No. 8 LSU baseball again played a tight game with No. 1 Arkansas. It led in all three games of the series at some point, but went on to lose all three too.
The Tigers had four homeruns in game three against Arkansas (23-3, 8-1 SEC), but couldn’t come away with the win in a 7-5 loss. The loss means the Tigers have been swept for the first time this season.
“We had a tough loss last night, so I wanted a competitive response from our team today, and we got that,” LSU head coach Jay Johnson said. “They fought hard, they care, and they’re not going to quit. We’ve just got to get better at baseball. We just played the best team in the country, and anyone can see that.
LSU (20-9, 2-7 SEC) started the game off with a bang when Tommy White homered off the second pitch of the game to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead. The next three Tiger batters struck out swinging, and the Razorbacks responded quickly in the bottom of the first.
60 Career Tanks 💥@tommywhite44 | SECN+ pic.twitter.com/s4Rqc7zSZd
— LSU Baseball (@LSUbaseball) March 30, 2024
Wehiwa Aloy homered to left field with one out gone to tie the game up at 1-1. Jump gave up a single afterward but managed to get out of the inning without allowing anything else.
LSU went three up, three down in the second inning and it hadn’t managed a hit outside of the homer from White when Brady Neal singled in the top of the third inning. Michael Braswell III was hit by a pitch before the single and the Tigers had runners on first and second.
White grounded into a double play to advance Braswell to third and Ashton Larson sent a two-run homer over the right field wall to give LSU a 3-1 lead.
Mac Bingham got in on the home run party in the top of the fourth inning with a solo shot to left field that brought LSU’s lead to 4-1. Arkansas responded with a three-run inning in the bottom of the fourth to tie the game back up.
Gage Jump forced the first two outs of the inning before a walk and two-straight singles loaded the bases. Ty Wilmsmeyer hit a two-RBI single to left field and Peyton Stovall followed it up with an RBI single to bring the score to 4-4.
Jump was pulled for Nate Ackenhausen with one out to go in the inning. Jump finished the game with three strikeouts while allowing seven hits, four runs and two walks in 3.2 innings pitched. Ackenhausen induced a groundout to get out of the inning in a tied ballgame.
Tygart was pulled for Koty Frank in the top of the fifth inning after a Braswell single, but a strikeout and a double play ended the frame. Arkansas took its first lead of the da in the bottom of the sixth inning.
A double put a runner on second for the Hogs before a flyout advanced him to third. Wilmsmeyer reached on a fielder’s choice that brough home the runner before Stovall hit a two-run homer to bring the score to 7-4. Gavin Guidry came in to pitch to close out the inning.
Bingham responded with his second home run of the game in the top of the seventh inning to cut the deficit to two. The Tigers threatened to tie the game up in the top of the eighth inning with the bases loaded, but a strikeout ended the threat and sent the Tigers down to their final three outs.
LSU got two runners on base with one out gone thanks to a single and a walk in the top of the ninth inning trailing 7-5. White sent a ball that would’ve given LSU the lead out over the left field wall, but it pulled just foul. The play was reviewed but the ruling on the field stood.
White hit into a double play on the next pitch after the review to end the game.
“Our players competed hard today, and collectively, our at-bats were better,” Johnson said. “We need to keep fighting, one day at a time.”
LSU’s next game will be Monday at 6:30 p.m. from Alex Box Stadium against Southern.
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