The first two games of LSU baseball’s series with Florida didn’t go in the favor of the Tigers as they fell in games one and two on Thursday and Friday, allowing 11 runs in each game. Both teams returned on Saturday afternoon to conclude the series and end the regular season.
The Tigers couldn’t complete a comeback and fell 15-11. The loss marked the team’s 27th of the season, the 21st in SEC play, and the fifth time getting swept in 56 games.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Zac Cowan was the starting pitcher for the Tigers and did well in the opening frame, striking out a pair of Gators. Cowan struck out another batter to begin the second before Karson Bowen hit a triple into right-center field with two outs. After a mound visit, the threat of a run was mitigated when Landon Stripling grounded out at second base.
The Tigers put multiple runners on the base paths when Mason Braun led off with a walk, and Seth Dardar singled into left field. Florida’s starting pitcher, Russell Sandefer, recovered with a pair of strikeouts against Brayden Simpson and Zach Yorke. Chris Stanfield drew a walk to load the bases, but all three were left stranded when Tanner Reaves flew out in left field.
The Gators took the lead at the top of the third and did so in multiple ways. Cade Kurkland began with a solo home run before Florida’s nine-hole hitter singled, who advanced to second as Brendan Lawson was hit by a pitch. A Cowan wild pitch advanced both runners into scoring position, and they scored off a two-RBI single by Ethan Surowiec up the middle. That put the Tigers behind by three runs heading into the bottom of the frame.
Cade Arrambide’s two-out solo home run into the Diamond cut into Florida’s lead. Braun also singled into left field before Dardar hit into a fielder’s choice to end the third inning.
A flurry of singles by Cash Strayer, Bowen, and Stripling put another run on the board for the Gators. That RBI hit by Stripling prompted Tigers skipper Jay Johnson to make a pitching change from Cowan to Grant Fontenot. Fontenot retired the first three batters he faced and finalized Cowan’s stat line as he had seven hits, four runs( all earned), and four strikeouts in three innings on the mound. The Gators were ahead 4-1.
LSU tied the game in the fifth with a handful of hits. With one out, Derek Curiel singled up the middle before Arrambide blasted his second ball of the day, this time over the centerfield wall. That home run caused Florida to take Sandefer off the mound for Ricky Reeth. The Gator relief pitcher proceeded to give a double to Simpson and an RBI single by Dardar, tying the game in the process.
It didn’t take long for Florida to reclaim the lead as Fontenot allowed a two-run homer to Yost with one out. That was enough for coach Johnson to replace Fontenot with Gavin Guidy, who struck out the next two batters to get the Tigers out of the inning.
Guidry gave up a pair of solo home runs to Kurkland and Yost at the top of the eighth after the Gators managed to record just one hit in the 1.2 innings that he was on the mound. That was all she wrote for Guidry as he was replaced by Santiago Garcia, who faced just two batters before getting taken out for Jaden Noot. Lawson, who was hit by a Garcia pitch, stole second and scored on a Surowiec single, putting Florida ahead by five.
There was a nice touch near the end of the game as Jake Brown went to pinch-hit for Tanner Reaves and got a standing ovation from the crowd before heading back to the dugout and having Edward Yamin IV bat in his place. Yamin was hit in the hand, and Simpson, who previously hit a double, scored on a Milam single up the middle. Curiel walked to load the bases, and Florida made another pitching change to Cooper Walls. The scoring continued with a fielding error by the Gator infield and a two-RBI hit by Braun to bring it to within one run.
Florida shut down any chances of an LSU comeback in the ninth as they plated six more runs against Deven Sheerin, Dax Dathe, and Ethan Plog. Milam drove in Simpson and Yorke at the bottom of the frame with a three-run homer over the Diamond Deck. It wasn’t enough to overcome the sizable deficit as the Tigers lost 15-11.
BIG NUMBER: 0
The Tigers failed to win a single game against a ranked SEC opponent during the regular season. They went a combined 0-15 in the 2026 season, leading to this being the most times LSU has been swept in a season in program history. This also marked the first time that the team had at least 20 or more losses in conference play, and today’s loss was the 21st.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Hayden Yost
Florida’s nine-hole hitter was nearly impossible to get out on Saturday. Yost was 4/5 from the plate as he hit three home runs and had five RBI in the process. That offensive output played a big factor in LSU losing 15-11.
UP NEXT: The LSU Tigers Baseball team will return to action when they travel to Hoover, Alabama, for the SEC Tournament. They’ll take on Oklahoma Sooner and the action can be heard on ESPN 103.7 Lafayette and 104.1 Lake Charles.