LSU Shuts Out DBU to Reach Baton Rouge Regional Championship

Cruising into the regional final

Sorry for the delayed recap, everyone. Yesterday was my birthday and while we had the game on my parents’ back patio, I wanted to enjoy the evening with friends and family while the game played inconsequentially in the background.

And what a game it was! LSU dominated Dallas Baptist in the winner’s bracket game 12-0 Saturday night at Alex Box Stadium to improve to 2-0 in regional play and advance to the championship game.

Kade Anderson got the start for LSU and, like Anthony Eyanson the night before, was dominant. Anderson improved to 9-1 on the year after throwing seven scoreless innings. He had 11 strikeouts against two walks. His 156 Ks now leads the nation and is also tied for 6th most in an LSU single-season with Russ Springer (1988) and Eddie yarnall (1996).

“It was a good night for our team,” Jay Johnson said. “I thought we played outstanding baseball tonight. Obviously it starts and ends on the mound. And Kade, as Kade has been all year, was the best pitcher on the planet tonight. And executed at a high level. Defense continued to support him, another game of zero in the error column.”

LSU wasted no time pouring it on DBU, as Ethan Frey struck for a two-run double in the bottom of the first inning. Then in the second inning, after 59 games of waiting, Chris Stanfield finally launched one to right field to give LSU a 3-0 lead.

The dam broke in the third inning when LSU put up three more runs to double its lead to 6-0. Luis Hernandez laid down a sacrifice bunt that scored Frey, and was able to reach base because of a throwing error by DBU starter and former LSU pitcher Micah Bucknam. LSU followed that up with consecutive run-scoring singles from Stanfield and Derek Curiel. Stanfield had a big night going 3-4 at the plate with three RBI and scored a run.

“This whole week I’ve been working hard on getting back to using the whole field and really just staying with that mindset,” Stanfield said. “So today they were working me away. And Coach Johnson told me before the AB, look away.

“I was really just trusting it, letting the ball get deep. And I was able to put a good swing on it. Thankful it was able to fly out of here.”

Stanfield would have a productive RBI groundout in the fifth inning to up LSU’s lead to 7-0, and then the Tigers pushed two more runs across in the sixth to go up 9-0.

Stanfield might have had the biggest night at the plate, but Ethan Frey had the play of the game in the eighth. Frey led off the inning with a triple off the wall in left center field, and DBU centerfielder Nathan Humphrey bobbled the ball, which allowed Frey to come all the way around and score to put LSU up 10-0. It’s officially ruled a triple and an error, but c’mon that’s an inside the park home run am I right, or am I right?

In the top of the eighth, DJ Primeaux came on for Anderson and was the lone sour spot on an otherwise flawless evening. Primeaux walked the first two batters he faced, but was able to get the third batter he faced to hit into a fielder’s choice.

Jacob Mayers came on for Primeaux to try and keep the shutout in tact. He K-ed the first batter he faced, then walked the bases loaded, but was able to get Chayton Krauss to fly out to center and end the inning.

In the bottom half of the inning Jay Johnson emptied the bench, which is a really welcome sight considering this was to get into a regional championship game. Cade Arrambide pinch-hit for Hernandez, Ashton Larson hit for Michael Braswell, Dalton Beck subbed for Stanfield, and Josh Pearson came on for Curiel. Oh and if all that wasn’t enough, John Pearson pinch-ran for Daniel Dickinson after Dickinson drew a walk.

William Schmidt came on in the ninth and it was an eventful inning it was. The good news is Schmidt ended the game with three strikeouts. The bad news is one of those strikeout victims reached base by way of a wild pitch…and then he made it to second because Schmidt threw another wild pitch…and if all that wasn’t enough Schmidt hit a guy (on a 3-0 count no less) to put a second runner on. But give the kid credit, after a player’s only mound visit he settled and struck out the last batter of the game to send LSU to the regional final.

I said it after LSU shutout Little Rock and I’ll say it again after this DBU win: this regional is playing out as perfectly as Jay Johnson could have hoped for. Two games, two shutouts, and LSU still hasn’t had to use Zac Cowan, Casan Evans, Chase Shores, or Jaden Noot.

And if I may, I’m willing to take my sentiment a step further: through the first two days of this NCAA Tournament, nobody’s played better than LSU and if this is the Tiger team we get the rest of the way, I don’t think anyone can touch them. Not while Anderson and Eyanson are doing their 2001 Randy Johnson-Curt Schilling impression, and definitely not while the bats are doing what they’ve done. Now we’ve seen the LSU offense look completely anemic once they get away from Baton Rouge, so the bats will have to prove it if/when they get to Omaha, but as it stands right now LSU’s playing its best ball at the perfect time.

DBU will play Little Rock in an elimination game this afternoon (first pitch 2:00 P.M) and whoever wins that game will have to beat LSU twice to win the regional. First pitch for LSU vs. either DBU/Little Rock is scheduled for 8:00.