Jacoby Jones hit his first triple of the year and pinch hitter Ty Ross hit a double to center field to give the tigers the winning run in the bottom of the 8th inning.  Mark Laird followed up Ross’s double with an RBI to make it 2-0.  Tiger starter Aaron Nola (12-0) completed a 2 hit shutout by finishing off the sooners with 3 straight outs to close game 1 as the home team got the pivotal victory.

Aaron Nola and third overall draft pick Jonathan Gray (10-3) battled and were almost flawless for over 7 innings until the tigers exploded in the 8th.

Game 2 on Saturday will begin at 6:00 and be televised by ESPN2.  The tigers will be playing for a trip to Omaha and the sooners will be playing to force a winner takes all game on Sunday.  LSU junior right-hander Ryan Eades (8-1, 2.81) will face Oklahoma junior lefty Dillon Overton (9-2, 2.91) in game 2.

LSU (55-9) vs Oklahoma (43-19) this weekend was picked by ESPN as their prime time matchup.  All 3 games this weekend will be televised.  The tigers and sooners will take over the 7:00 eastern slot on ESPN.  Saturday’s game 2 and Sunday’s game 3 will appear on ESPN2 at 6:00.

Tiger Freshman shortstop Alex Bregman who was  named the National Freshman of the Year by Collegiate Baseball will lead the #1 ranked tigers into the Super Regional this weekend with a .385 batting average.  He is tied for the team lead with 17 doubles.  He leads the team with 7 triples, 15 stolen bases,  6 home runs, 52 RBI’s, and has scored 58 runs.  Bregman also has a fielding average of .938.

LSU will send sophomore right-hander Aaron Nola (11-0, 1.82) to the mound Friday vs Oklahoma’s junior right-hander Jonathan Gray (10-2, 1.59).  In game 2 Saturday sooner junior Dillon Overton (9-2, 2.91) to face tiger sophomore left-hander Cody Glenn (7-2, 2.41).  If neccessary the finale Sunday will see tiger junior right-hander Ryan Eades (8-1, 2.81) pitch against sooner senior left-hander Jake Fischer (3-2, 2.53).

#4 National seed LSU (55-9) finished the Baton Rouge regional 3-0 and with the 5-1 victory late Sunday night and earned themselves a chance to host the Super Regional next weekend.  ULL (43-20) fought back through the losers bracket including a nice 7-5 victory over Sam Houston State to reach the championship game with the tigers.

The tigers will be hosting what is expected to be one of the more anticipated weekend series next weekend when the sooners come to town with a group of all-american quality pitchers.  More will be known about this weekend’s contest as the week progresses.

It was ugly early as the top-seeded tigers committed 3 errors in the first inning which helped the bearkats score 5 unearned runs.  LSU (54-9) had 5 errors total which was the most this season and the most since 1996. The bottom line on a frustrating night is that the tigers found a way to claw back to defeat Sam Houston State 8-5.  Aaron Nola (11-0) did not have his best game but was able to dodge numerous threats by the third-seeded bearkats and Chris Cotton shut down Sam Houston late to preserve the tigers trip to Sunday’s championship game where they will have to beaten twice.

A record crowd of 10,752 watched the tigers get the win Saturday night.  Sam Houston State is forced to face ULL in an elimination game at 2:00.  The winner will face LSU at 7:00.

LSU (53-9) defeated the tigers of Jackson State 11-7 Friday and will move on to Saturday’s winners bracket matchup with Sam Houston who defeated ULL 4-2 in game 2.  Mason Katz was a huge part in moving LSU to the winners bracket contest going 2 for 2 with his 13th home-run of the year and finishing with 4 RBI’s.

More to Come