LSU baseball defeated the University of New Orleans in a hard-fought battle Monday night, winning 6-3 thanks to a handful of home runs from the veterans.
Thatcher Hurd started on the mound for the purple and gold, his first midweek start of the season. Unfortunately for Hurd, his outing didn’t go as planned.
The Privateers jumped out to an early start against the Tigers, scoring two runs in the first inning off a two-run home run from right fielder Mitchell Sanford.
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UNO’s two-run homer was all the Privateers were able to grab off Hurd, but he retired for the night after two innings, recording one strikeout and two walks.
Sam Dutton replaced Hurd on the mound in the third inning, and his night started off rough with UNO hitting a solo home run from his first batter.
Fortunately for LSU, UNO’s third inning homer was its final run of the game. Javen Coleman, Christian Little, Justin Loer, Will Hellmers and Fidel Ulloa all pitched following Dutton, shutting out UNO for the night.
The infield was a highlight for the Tigers on defense, with Steven Milam, Michael Braswell III and Jared Jones linking up for multiple double plays to keep the Privateers at bay.
“You watch the work that guys like Braswell and Milam have been putting in this last couple of weeks, and it’s great to see it pay off,” Little said. “It’s great to know when you handle your job, you have somebody behind you handling theirs.”
On offense, LSU’s success was led by its veterans’ plate performances.
Tommy White opened the scoring for the Tigers, hitting an RBI single to bring home Paxton Kling in the first inning.
Milam grabbed an RBI triple later in the game, and White followed with another RBI to put the Tigers in front for the first time in the fifth inning.
Half of LSU’s runs came from solo home runs, with Brady Neal, Hayden Travinski and Jones all sending shots over the fence to cap off the team’s win at home.
Jones’ home run marked his 15th of the season, leading the Tigers in home runs. Travinski isn’t far behind though, with his homer tonight bringing him to double digits at 10.
Another midweek win for the Tigers gives them some momentum heading into the weekend, and the team feels their season is far from over.
“I’m catching and I look into the bullpen, and we got Fidel [Ulloa] and Christian [Little] and I’m like, we can beat anybody. Those are legit pitchers. The talent, and what I’ve seen in the fall, I know everyone on this team is capable of incredible things,” Neal said about the team’s confidence at this point in the season.
LSU takes the field again on Friday, traveling to Missouri for its sixth SEC series of the season. The Tigers are 3-12 in conference play, 3-8 in away games, and they have yet to win a Southeastern Conference series.
Missouri, however, is unranked and has the chance to be LSU’s first SEC series win on the season.
