If LSU coach Smoke Laval had any second thoughts about starting ace pitcher Nate Bumstead against Tulane on Saturday, perhaps they were in the bottom of the sixth inning.
With the Tigers clinging to a 3-2 lead, Bumstead gave up a single then a double to put runners at second and third with no outs. But instead of relinquishing the lead, the junior stayed composed, got Tulane designated hitter Wes Swackhammer to ground a ball back to him, and he threw out Tony Giarratano at the plate for the first out.
“I felt like my stuff was pretty good today, and when I had runners on second and third I was just trying to make the best pitch possible and not try to give up too much,” Bumstead said. “I was kind of expecting something big to happen but I got fortunate and got a ground ball hit back to me and got the guy at the plate.”
Bumstead struck out the next batter and then got Tommy Manzella to fly out to right field in end the inning, with the lead still intact. He pitched 7 2/3 innings, and left after giving up two runs in the eighth.
“Nate [Bumstead] did what he is supposed to do again like Jake [Tompkins] did,” Laval said. “He just kept us close.”
The Tigers would not keep things close after that inning, erupting for five runs in the top of the seventh to pull away from the Green Wave.
“He’s [Bumstead] their ace for a reason,” said Tulane coach Rick Jones. “He mixed his pitches well. He did a good job making pitches in crunch situations.”
Ryan Patterson led LSU at the plate, going 4-for-6 with four singles and an RBI. Patterson’s single in the seventh started the LSU 5-run rally and he scored on Clay Harris’ 13th home run of the season. Patterson said he just tried to put the ball in play and set up the hitters behind them to take the pressure off Bumstead.
“Well, I just wanted to go up their and try to get on base for the big hitters down the lineup” he said. “I just really wanted to try and help us score some runs and help Nate (Bumstead) out as much as possible. I wasn’t too worried about anything, just trying to score some runs.”
LSU advances to face UNC Wilmington in the championship game Sunday at 1 p.m. A win would earn LSU a berth in a Super Regional against the winner of the Hattiesburg Regional. The Seahawks must defeat the Tigers twice to advance.