The LSU Tigers defeated the Arkansas-Little Rock Trojans 10-6 on Monday night inside Alex Box Stadium. The win moves the Tigers into the Super Regional round of the NCAA Tournament, which is the final step before the College World Series in Omaha.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
After Little Rock (27-34) pulled off a shocking upset 10-4 last night, this winner-take-all game seven of the Baton Rouge Regional was forced. They went with Blake Van Cleve on the mound. He was met with one out by Ethan Frey, who launched a solo shot way out of the stadium to make it 1-0 and give LSU an early lead.
LSU (46-15) went with Zac Cowan, making his first start of the season after being used out of the bullpen this year. Despite giving up one hit, Cowan worked a zero in the bottom half of the first.
The Trojans would get to Cowan the following inning, however. Free passes set the stage. Then, Angel Cano continued a torrid Regional with an RBI single. When Alex Seguine delivered a two-run single, Jay Johnson had seen enough and he went to the bullpen. Casan Evans would enter, but an error and a bloop single added two more runs, giving Little Rock the early 5-1 lead.
LSU’s first big answer came in the top of the fourth. They loaded the bases with two outs and Frey up to bat. He once again delivered, this time a bases-clearing three-run double to cut the lead down to one at 5-4.
In the top of the sixth, the Tigers finally drew even. Luis Hernandez hit a high, majestic blast over the left-field wall to make it 5-5. The inning did not produce any more runs, but the momentum had fully shifted.
The very next frame, after Evans continued to control things on his side, Frey hit yet another double. He moved to third and scored on an RBI groundout by Steven Milam, giving LSU the 6-5 lead and their first since the opening frame.
Hernandez would add an insurance run with his second homer of the game, a blast to left in the top half of the eighth. That gave LSU a 7-5 lead heading to the bottom half.
Little Rock did pull closer, grabbing a run on an RBI single from Alex Seguine right after LSU went to Anthony Eyanson to try to get a five-out save. Eyanson was able to put out the fire after that and send LSU to the ninth with a one-run advantage.
Jared Jones would add some much-needed insurance in the top of the ninth. He hit a two-run homer that stretched the lead to 9-6. Hernandez then brought home another run with a single, making it 10-6.
Eyanson closed things down in the ninth, clinching the win and the Regional for LSU.
BIG NUMBER: 9
At one point, Evans struck out nine Trojans in a row. His performance out of the bullpen was nothing short of magnificent for LSU in a time where they needed it the most.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Ethan Frey
With the offense sputtering at times in the early stages of this game, Frey delivered. A solo home run and a bases-clearing double drove in LSU’s first four runs and got things kick-started. He would go 4-4 with a HR, two doubles, four RBIs, and two walks for good measure.
UP NEXT: The Tigers will host next week’s Super Regional round of the NCAA Tournament at Alex Box Stadium. They will face the West Virginia Mountaineers in a Best-of-Three Series with a trip to the College World Series on the line.