LSU baseball traveled to play Auburn this weekend, hot off a conference sweep, extending their win streak to nine. But three games later, the Tigers head back to Baton Rouge 0-3 on the weekend. This is the first time since 1988 that Auburn has swept LSU.
Game 1
In LSU’s first loss to Auburn, the story of the night was former LSU Tiger Sam Dutton.
Dutton held LSU to no runs on three hits in six innings pitched. Dutton struck out seven batters, only walked two and advanced to 5-2 with a win over his former team.
On the other side of the field, LSU starter Kade Anderson was charged with his first loss of the year, falling to 6-1 and pitching only 4.1 innings while allowing five earned runs and recording six strikeouts.
Following his complete game shutout last Friday against Oklahoma, this was not the performance that the Tigers were hoping for from Anderson, but the loss certainly shouldn’t rest on his shoulders.
LSU’s offense, known for having hot and cold moments, went ice cold for four innings on Friday and did not have a run on the board until the seventh inning. It scored three to make the score 7-3.
LSU only scored one more in the top of the ninth, and Auburn took Game 1, winning 8-4.
Game 2
The 4-2 loss came again from an off-balance offense and an off night for LSU starter Anthony Eyanson.
In his five innings pitched Eyanson allowed all four of Auburn’s runs for the day, before being relieved by Conner Ware, Connor Benge and DJ Primeaux who all threw scoreless innings.
LSU plated one in the second and one in the eighth, leaving seven on base and a few too many mistakes to dig themselves out of the hole.
“We were one more good at-bat per inning away from winning this game,” head coach Jay Johnson said.
LSU has scored four or fewer runs in all but one of its six losses this year.
The offensive struggles showed up in a big way in Game 2 against Auburn, as LSU only earned eight total hits against Auburn’s pitching.
Johnson’s Tigers entered the weekend with the second best batting average in the conference and one of the best overall offenses in the country.
After two games at Plainsman Park, it’s plain to see that this Tiger team has a lot left to prove if they want to make a run in Omaha – a short 60 days away.
Game 3
Sunday’s game brought a fast start for the Auburn Tigers, who scored two in the bottom of the first and one in the bottom of the second, all while keeping LSU off the board entirely until the top of the eighth with one out.
Despite some early Auburn struggles, including walks and hit batters allowing LSU free bases, the Bayou Bengals just could not convert and would be playing from a 3-0 deficit.
Chase Shores got the start for LSU, but after hitting the first batter in the third, Zac Cowan entered the game for Shores and was absolutely stellar for the Tigers, pitching 4.2 innings before putting runners on first and second and being pulled for Casan Evans.
LSU’s offensive struggles would continue through the entire game Sunday, with only two hits through seven innings, reaching base by walk or hit-by-pitch more than by way of their own bat.
In the top of the eighth, after a long at-bat, Dickinson launched one into center field that dropped out of the glove of the center fielder to put LSU on second and third.
Steven Milam came to the plate to prevent the shutout with an RBI. A Jake Brown base hit scored Dickinson, and LSU trailed 3-2 in the eighth.
After Evans got LSU through the bottom of the eighth with the help of a diving catch by Derek Curiel, the Tigers headed to the plate down one and with their last three outs.
The ninth inning rally could not overcome the Auburn momentum and a Derek Curiel fly out sealed the series sweep loss for LSU.
The Tigers host McNeese on Tuesday, before No. 12 Alabama comes to town for a three-day series starting on Thursday.
