The LSU Tigers baseball team lost 6-2 to the North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday evening in the 1-0 game of the Chapel Hill Regional. The Tigers now fall into an elimination game against Wofford on Sunday morning.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Tar Heels, who began their tournament with an 11-8 win over Long Island via a walk off grand slam, went with left hander Shea Sprague in this one. Sprague allowed a couple of baserunners in the first but got out of the inning with no damage done.
The Tigers, who began their tournament with a 4-3 win over Wofford via a walk off solo home run, went with righty Luke Holman on the mound. Holman cruised through the first, setting UNC down in order with a couple of strikeouts.
This became a pitcher’s duel, as both starters matched each other with zeroes. There was traffic on the bases in several innings for both teams, but Sprague and Holman each worked out of jams during the first four innings.
In the fifth, this game changed. LSU threatened, but Tommy White grounded into a double play to end the Tigers’ half. In the bottom of the inning, the Tar Heels got two runners on. Then, Vance Honeycutt delivered a three-run shot to break the scoreless tie.
It would remain 3-0 UNC until the top of the seventh. In that frame, LSU got three singles to load the bases. Then, Jared Jones and Ethan Frey worked RBI walks to get the game within a run at 3-2. Hayden Travinski grounded into a double play to end the inning, keeping the Tar Heels ahead by one.
Honeycutt was not done impacting this game. He launched his second homer of the contest in the bottom of the inning, making it 4-2 in favor of UNC. That would be the last pitch of the day for Holman, who went six and two-thirds innings in the start.
The Tigers were not able to cut into the lead in the eighth, but the Tar Heels were able to extend it. Gavin Gallaher delivered an RBI single, and a groundout brought home another later in the inning. That made it 6-2.
The Tiger offense could not mount a comeback, as the Tar Heels closed it down for the 6-2 win.
BIG NUMBER: 2
In addition to LSU scoring two runs, the double play ball was the culprit of two spoiled rallies. That hindered the offense, and Honeycutt’s two homers were the difference.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Vance Honeycutt
Honeycutt was tremendous, homering twice and driving in four of the Tar Heels’ six runs. He provided the offense, and the Carolina bullpen was able to work out of a couple of jams to secure the winner’s bracket for UNC.
UP NEXT: LSU will face Wofford in an elimination game in Chapel Hill at 11:00 AM tomorrow. If they win that, they will face UNC again at 5:00 PM.