LSU took Game 1 of its final SEC regular season series in thrilling fashion with a 8-5 win over the Georgia Bulldogs.
When the Tigers were in need of a spark, it looked to the long ball, and it came through at the perfect time. Josh Pearson broke the scoring drought in the top of the 12th inning with a two run home run to give LSU a two-run lead.
But it wasn’t done there, as Jordan Thompson hit his second home run of the night. His first came in the 8th inning, following another home run from LSU by Hayden Travinski. Thompson went two for four on the night, and Travinski went two for six.
Brayden Jobert also homered in the second inning, and he led the team’s offense going three for four. Dylan Crews homered in the ninth, and he went two for seven on the game.
Of LSU’s eight runs, all eight of them came from home runs.
The home run ball also helped Georgia, however. In the fifth inning, Will David put the Bulldogs on the board with a solo home run, and Sebastian Murillo and Ben Anderson both homered in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game at five. Murillo and Connor Tate each had multiple hits for the Bulldogs.
The thrills of the home runs and the action the bats brought Thursday night may shield another stellar performance from Paul Skenes on the mound. In fact, with his performance, he is now second in the ranks for most strikeouts in a single season in LSU baseball history with 164 in just 86.2 innings pitched.
Skenes finished his performance Thursday night with 12 strikeouts in seven innings pitched. He gave up two runs on just four hits and a walk.
But the Tigers’ relievers came through at just the right time. Thatcher Hurd earned the win with five strikeouts in five innings pitched. He gave up two runs on just three hits and a walk. Hurd going as long as he did as a reliever may be the spark of confidence the bullpen needs headed into the offseason.
The Tigers have two more games in this series until its postseason officially begins. LSU will hit the field once again on Friday at 5 p.m. C.T. against Georgia, and that matchup will be aired live on SEC Network plus.
