LSU (17-2, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) opened its 2014 SEC schedule with a pitching matchup that professional scouts were waiting to witness.
Tigers’ junior Aaron Nola squared off against Vanderbilt’s (16-3, 0-1 SEC) Tyler Beede in the series opener in Nashville, Tenn., on Friday night, but it was the LSU offense that stole the show late in a 4-2 victory.
Early in the contest, the pitching duel appeared to be leaning in Beede’s favor.
After loading the bases with no outs in the bottom of the second, Nola had to wiggle out of trouble with the Commodores’ ace dominating over the first two frames.
The Baton Rouge native allowed a sac fly, but he battled back to hold down the Vanderbilt offense and keep LSU within one run.
From that point on, Nola was flawless.
Using every pitch in his arsenal, the LSU ace smothered the Commodore offensive attack over 6 2/3 innings. He surrendered one run on six hits after throwing 117 pitches.
It was his strikeout total, though, that truly shined – Nola struck out 12 Vanderbilt hitters, a tie for his career high in a game. During one stretch, he retired four-straight Commodore batters via strikeout.
On the flip side, Beede was equally as effective for the home squad.
The Auburn, Mass., native dominated the LSU batting order for 7 1/3 innings, recording seven strikeouts on 105 pitches.
That being said, it was the top of the eighth that spelled trouble for Vanderbilt.
With one out, LSU senior third baseman Christian Ibarra singled off of Beede, then junior first baseman Tyler Moore walked.
After junior right-hander Brian Miller went to the mound to replace Beede, the LSU offense erupted.
Freshman outfielder Jake Fraley loaded the bases with two outs after reaching on an error, then sophomore center fielder Andrew Stevenson roped a two-RBI single to center to give LSU a 2-1 lead.
Sophomore right fielder Mark Laird proceeded to hit a ball to second base, but an error led to two more runs crossing the plate. LSU lead Vanderbilt 4-1 before the inning came to a close.
LSU coach Paul Mainieri turned to relievers Zac Person, Parker Bugg and Joe Broussard following Nola’s performance. Person picked up his first victory as a Tiger after tossing 1/3 of an inning.
Bugg, a freshman, pitched for 1 1/3 innings, surrendering one run on one hit. The senior, Broussard, recorded the final two outs of the contest to seal the LSU victory.