Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (14-6) at No. 14 LSU Fighting Tigers (15-5)
DATE/TIME
Wednesday, March 23 @ 6:30 p.m. CT
STADIUM
Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field (10,326)
RANKINGS
• LSU – No. 14 Collegiate Baseball; No. 18 USA Today, No. 21 Perfect Game, No. 21 D1 Baseball
• La. Tech – unranked
RADIO
• LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates
• Live audio at www.LSUsports.net/live; Live stats at www.LSUstats.com
ONLINE
• The game may be viewed live on SEC Network +
PITCHING MATCHUP
LSU – So. RH Will Hellmers (2-0, 2.70 ERA, 10.0 IP, 3 BB, 11 SO)
La. Tech – So. RH Greg Martinez (2-0, 4.20 ERA, 15.0 IP, 4 BB, 14 SO)
LSU SERIES RECORD VS. LOUISIANA TECH
• LSU leads the all-time series versus Louisiana Tech, 45-20, in a series that began in 1902 … Wednesday’s game marks the teams’ second matchup this season, as Louisiana Tech posted an 11-6 win over the Tigers on February 23 in Ruston … the Tigers defeated the Bulldogs twice last season in Baton Rouge by scores of 16-7 (Feb. 22) and 16-8 (May 11) … LSU has won 15 of its last 17 meetings with Louisiana Tech; the Bulldogs’ only wins over LSU in the last 17 meetings were the Feb. 23 game this season and a 12-1 victory in 2019 in Baton Rouge … prior to 2019, Louisiana Tech’s last win over the Tigers came on April 16, 1987, a 5-4 victory in Ruston.
QUOTING COACH JAY JOHNSON
“I think the internal character of our team and the process in building a sound culture is strong based upon the competitive effort of our players throughout this season. We have to continue to move forward and get to the next level. That means improving, and learning more about our team as the season progresses. I was very proud of our pitching staff last weekend (vs. Texas A&M); they gave us a chance to win in every game. We want to play better defense, and we’re making a collective effort to improve in that area. Offensively, we were much better hitting with two strikes in Sunday’s game, and that’s something we will continue to emphasize.”
ABOUT THE TIGERS
• LSU split its four games last week, defeating Tulane on Tuesday before winning one of three games versus Texas A&M on the opening weekend of Southeastern Conference play … the Tigers play host Louisiana Tech on Wednesday before continuing their SEC schedule on the road this weekend at Florida.
• LSU catcher Tyler McManus led the Tigers in hitting last week, batting .444 (4-for-9) with two homers, four RBI and three runs … he homered in back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday versus Texas A&M, marking his first career LSU dingers
• Second baseman Cade Doughty batted .385 (5-for-13) last week with one double, three RBI and two runs … Doughty was 5-for-10 in the Texas A&M series with one double, three RBI and one run scored … outfielder Giovanni DiGiacomo hit .333 (4-for-12) in four games last week with one homer, three RBI and five runs
• Outfielder Dylan Crews was 5-for-14 in the Texas A&M series with one homer, three RBI and four runs scored … Crews provided the game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning Sunday that lifted the Tigers to a 7-6 win over the Aggies.
• Sophomore left-hander Riley Cooper earned his first career LSU win on Sunday, as he defeated Texas A&M with 1.2 innings of scoreless relief … he limited the Aggies to one hit with no walks and one strikeout in the Tigers’ 7-6 victory … Cooper appeared in all three games of the Texas A&M series, working 3.1 innings and giving up one earned run on two hits with two walks and two strikeouts.
• Freshman right-hander Grant Taylor enjoyed an impressive SEC debut with four innings of relief work versus Texas A&M on Friday … Taylor allowed no runs on two hits with one walk and one strikeout … another freshman right-hander Samuel Dutton, also pitched effectively against Texas A&M with two appearances in the series .. Dutton worked a total of three innings, allowing just one run on four hits with two walks and four strikeouts.
• Sophomore right-hander Eric Reyzelman struck out six of the eight batters he faced to earn his first career LSU win in Tuesday’s victory over Tulane … Reyzelman entered the game in the fourth inning and pitched brilliantly, allowing no hits and one walk with six strikeouts in 2.1 shutout innings.
ABOUT THE BULLDOGS
• Louisiana Tech is 14-6 this season, and the Bulldogs are 2-1 in Conference USA after opening league play last weekend by winning two of three games at UT San Antonio.
• Louisiana Tech is hitting .286 as a team with 41 doubles, four triples and 29 home runs … Louisiana Tech is led at the plate by infielder Taylor Young, who is hitting .380 with eight doubles, three triples, four homers, 19 RBI and 27 runs … Cole McConnell is batting .360 with four doubles, four homers, 24 RBI and 19 runs.
• The Bulldogs’ pitching staff has a 4.19 cumulative ERA with 197 strikeouts in 171.2 innings and a .229 opponent batting average … the staff has allowed 10 homers this season; Wednesday’s starting pitcher, Greg Martinez, has not given up a dinger this year.
(Courtesy: LSU Athletics)