LSU put on a show in Game 1 of the Frisco College Baseball Classic, beating Kansas State in extras after Casan Evans slammed the door in the bottom of the tenth, 8-5.
Junior transfer Danny Dickinson had a massive day for the Tigers, hitting a three-run homer in the seventh to put the Tigers up 5-2, then bunted in a run to set LSU up in the tenth inning.
“I play with a big chip on my shoulder,” Dickinson said. “I just always like to prove people wrong. I play with that mentality every single day.”
The Tigers showed up when it mattered most, especially after the Wildcats’ immediate response overshadowed several innings of success. The game was tied three times before LSU finally broke away in the tenth.
While the Tigers never trailed, the Wildcats were inches away from walking it off in the bottom of the ninth.
But LSU stayed alive thanks to the clutch performances of Josh Pearson, Daniel Dickinson, and Casan Evans.
But the Tigers had a hard-fought battle to get there.
After LSU went up 2-0 in the third inning, the game was scoreless until the Wildcats hit back-to-back home runs in the sixth against Kade Anderson.
In the seventh inning, Dickinson launched a three-run home run to put the Tigers up 5-2. Kansas State responded with three of their own in the bottom of the seventh after Maverick Rizy and DJ Primeaux combined to load the bases and walk the runs themselves.
With their backs against the wall in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Tigers pray for a miracle as Casan Evans enters the game in relief of Benge.
Evans strikes out the leadoff hitter for the inning, but a Dee Kennedy single gets the Wildcats the winning run on the bases.
With Kennedy on base and one out for LSU, Seth Dardar steps up to the plate for Kansas State.
The first pitch to Dardar is a ball, but on a 1-0 count, Dardar swings and connects with Evans’ pitch. The game appears all but over as Kennedy bolts from first base off contact, and the ball is still climbing.
Tigers left fielder Josh Pearson beams for the ball and throws it off a bounce to Milam as Kennedy rounds third base.
Milam turns and throws to the plate, where LSU catcher Luis Hernandez makes the play at the plate.
“We blew right through a stop sign,” Wildcats head coach Pete Hughes said, indicating that Kennedy was supposed to stay at third base.
But even then, the Tigers only had two outs. Needing a third, LSU turned back to Evans.
Dickinson made a diving save that kept the ball in the infield and flipped it to first base, where Jared Jones made the tag to send the Tigers to extra innings.
LSU, who hadn’t scored since the seventh inning, knew it wasn’t guaranteed another chance and showed up in the tenth inning.
Pearson rips off a center-field single that sends Milam barreling to home plate and gives the Tigers their first lead since their short-lived three-run lead in the seventh inning.
The Tigers extended their lead to 8-5 off a Dickinson RBU that would go on to win them the game after some stellar pitching by Evans.
“I wanna be able to win any type of game,” Johnson said. “The type of pitching that we have, the defense that we’re playing, we’re gonna be close.”
LSU will look to continue its momentum at the Frisco Baseball Classic when it plays Nebraska on Saturday.
