The LSU baseball bats awoke for the first three innings at Alex Box Stadium Wednesday night, torching the Louisiana-Lafayette pitching staff for five runs on five hits in what would be the only runs of the game.
The Tigers (19-6) defeated ULL (13-11), 5-0, aided by the quick start.
They had to endure a long night to do so.
A one-hour, 17-minute rain delay after the third inning sent fans searching for cover and both teams onto the field, feverishly attempting to lay the tarp out.
“You have to come out [after the delay] with the same attitude you had before the game,” said LSU junior left fielder Raph Rhymes. “I think we did a pretty good job of that tonight.”
Junior right fielder Mason Katz launched a first-inning solo home run and senior first baseman Grant Dozar hit a three-run bomb just moments before the downpour to give LSU a 5-0 cushion heading into the delay.
Mother Nature then had her time as the teams were sidelined while waiting to resume play. The delay had a noticeable effect on the bats, with the Tigers getting only one hit after play resumed and none after the fourth inning.
“It was just a methodical win,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “When you shut the team out, it’s usually a good night for you.”
The Tigers’ pitching staff suffered no such ill effects as a gang of 10 pitchers combined for a three-hitter and even took a no-hit threat into the sixth inning.
Sophomore pitcher Joe Broussard, making only his second start of the season, threw two strong innings, striking out three. A crew of nine pitchers followed, combining to walk only three while striking out nine.
“I just wanted to come out and put up some hula hoops and get the offense a chance to put some runs up on the board,” Broussard said. “Everybody that came in from the pen did
their job.”
Broussard said he needed the work to get his last outing at Auburn out of his mind. He threw four straight balls last Friday in relief of sophomore Kevin Gausman against Auburn.
“I wanted to get out there, be successful and give myself a chance to win,” Broussard said.
What once seemed like a game the Tigers would break open turned into a pitchers’ duel that featured only four hits between the teams after the delay.
Junior Raph Rhymes paced the Tigers with a 3-for-5 night with three singles, giving him 40 singles for the season on 46
total hits.
“I’m telling the guys I’m
going up to bat and I’m honestly trying to hit the ball off the scoreboard. It’s weird,” Rhymes said. “Any hit I get, I’ll take.”
Freshman outfielder Chris Sciambra – out for the season after suffering an injury in a gruesome collision at Auburn on Sunday – was feeling well enough to join his teammates. Sciambra sat behind home plate most of the game.
LSU will return to action Friday when it hosts the first game of a three-game series against No. 3 Arkansas at Alex Box Stadium.
 
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Contact Chandler Rome at [email protected]