METAIRIE, La. — Tim Nugent allowed no earned runs over six-plus innings, while Aaron Hill and Ryan Theriot each contributed three-run triples as LSU downed Louisiana-Lafayette, 12-7, in a non-conference game played Tuesday night at Zephyr Field.
The second-ranked Tigers (25-9-1) return to the Triple-A ballpark on Wednesday when they take on archrival Tulane at 7 p.m. The 16th-ranked Green Wave pummeled LSU 13-3 on March 7 at Alex Box Stadium. LSU and Ole Miss, who are tied for first place in the Southeastern Confernece standings at 10-5, open a three-game series Friday at Baton Rouge.
LSU got on the board in the bottom of the second as Bryan Moore lined a two-out single, followed by a double from Matt Heath and single to left by Johnnie Thibodeaux to get both Moore and Heath home.
The Tigers then exploded for five runs in the third. Singles by Wally Pontiff and Bryan Moore, along with a hit batsmen, loaded the bases for freshman left fielder Hill, who lined a shot just inside the third-base bag to clear the bases and make it 5-0.
Moore would follow Hill with an RBI single to make it 6-0, and Theriot later lined a two-out single to score Moore.
The Cajuns did not get a hit off of Nugent until the fifth inning, when they scored their first run of the game when Theriot’s errant throw allowed Matt Pavlich to score.
UL-Lafayette (21-17) drove Nugent from the game early in the seventh inning,
and got a couple of runs in the frame when Pavlich singled home Robert Shelton and Chase Bundy scored on Neil Simoneaux’s fielder’s choice to cut it to 7-3, but LSU reliever Brad David staunched the rally by striking out Rick Haydel and getting Bryan Sneed to ground out to end the inning.
Theriot then put the game away with two out in the bottom of the seventh with his triple deep to the left-center field gap, giving him a career-high four RBIs on the evening. Theriot, who has gotten at least two hits in his last eight games, has raised his batting average 75 points during the streak.
Nugent, pitching in his hometown of Metairie, improved to 3-1 as he won his first decision since February 27 against Nicholls State.
With the help of an error by Victor Brumfield, the Cajuns were able to score four unearned runs in the ninth off of LSU reliever Billy Brian on RBI singles by Shelton and Scott Atwood, along with a double by Jess Poche.