LSU baseball does it again, walking off Arkansas to win Game 1 of rain-delayed showdown
After nearly a three- and half-hour rain delay, two of the best teams in college baseball, LSU and Arkansas, decided to play extra innings.
The Tigers ended the game in the 10th inning as Ethan Frey drove home Jared Jones on a sacrifice fly to give LSU a massive 5-4 win.
LSU can’t be beat after 1 AM: Two weeks ago, Jones started a wild celebration with a mammoth three-run home run to complete a wild comeback against Tennessee.
Jones was in the middle of it again in the win over the Hogs. He singled to lead off the tenth inning. Advanced to second on a wild pitch. Moved to third base on Daniel Dickinson’s ground out and scored on Frey’s fly ball to center field. It was a close play at the plate, but Jones beat the tag on a headfirst slide, setting off another fun celebration.
Magic Moment: Derek Curiel had the game tying hit in that crazy comeback win over Tennessee two weeks ago and he did it again against Arkansas. With LSU down by two runs in the seventh inning, Curiel singled through the left side of the infield to score Jake Brown and Steven Milam. Curiel’s hit tied the game at four, and shifted the momentum back in LSU’s favor after Arkansas took a two-run lead.
LSU’s pitching holds off the Hogs: Arkansas has the top offense in the SEC, but three Tiger pitchers held them in check in game one of the series. Kade Anderson started and struck out ten in 5.2 innings. Anderson allowed three runs on two home runs. He left in the sixth inning because of cramping in his left wrist, but it’s not a concern, according to Coach Jay Johnson.
Chase Shores relieved Anderson and allowed one run in 1.1 innings.
Zac Cowan returned to being the guy out of the bullpen for LSU. After being tagged with two losses in the Texas A&M series, Cowan got the win by pitching three shutout innings of relief. He got out of a bases loaded jam in the tenth inning.
“There’s better pro prospects,” Johnson said. “There’s more electric stuff. But there’s nobody that’s been more valuable to a college baseball team who is 39-11 than Zac.”
Game 2: LSU and Arkansas face off in game two at 5:30 on Saturday. A win for the Tigers and they lock up the series and they take a big step closer to locking up a Top 8 national seed.
