Onto the Postseason

After dropping game 3 against Georgia, LSU sets its sights on Hoover and beyond

LSU woke up Saturday afternoon with an awful lot to play for.

Thanks to a Vanderbilt rally over Arkansas, and a Florida loss to Kentucky, LSU had a chance to win the SEC regular season championship if they got some help and took care of their own business.

LSU got the help they needed from Vanderbilt, but the Tigers couldn’t complete the sweep of Georgia and lost game three of the series 9-5.

Javen Coleman got a 2-0 lead to work with thanks to a Tre’ Morgan two-run homer in the top of the first, but couldn’t hold on to it. Coleman took the loss after going three innings where he gave up four hits and four runs, three of which were earned.

Georgia tied the game in the second, took a 3-2 lead in the third, and tacked on three more runs in the fourth.

Trailing 6-2 in the sixth, LSU showed a little bit of life by scoring a pair of runs to make it a 6-4 game. Cade Beloso homered to right center field, and then Brayden Jobert was able to steal home on a double steal play.

But the good times wouldn’t last as Georgia responded to LSU’s two-run sixth with a run of their own in the home half of the sixth. LSU would score a run in the top of the seventh, and Georgia responded with a pair of runs in the bottom. After all that excitement LSU went from trailing by four (6-2) to…well still trailing by four (9-5) going into the 8th.

LSU had a chance to tie the game in the ninth inning as the Tigers were able to load the bases. Tre’ Morgan drew a leadoff walk, Beloso singled, and Gavin Dugas walked on four pitches.

With the bases loaded and one out, Jobert struck out looking and Jordan Thompson flew out to center.

At 42-13, and 19-10 in SEC play, LSU turns its attention to Hoover, site of the SEC tournament. The Tigers are the tournament’s No. 3 seed and will play at 9:30 A.M. (disgusting!) Wednesday against the winner of Georgia-South Carolina.

LSU probably has a national seed locked up, at least D1 Baseball’s Kendall Rogers seems to think so, so the Tigers aren’t in a “gotta have it” mindset heading into this week. Of course it’d be awesome to win the SEC Tournament, but it doesn’t look like the Tigers need to make it to the weekend to lock up a top-8 seed.

After this week? It’ll be NCAA Tournament time and the quest for national championship No. 7 begins.