LSU hadn’t produced much offensively when sophomore right-hander Austin Ross took the mound this season.Ross threw five innings and gave up only two runs in the Tigers’ 6-2 loss to Illinois on March 8. Most recently, he suffered the Tigers’ first round 4-1 loss to Vanderbilt in the Southeastern Conference tournament last weekend.The futile trend continued in the opening round of the NCAA tournament on Friday as the Tigers gave Ross only one run to support the two runs he gave up. However, the ending was different as the Tigers blew open the game with a seven-run seventh after Ross exited the game trailing, 2-1, en route to a 10-2 victory against No. 4 Southern.
 
Ross went 6 2/3 innings, giving up seven hits and two runs while striking out 10 batters in the game. Those 10 strikeouts tied a career-high that came on March 1 against Central Florida earlier this season.
 
“Southern played so well for six of seven innings,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “Not just their pitcher but their entire team behind them.”
 
The Shreveport native gave up his only two runs of the game on the third pitch he threw when Southern designated hitter James Armstrong cranked a two-run home run, his 11th of the season, to put the Jaguars up early, 2-0.
 
Ross settled down for the rest of his outing as he went on a strike-out parade, including striking out the side in both the first and the third and getting the leadoff batter to fan in each of the first four innings.
 
The sophomore failed to strike out a batter in the sixth but threw only three pitches in the inning, getting a lineout and two fly outs.
 
Ross said he threw a great pregame bullpen but made a mistake on the home run.
 
“I left a fastball over the plate, and he just hit it out,” he said. “I knew that if I kept us in the game though, that our lineup would do its job.”
 
Five of the Tigers’ seven runs came after Southern southpaw Chase Richard exited the game after throwing 6 2/3 innings and giving up three runs (two earned). In total, only three of those seven runs were earned in the inning thanks to two Jaguar errors.
 
Senior Chris McGhee was put in as a pinch runner for junior first baseman Sean Ochinko and scored on a two-out single by freshman shortstop Austin Nola to tie the game at 2-2.
 
Nola advanced to second on the throw to the plate and later scored on a single by sophomore second baseman DJ LeMahieu to give the Tigers a 3-2 lead.
 
LSU sophomore catcher Micah Gibbs brought in a pair of runs on an error by the Southern first baseman to give the Tigers 6-2 advantage. Gibbs scored on a two-RBI double by pinch hitter Derek Helinihi.
 
“All hell broke loose [once we took Richard out],” said Southern coach Roger Cador.
 
Junior Paul Bertuccini and senior Buzzy Haydel came on in relief of Ross to close the game, going a combined 2 1/3 innings, giving up no runs on no hits while striking out two.
 
The Tigers got their first runner of the game in scoring position in the sixth when junior left fielder Ryan Schimpf led off the inning with a double.
 
Schimpf stole third with one out in the inning and got the Tigers on the board when he advanced home on a throwing error by the catcher.
 
LSU got two more runs in the eighth to seal the game.
 
Mainieri said sophomore Anthony Ranaudo will start the Tigers’ game tomorrow against the winner of the Baylor vs. Minnesota matchup tonight.—-Contact Andy Schwehm at [email protected]