Tulane waved goodbye early Tuesday night at Alex Box Stadium.
LSU freshman starter Ryan Eades pitched a career-long six innings and received a four-run cushion after two innings as the LSU baseball team (29-17) silenced the Green Wave, 6-2.
Eades allowed one run on just two hits to lead LSU to its first five-game winning streak since Southeastern Conference play began.
“I just try to go out there and throw strikes,” Eades said. “At times tonight I wasn’t able to do that, but I have a great defense behind me, and they were able to make some good plays when they needed to.”
It wasn’t all smooth sailing for the Slidell native in the top of the first inning, as Tulane (26-19) smacked a leadoff single on the first pitch of the game and put men on the corners.
Eades, who walked a batter in three of the first four innings, worked out of the jam by inducing a flyout to left field.
“I hate walking anybody,” Eades said. “I’d rather give up a hit than walk somebody.”
Tulane put a runner on third base with two outs in the second inning, as well, and Eades avoided damage again by forcing a groundout to LSU freshman second baseman JaCoby Jones.
Tulane freshman pitcher Wade Konvicka forced two quick outs to start the bottom of the first inning before LSU junior center fielder Mikie Mahtook smacked a towering fly ball to left field, which barely cleared the fence despite the wind breezing toward right field.
“I knew I hit it really, really well. I just didn’t think it was going to get out,” Mahtook said. “I knew it was either going to be caught off the wall or over the fence.”
The Tigers quadrupled their run total an inning later.
Sophomore right fielder Alex Edward and junior shortstop Austin Nola both walked to start the second inning. Sophomore designated hitter Raph Rhymes then brought in Edward with an RBI single to right field on a hit-and-run to stretch LSU’s lead to 2-0.
Freshman catcher Ty Ross tacked on another run in the next at-bat with a safety squeeze down the first base line. After a Jones walk and a double steal, junior left fielder Trey Watkins shot a sacrifice fly to the warning track in left field to score Rhymes and give the Tigers a 4-0 lead.
“It feels good getting back to playing the ball we know we’re used to,” Rhymes said.
Rhymes went 2-for-3 in the game, helping LSU chase Konvicka out of the game after two innings. The freshman walked three batters and gave up two hits without throwing a strikeout.
Junior third baseman Tyler Hanover tallied the Tigers’ fifth run in the fourth inning on a throwing error. Tulane junior catcher Jeremy Shaffer put the Green Wave on the board in the sixth inning with a solo home run off Eades for Tulane’s second hit of the night.
“It was cold, windy, and that wind was blowing in from the North,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “I didn’t expect to see any home runs tonight, and there ended up being two.”
Follow Rowan Kavner on Twitter @TDR_Kavner.
 
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