BATON ROUGE — Nineteen Tigers combined to pound out 20 hits against four pitchers as the Tigers blasted Nicholls State, 16-4, on Tuesday night at Alex Box Stadium.
LSU won its eighth straight game and improved to 10-2 on the season, while Nicholls State fell to 7-10 after losing his third straight and eighth in 10 games. The Tigers travel to Tempe, Ariz., to face third-ranked Arizona State in a three-game weekend series, the Tigers’ first games on the road in the 2001 season.
The trip to the west is the Tigers’ first (west of Texas) since facing UNLV in Las Vegas in 1991.
Second baseman Mike Fontenot led the LSU contingent with a 4-for-6 performance, while Todd Linden was 3-for-4 and Zeph Zinsman continued to impress with his sixth homer of the season.
Starter Tim Nugent (2-0, 2.01 ERA, pitches) rolled through the Nicholls State lineup, allowing only two hits and one walk in five innings of work, while striking out a career-high 10 batters to pick up the victory. Nicholls State’s only run off Nugent came on a two-base error in the top of the third by Linden, who dropped a long fly ball by Luke Muller and allowed Kevin Larpenter to score from first.
The Tigers took an early 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first off of Nicholls State starter, losing pitcher Seth Schornick (0-2, 8.61 ERA, 75 pitches). Ryan Theriot singled to right to open the inning and advanced to third on a failed pickoff attempt by Schornick. Aaron Hill and Fontenot hit back-to-back doubles to take a 2-0 lead, but Fontenot was thrown out at third trying to leg-out a triple. Linden followed with yet another double and then scored on a single by Wally Pontiff.
LSU continued to torment Schornick in the bottom of the second when catcher Matt Heath walked, advanced to third on a single by David Raymer and scored on a throwing error by NSU rightfielder Jason Wilkerson. After Theriot struck out, Hill walked and Raymer advanced to third on a passed ball charged to NSU catcher Monte Mitchell. A Fontenot single scored Raymer and put two on for Zinsman’s sixth home run of the season and an 8-0 lead.
Schornick was relieved by sophomore lefthander Beau Lambert with two outs and two on in the bottom of the third. Lambert got Fontenot to fly out to center to end the threat.
In the fourth, Linden and Pontiff hit a pair of one-out singles, but Linden was called out trying to steal second before first baseman Bryan Moore launched his second home run of the season onto Nicholson Drive behind the right field wall. LSU led 10-1.
Jason Scobie, a senior righthander, entered in relief of Nugent to start the top of the sixth for the Tigers.
Pinch hitter Chris Phillips hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the sixth to score Linden from third and give the Tigers an 11-1 lead.
In the top of the seventh, he allowed a pair of runs when Mitchell reached on an error by backup shortstop Victor Brumfield and scored after back-to-back singles by Wilkerson and Doug Gill. A third single by Bryan Daigle scored Wilkerson from second and cut the LSU lead to 11-3. Scobie got out of the inning with a 1-6-3 double play and his third strikeout.
Brumfield made up for his miscue with his first home run as a Tiger to give LSU a 12-3 lead in the bottom of the seventh and start a five-run frame. Hill walked and Fontenot singled to right to drive Lambert from the game and bring on Chris Brantley. Brantley walked pinch hitter Sean Barker to load the bases. A wild pitch send Hill home before pinch hitter Billy McBride walked. This walk would have loaded the bases, but Fontenot was thrown out at third, thinking the bases were still loaded.
Pinch hitter Trae Duncan singled to load the bases and pinch hitter Eric Wiethorn grounded into a fielder’s choice for the second out. Pinch hitter Ray Wright walked to drive in McBride before pinch hitter Jeremy Alford hit a two-RBI single to left in his fourth at bat as a Tiger. LSU led 16-3. NSU’s Michael D’Albor entered to get the inning’s final out.
Sophomore righthander Bo Pettit made his first appearance of the season for the Tigers to start the eighth inning. Pettit, who was recovering from the same shoulder ailment as former Tiger Trey Hodges had, gave up a solo home run to Muller before striking out the side. Pettit struck out two more in the ninth to finish the game after throwing 36 pitches.
The Tigers loaded the bases in the bottom of the eighth when Hill walked — for a school record tying fourth time — Fontenot doubled and Barker walked. D’Albor struckout McBride for the first out before Duncan flied out to center for the second.