advantage with a leadoff homer in the second. His sixth dinger went deep to left field. After senior Brady Thomas (3-for-3) followed with a single into right field, Randall buckled down to have senior Bobby Haney fly out before inducing back-to-back ground balls from junior Scott Wingo and Merrifield that closed the inning.
Bradley Jr. began the home part of the third with a base-hit through the left side of the infield and Randall answered by having Walker hit into a 6-4-3 double play and Jones fly out.
The Gators evened the game at a run apiece in the fourth on a sacrifice fly by freshman Austin Maddox (Jacksonville, Fla.) (1-for-3). den Dekker raised his hitting streak to 15 games with a leadoff single, the Gators’ first off Dyson, and moved into scoring position with his 21st stolen base. Sophomore Preston Tucker (Tampa, Fla.) (2-for-3) advanced his teammate with a grounder to first base and Maddox lofted his fifth sacrifice fly to straightaway center field to bring home den Dekker and collect his team-leading 64th RBI.
South Carolina regained the one-run advantage in the bottom of the inning on a RBI single by Haney into left field. Matthews had roped a one-out single into left and Thomas executed the hit-and-run to perfection with a single through the left side of the infield for runners on the corners. Haney’s flare into left eluded the lunge of Fontana, scoring Matthews with the go-ahead run. Wingo laid down a bunt to try and advance his teammates but Randall fielded the ball and threw Thomas out at third. The right-hander worked out of further trouble by having Merrifield fly out to right.
Although Bradley, Jr. notched his third hit with a leadoff double in the fifth, Randall retired the next three Gamecocks on pop-ups to leave the runner stranded on second base.
In the sixth, Tucker came through with a clutch two-out RBI triple to plate Adams for a 2-2 score. Adams had opened the stanza with his ninth double and was sacrificed over on a bunt by Fontana. Dyson set down den Dekker on a comebacker to the mound before Tucker sliced a 3-2 pitch just inside the first-base line to drive in Adams. The ball caromed off the wall down in right field and Tucker raced around the bases for his second three-bagger of the campaign. However, Dyson had Maddox ground out to keep the contest deadlocked.
After yielding a one-out single to Thomas, his third hit of the game, Randall was lifted in favor of Rodriguez. Over 5.1 innings, Randall gave up nine hits and two runs, with three strikeouts. Rodriguez fanned both Haney and Wingo to preserve the tie.
Rodriguez recorded the first two outs in the home part of the seventh before permitting a single to Walker. Sophomore Greg Larson (Longwood, Fla.) was summoned from the bullpen for Rodriguez, who struck out three of the five batters he faced. Senior pinch hitter Nick Ebert popped up Larson’s first pitch, which was snared by McMahan to complete the frame.
In the bottom of the eighth, Matthews singled to center field with one down off Larson (0.2 IP, 1 H), prompting another pitching change. Chapman had junior pinch hitter Parker Bangs ground out, moving Matthews into scoring position. The southpaw had junior pinch hitter Robert Beary ground out to Fontana, who made a tremendous play to nip the runner at first base.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Staked to a four-run lead, the No. 14 University of Arkansas baseball team held on for a 4-3 win over Vanderbilt Friday night at Hawkins Field. Home runs by Collin Kuhn and Monk Kreder led the Razorbacks' offensive charge and Mike Bolsinger matched his career high with an eight-inning performance against the 15th-ranked Commodores. The win snaps Arkansas' five-game losing streak and gives Dave Van Horn his 900th career victory as a collegiate head coach.
Kuhn led off the game with his 12th home run of the season, a solo shot over the 35-foot in left field. The score was the first lead-off home run by a Razorback since Chase Leavitt went yard against Louisiana-Monroe on April 15, 2009. The first inning also featured the return of Zack Cox to the Arkansas lineup. In his first at-bat since last Sunday's series finale against South Carolina, Cox singled through the right side of the infield but was left stranded as Vanderbilt starter Taylor Hill retired the next three Hogs in order. Cox was 1-for-2 before being replaced by Matt Vinson in the fifth inning.
After a pair of 1-2-3 innings, the Razorbacks struck for three runs in the top of the fourth. Brett Eibner opened the inning with a base hit through the left side. Andy Wilkins followed by tagging the first pitch of his at-bat to straight-away center for an RBI double to give the Hogs a 2-0 lead. With two down, Kreder launched a two-run shot to deep left center, his third long ball of the year, to push the club's lead to four.
The run support was enough for Bolsinger, making his 10th start of the season. The right-handed senior held the Commodores to one unearned run on four hits. Bolsinger struck out five Vanderbilt hitters and walked just one. The McKinney, Texas, native has tossed eight innings in two of his last three starts.
Bolsinger cruised through the first three innings Friday but ran into his first trouble spot in the bottom of the fourth. Anthony Gomez got things started with a base hit to left field and after hitting Jason Esposito with a pitch, Bolsinger faced a two-on, no-out situation. He retired the next two hitters by strikeout and flyout and looked to be out of the inning when Andrew Giobbi grounded a ball to first. However, Kreder couldn't field it cleanly allowing Gomez to cross the plate on the error.
In the bottom of the eighth, his last inning of work, Bolsinger gave up a lead-off double to Connor Harrell, but he worked out of the potential jam with three groundball outs. The Razorbacks turned two double plays in the game to push their weekend total to five.
Arkansas took its 4-1 lead into the bottom of the ninth and Eibner moved to the mound from center field to close out the game. After fanning Esposito for the first out, Eibner surrendered a solo home run to Aaron Westlake which cut the Hogs' lead in half. In an identical situation, Eibner responded to record the second out with a strikeout of Curt Casali but Giobbi brought the Commodores to within one run with the team's second solo shot of the inning. Eibner, however, got Joe Loftus to fly out to right field to seal the win and earn his first save of the season.
The teams return to action Saturday afternoon for the regular-season finale for both clubs. The matchup is scheduled for a 2 p.m. start and will be televised by SportSouth. It will also be carried by Fox Sports Southwest (Ch. 27 in Northwest Arkansas). Dave Neal and Larry Conley will handle the play-by-play and color commentary duties for the broadcast. Saturday's game will also be available at ESPN3.com.
ATHENS, Ga. -- A trio of Georgia hurlers combined on a seven-hit shutout and the Bulldogs used 22 singles to pound Kentucky 20-0 Saturday at Foley Field.
Georgia (16-36, 5-22 SEC) clinched its first Southeastern Conference series of the season and registered its largest margin victory in an SEC game since 1994 when it beat the Wildcats 25-2. Kentucky, who came into the series on a four-game winning streak including sweeping LSU, dropped to 30-25 overall and 12-17 in the SEC.
Senior Jeff Walters pitched a career-high seven innings while senior Alex McRee and freshman Patrick Boling tossed one inning apiece to give the Bulldogs their first combined shutout of the year. Offensively, sophomore centerfielder Johnathan Taylor had a career night, going 5-for-5 with four runs scored and 3 RBI. He became the first Bulldog to go 5-fo-5 in a game since Joey Lewis did it against Kentucky in 2007. Freshman shortstop Kyle Farmer (4-for-5, 4 RBI) and redshirt freshman Kevin Ruiz (4-for-4, 4 RBI) also posted career performances for Georgia.
Georgia scored in seven of the eighth innings it batted. They built a 7-0 lead by the third, led 10-0 after six frames and then added a seven-spot in the seventh and three more in the eighth for the final.
"I was proud for Jeff, he started out with a few walks and then battled to keep them off the scoreboard," said Georgia coach David Perno. "Kentucky had a lot to play for in trying to make the SEC Tournament, and we had something to play for in who makes it and trying to avoid finishing at the bottom of the league."
"This was the first SEC series win for a lot of our young guys, some of they played last year but they were not starters, and that’s big for them now to experience this," Perno added.
Walters (2-6) pitched out of trouble in the first when Kentucky loaded the bases with one out. He recovered to strike out Andy Burns (2-for-4) and then got Taylor Black to pop out. In the fourth, Marcus Nidiffer and Burns led off with base hits and then both were erased on the same play when they tried to advance on a pitch in the dirt and got caught in rundowns. In the seventh, the Wildcats lost a run on back-to-back doubles. Michael Williams had a one-out double. Brian Adams followed with a double and Williams touched home plate but never touched third. Walters appealed to third and Williams was called out. Then on another pitch in the dirt, Adams tried to advance to third and he was thrown out by catcher Christian Glisson to end the latest scoring threat. Kentucky never got closer after that. Boling allowed one hit in the ninth and eventually struck out the side.
Georgia’s last single traveled 400 feet and hit the centerfield wall. It was smashed by sophomore Lance Martin in the eighth, and it came with the bases loaded. The Bulldogs on board were watching to see if it would go out and got just one run on the play.
"Lance hit the longest single I’ve ever seen, and he’s one of the fastest guys I’ve ever coached," said Perno. "That’s a stand-up triple for him if our other guys get out of the way."
Kentucky starter Jordan Cooper went two innings and allowed six runs on six hits to fall to 2-6.
The series concludes Saturday with first pitch slated for 2 p.m.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Alabama rode the bat and right arm of senior third baseman/pitcher Jake Smith to a berth in the 2010 Southeastern Conference Tournament with a 4-2 series-clinching win over Tennessee on Friday night at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Alabama (33-21, 14-15 SEC) clinched its SEC Tournament berth with its third extra-inning win of the season and Georgia’s resounding 20-0 win over Kentucky in Athens, Ga. Alabama will either be the No. 7 or No. 8 seed in next week’s tournament at Regions Park in Hoover.
"This was one those team wins," Alabama head coach Mitch Gaspard said following the Tide’s win. "We just found a way to get the job done. I thought (junior shortstop Josh) Rutledge made some great defensive plays. We got good pitching. Jake’s home run was the key. It was just a good team win all the way around.
"The last two nights you could sense that in the dugout. The guys are energized and confident and playing well. I am happy for our team. They have been through a lot this year. We stayed the course and let the game come back our way when we could have shut it down, but we didn’t. Now, we are getting some good fortune and some good play coming along with that."
Smith hit a two-run, game-winning home run in the 11th inning off losing pitcher Matt Ramsey to give the Tide a 4-2 lead. Senior first baseman Clay Jones drew a leadoff walk before Smith launched a fly ball to left field that just cleared the left field wall to give the Tide the lead.
"I thought it was a home run and then I saw the left fielder and the wall, so had to talk to it a little bit to get it over the wall," Smith said as his home run just cleared the wall in left. "The main thing is we came away with the win and it was a great team win."
The right-hander pitched a scoreless 10th and 11th inning for his first win of the season. The Shannon, Ala., native entered the game in the 10th inning in relief of junior right-hander Nathan Kilcrease.
He struck out Josh Liles for the first out before issuing the first of three walks in the inning to Zach Osborne. After Osborne stole second, pinch-hitter Cody Stubbs grounded out to chase the winning run to third. Smith then walked P.J. Polk and Charley Thurber to load the bases before Cody Hawn fouled out to third baseman Cal Tinsley to end the threat.
Smith pitched around a one-out walk in the 11th inning for the win. Blake Forsythe lined out to Tinsley at third to open the inning and Liles lined out to sophomore center fielder Taylor Dugas, who made a diving catch in center to end the game.
"Pitching was a different story," Smith added. "Fortunately they hit some balls hard right at our guys we made some great defensive plays, especially Cal, Rutledge and Dugas."
Smith (1-1) worked two innings and did not allowed a run or hit in his relief outing. He walked four and struck out one.
"It was a big night for Jake to hit the home run and get the win on the mound," Gaspard added. "Hopefully that may trigger him for the next two or three weeks as we hit post season."
Ramsey (6-2) was the tough-luck loser for the Volunteers. He allowed three runs on five hits in six innings of relief with eight strikeouts and one walk.
Both starters were superb on Friday night.
Kilcrease went nine innings and allowed two runs on six hits with four strikeouts and no walks. He threw 122 pitches in the no decision. UT starter Steven Gruver pitched five innings and allowed one run on four hits with five strikeouts and one walk.
Kilcrease came within three outs of his second straight complete-game victory before Hawn lined a leadoff home run over the left-center field wall to tie the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth.
Alabama had taken a 2-1 lead in the eighth inning on Rutledge’s single up the middle that scored freshman right fielder Andrew Miller with the go-ahead run.
Miller was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and moved to third base on Dugas’ hit-and-run single up the middle. Rutledge then delivered the key run-scoring single to give Alabama its first lead at 2-1.
The Crimson Tide could not extend the lead as it left two runners on base in the eighth and wasted a leadoff double by junior DH David Kindred in the ninth as UT rallied to force extra innings.
Tennessee (30-25, 12-17 SEC) had taken a 1-0 lead in the third inning when Liles reached on a leadoff double down the left field line and moved around to scored on consecutive infield ground outs by Osborne and Cody Grisham to take the Vols first lead of the series.
Alabama tied the game at 1-1 on back-to-back doubles by junior left fielder Jon Kelton and Miller in the top of the fifth inning.
Alabama and Tennessee wrap up the series and the regular season with 12 p.m. (CDT) at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The game will be televised by Comcast Sports Southeast (CSS) with Matt Stewart and Rusty Ensor calling the action. The game will also be available on the internet at www.ESPN3.com. Alabama is expected to send sophomore left-hander Adam Morgan (13 GS, 5-4, 6.38 ERA) to the mound against Tennessee lefty Bryan Morgado (14 G, 2-7, 7.32 ERA).
OXFORD, Miss. - Last weekend No. 16 Auburn clinched its first SEC Tournament berth in six years. On Friday night Auburn one-upped itself, pounding No. 17 Ole Miss for 19 hits in a decisive 18-4 win that clinched the program's first SEC Western Division Championship since the 1995 season. The top hitting team in the SEC in both team batting average and home runs, Auburn collected 10 extra-base hits on the night, including five home runs, to move to 38-17, 19-10 SEC.
"The guys deserve this championship and winning the SEC West," Auburn Head Coach John Pawlowski said. "We have been swinging the bats well and we also pitched well. These guys came out today with an intensity level that has been consistent. We didn't do anything differently."
The 19 league wins represent the most in school history for the regular season, eclipsing the 18 won in both 1999 and 2008.
Auburn also clinched the second seed in next week's SEC Tournament in Hoover and will play the first game of the day on Wednesday, May 26 at 9:30am CT. Auburn's opponent will be either Alabama or LSU, depending on Saturday's outcomes.
Brian Fletcher went 3-for-6, including two home runs, and Ryan Jenkins was 4-for-6 with two doubles and a home run as Auburn scored 10 times in the first four innings to send the 7,192 fans at Oxford-University Stadium home early.
"Coming into the game, we had the West in back of our minds, but the guys knew we had to keep it simple and come out here and play and not try and do too much," Fletcher said.
Slade Smith (3-0) picked up the win in relief, entering with the bases loaded in the bottom of the fourth and only one out. The freshman would throw the next 5 2/3 innings, surrendering a sacrifice fly in the fourth but keeping Ole Miss off the board the rest of the way, allowing five hits without issuing any walks and striking out five.
"It was my job to come in and shut them up and get us back in the dugout so we could put up some more runs and that's exactly what we did," Smith said. "In this environment, against a great team like Ole Miss, to come in, it is everything I dreamed of. When I signed the dotted papers to play for Auburn, this is what I wanted. It's great to see us finally at this level."
"Slade came into a tough situation and got us out of it and then finished the game for us," Pawlowski said.
For the second straight night, Dan Gamache put Auburn on the board first with a home run, this time sending a 1-2 pitch from Ole Miss (36-19, 16-13 SEC) starter Aaron Barrett (7-3) into the student section in right behind the Auburn bullpen. The homer drove in Jenkins, who had doubled to the wall in right-center in the previous at bat, to give Auburn a 2-0 advantage.
"Barrett has an outstanding slider and the first mistake he made, Danny Gamache was fortunate to get on that slider and open things up a little bit," Pawlowski said.
Auburn chased Barrett with two outs in the third as it scored four times to go up 6-0. Jenkins hit his seventh home run of the season, a three-run shot to left-center that scored Hunter Morris and Kevin Patterson, to give Auburn a five-run lead. Doubles by Gamache and Mummey sandwiched a Justin Hargett walk and scored the fourth run of the inning, sending Barrett to the dugout after surrendering seven hits and four walks in just 2 2/3 innings.
"This is a great step forward for Auburn baseball," Jenkins said. "To play that kind of game to do it is pretty special. I can't say enough about how well we played today. Everybody hit well, Cole came out and threw well and then Slade came out and shut them down."
Fletcher greeted Matt Tracy with a three-run home run of his own, his 19th of the season, to put Auburn up 9-0 and hang two more runs on Barrett. The eight runs allowed by Barrett tied the most anyone had posted on the senior right hander in his career, also done by South Carolina earlier this season.
Hargett's two-out single in the fourth off of Matt Tracy was Auburn's 10th hit of the game and it scored McElroy to put Auburn up 10-0 while Ole Miss had yet to get a hit off of Nelson, who outside of a leadoff walk in the second had kept Ole Miss off the bases through 3 1/3 innings.
That all changed in the fourth when Ole Miss strung together four hits and two walks to knock Nelson out of the game with Auburn up, 10-3, and the bases loaded and one out. Matt Smith and Matt Snyder hit back-to-back one-out doubles, followed by a Zach Miller single. A walk to Taylor Hashman, a two-run single by Alex Yarbrough and a walk to Mike Snyder sent Nelson to the Auburn dugout in favor of Slade Smith.
Smith allowed a sacrifice fly to Miles Hamblin but then got a groundout out of Tim Ferguson to end the inning with Auburn up, 10-4. Nelson was charged with four runs on four hits and three walks, striking out five.
Auburn answered with a three-run top of the fifth as Fletcher led off with his second home run of the game, establishing a new school record for multiple homer games with nine. Auburn then loaded the bases on Tracy on a single and two walks and had two runs score on Hargett's third walk of the game and a passed ball, giving Auburn the 13-4 lead.
"This game is all about momentum. For them to score four, it got the fans all excited and Ole Miss got all excited," Fletcher said. "I was just looking to get on base and make things happen for us. (Tracy) threw me a fastball away and I was able to square it up and put it out. That was big. It calmed down the stands a little bit."
Auburn put five more runs on the board in the top of the sixth to go up 18-4, with Patterson delivering a three-run home run off the batter's eye in center, Jenkins driving in McElroy with a double to the gap in right-center and Trent Mummey singling home Jenkins.
Auburn will attempt to complete its third SEC series sweep of the season on Saturday afternoon at 4pm CT. Jr. LHP Grant Dayton (7-2, 4.80) gets the starting nod for Auburn while Ole Miss will start So. RHP David Goforth (1-4, 7.76).
BATON ROUGE, La. - After exploding for eight runs in the third inning, No. 27 LSU never looked back, as a seven-inning masterpiece by Austin Ross and three homers from the LSU offense powered the Tigers to a 17-3 victory over Mississippi State Friday night in Alex Box Stadium, clinching a berth for LSU in the SEC Tournament.
The Tigers (36-19, 14-15) earned a spot in the SEC Tournament with Friday's win and Kentucky's 20-0 loss at Georgia. Mississippi State fell to 22-33 overall and 5-24 in the SEC.
The series finale between LSU and Mississippi State will be Saturday at 3 p.m. in Alex Box Stadium. The Tigers will start sophomore lefty Chris Matulis (5-2) on the mound, while the Bulldogs will counter with freshman right-hander Chris Stratton (4-3).
Ross (4-4) was outstanding for LSU, as the junior right-hander hurled seven marvelous innings, allowing three runs on four hits with no walks and eight strikeouts.
The LSU offense was propelled by rightfielder Mikie Mahtook's three-hit, four RBI performance, as well as a four RBI outing from shortstop Austin Nola. Mahtook, Leon Landry and second baseman Tyler Hanover each homered for the Tigers Friday night.
"I thought we played a complete ball game tonight," said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. "Our players showed a great deal of intensity at the plate, and Austin Ross gave us another very strong outing. The SEC is so tough every weekend, and qualifying for the conference tournament is a significant accomplishment. We're certainly not satisfied, though, with just making the tournament. We want to continue to play well tomorrow and carry some momentum into the postseason."
In the third, the Tigers went up 2-0 when Mississippi State starter Devin Jones hit Gibbs with the bases loaded and then issued a bases-loaded walk to Dean. The next batter, Austin Nola, ripped a two-run single through the right side to give LSU a 4-0 lead. Nola's two RBI give him four so far this series.
After surrendering an infield single to Mahtook that loaded the bases again, Jones walked Gaudet to give the Tigers a 5-0 advantage. The Bulldogs brought in left-hander Luke Bole to relieve Jones, and the first batter he faced, Alex Edward, laced a two-run single up the middle with the bases loaded to make the score 7-0. Hanover followed with an RBI single up the middle to cap the eight-run inning and put LSU up 8-0.
All eight of the Tigers' runs in the third came with two outs in the inning.
The Bulldogs responded in the top of the fourth when third baseman Nick Vickerson launched a solo homer off Austin Ross, who hadn't allowed a base runner in the first three innings, to make the score 8-1. The homer was Vickerson's eighth of the season and his third in the last three games.
State made the score 8-2 later in the fourth when left fielder Ryan Duffy crushed a solo homer over the bleachers in right field. Duffy's homer was his 10th of the season.
The Tigers added to their lead in the fourth with three runs in the inning with RBI by Dean, Nola and Mahtook to increase LSU's advantage to 11-2.
In the fifth, the Tigers made the score 13-2 when Hanover and Landry launched solo homers. Hanover's dinger was his second of the season while Landry's homer was his sixth. After Nola ripped another RBI single to make the score 14-2, Mahtook blasted a three-run homer, his 13th of the season, increasing LSU's lead to 17-2.
In the top of the sixth, Conner Powers launched a solo homer to make the score 17-3. The homer was Powers' 16th of the season. Freshman left-hander Chris Cotton closed out the final two innings for the Tigers, allowing no runs on two hits with a strikeout.