As LSU coach Paul Mainieri addressed the media following the No. 5 Tigers’ 6-5 win against Cincinnati on opening night at Alex Box Stadium, one of his newest players – JUCO transfer Jordan Romero – received a celebratory face full of shaving cream.
It was only fitting for a wild game that lasted three hours and 59 minutes, but Mainieri couldn’t remember another one like it in nine previous seasons in Baton Rouge.
“My son Tommy just said to me, ‘Dad, I don’t remember us ever having an extra inning game on opening day,’” Mainieri said. “I can’t recall it either.”
Romero’s RBI bloop single in the bottom of the 12th inning lifted LSU (1-0) to its 15th straight opening day win on Friday evening.
Trailing 3-2, Romero tied the game in the bottom of the ninth with a two-out RBI single, capping a two-run rally in the eighth and ninth innings. Despite a solid season debut from Jared Poche in 6 ⅔ innings, the junior left-hander surrendered two runs in the top of the seventh.
But LSU battled back to tie it in the ninth and then rallied for two more runs in the bottom of the tenth, paving the way for Romero’s heroics.
“You’re so anxious because everyone wants to win the game,” Romero said. “I was lucky enough to get a bat on it. The way the game was going, we’re hitting the ball hard, and people were catching it. It’s kind of fitting for a [blooper] to drop in to win the game.”
Despite a harmless first inning, Poche’ found himself in early trouble in the top of second, surrendering an unearned run.
Tiger junior third baseman Cole Freeman fielded a well-placed bunt by Bearcat sophomore first baseman Connor McVey and made a sharp throw to sophomore first baseman Greg Deichmann. But Deichmann dropped the sidearm throw, allowing Cincinnati right fielder Ryan Noda to put runners on the corners with a single on the next at bat.
Catcher Woody Wallace pushed the first run of the game across with a sacrifice bunt, but Poche’ escaped the inning with minimal damage.
The new LSU lineup put runners on base in the first three innings, including a runner in scoring position in the first and second, but came up with nothing until the bottom of the fourth. Sophomore left fielder Beau Jordan reached on a throwing error to leadoff the frame and advanced the second on the next at-bat. After sophomore catcher Michael Papierski’s second straight lineout, Duplantis stepped in for his second career plate appearance.
“I was just trying to get hands back early, foot down early,” Duplantis said. “Just relax, see the ball and hit the ball.”
The left-handed Lafayette, Louisiana native sent an 0-1 pitch up the middle for a two-out, RBI single to tie the score at one run apiece. He advanced to second base on the throw, as Beau collided with the catcher, but the Tigers’ threat was quelled as right-handed Bearcat starter Andrew Zellner induced an inning-ending fly out by Freeman.
After allowing the first run of the game, Poche’ commanded the next 4 ⅔ innings, retiring 15 straight batters with four strikeouts in that period. He ended the sixth inning with 74 pitches to his name, giving Mainieri reason to stick with the southpaw in the top of the seventh.
“He was dominating the game early,” Mainieri said. “They got that one unearned run when we left a runner on base when we dropped a throw at first. He was pitching tremendous baseball, really. We really wanted to get his pitch count up to about 85 anyway to start building more endurance.”
But Cincinnati three-hole hitter Devin Wenzel drilled a leadoff double down the right field line to open up the frame, and Poche’ walked McVey one batter later. The walk brought up Noda, who singled into right field, but Duplantis’ gunned out McVey at the plate to erased the initial threat.
Poche’ then intentionally walked Wallace to load the bases, but center fielder Treg Haberkorn came through for the Bearcats in a large way, doubling into the gap to score two runs. Tiger freshman shortstop Trey Dawson’s relay throw to the plate kept the score at 3-1, but Poche’s night ended with the two-run deficit.
Junior right-hander Hunter Newman replaced Poche’ and held the Bearcats in check, retiring the first seven batters he faced. With Newman in control, junior second baseman Kramer Robertson led off the bottom of the eight with double into the right-center field gap and later scored on junior Jake Fraley’s RBI groundout.
Down a run in the bottom of the ninth, Papierski drew a one-out walk, and Freeman worked a two-out walk, bringing up junior pinch hitter Jordan Romero with men on second and third. The former Delgado Community College standout laced a single into center field, scoring freshman Brennan Breaux, who pinch ran for Papierski.
Cincinnati coach Ty Neal brought in right-hander Jared Yoakam to face Robertson, and Yoakam escaped the jam on an unassisted groundout to the shortstop.
However, the Bearcats immediately responded against Newman, loading the bases on a single and two walks before LSU junior right-hander Parker Bugg came on in relief. With the Tiger infield playing in, Cincinnati shortstop Manny Rodriguez drilled an RBI single off Robertson’s glove, and all runners reached safely.
After striking out the next batter, Bugg walked in a run, giving the Bearcats a two-run cushion before the frame ended. But LSU, again, wouldn’t go away quietly, receiving help from the Cincinnati relievers.
Three different Tigers were hit by pitches in the bottom of the 10th, including a leadoff free base to sophomore designated hitter Bryce Jordan. Freshman Brody Wofford, who replaced Deichmann at first base, drove an RBI single into left field to score Jordan with two outs. Then, a walk and two hit batsman scored the game-tying run for the third time.
Freshman O’Neal Lochridge led off the bottom of the 12th with a single and eventually scored the winning run on Romero’s base knock.
“I grew up here,” Romero said. “I grew up coming to games since I was six with [former LSU shortstop] Ryan Theriot’s mom. I watched them do it and, now, I’m standing in front a bunch of cameras. It’s pretty surreal. It’s going to be hard to top, but I’m going to have to start over again, I guess.”