LAFAYETTE, La. — LSU (14-8) looks to break a two-game losing streak when it makes the short drive across Interstate 10 to meet in-state rival Louisiana-Lafayette (13-8) Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. at Moore Field.
The game will be broadcast in the Baton Rouge area only (WJNH-107.3 FM) and on the Internet at http://www.lsusports.net.
The game will be televised live throughout Louisiana on the Jumbo Sports Network (WB-10 in Baton Rouge) with Lyn Rollins and Ronnie Rantz calling the action.
The Fighting Tigers enter the contest ranked 14th in both the Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball polls. The ESPN/Baseball Weekly poll was to be released early Monday evening.
This contest completes a home-and-home series between the clubs, as the Ragin Cajuns won a 2-1 decision on March 12 at Alex Box Stadium. In that game, Cajuns pitcher Justin Gabriel threw a complete game and did not allow a run until the ninth inning, finishing with eight strikeouts.
The Cajuns will start senior left-hander Andy Gros (2-2, 1.98), who, along with Gabriel, are the only two remaining players from UL-Lafayette’s 2000 College World Series team. Gros has faced the Tigers twice before with little success, as he has given up eight runs on 10 hits in 3.1 innings of work in 2000 and 2001, taking the loss in both games. He lasted only 1.1 innings in the Tigers’ 8-2 win at Baton Rouge in 2000, then went only 2.0 innings in a 12-7 LSU victory last year at Zephyr Field in Metairie.
The Cajuns dropped two of three this past weekend to nationally ranked Wichita State in Kansas, although UL-Lafayette salvaged a 9-7 win in the finale. The Cajuns open Sun Belt Conference play this weekend when they host New Orleans.
The Tigers are looking to rebound in what will be the first of a five-game road trip, and LSU’s first road contest since a 12-11 loss at Houston on February 24. The Tigers fell to 1-2 in Southeastern Conference play with an 8-7 loss on Sunday at home to Vanderbilt. The Tigers defeated the Commodores 6-0 in the series opener on Friday, only to suffer a 9-2 setback on Saturday.
LSU will start true freshman left-hander Jason Vargas (0-0, 0.00) to oppose the Cajuns. Vargas has started eight games this year at first base and designated hitter, but this will be his first career mound start for the Tigers. He has appeared in three games on the hill this year, giving up one hit and striking out three in three innings of work.
Vargas would become the eighth different pitcher to start for the Tigers this season and the third freshman to do so, joining Clay Harris and Jason Determann. Harris, like Vargas, has seen time in the field and at the plate this year, while Determann is out for the year after undergoing elbow surgery.
LSU third baseman Wally Pontiff will be looking to extend his hitting streak to 15 games, which would be a new career high for the Tigers’ captain. Pontiff, who leads the Tigers with a .416 batting average, also had a 14-game hitting streak to end the 2001 season.
This game will be LSU’s first trip to Lafayette since 1999, when the Tigers won a 12-8 decision in 10 innings, highlighted by Ryan Theriot’s two-run double in the 10th. Despite losing last week, the Tigers still hold a decisive 41-19 all-time series edge and have won five of the last seven meetings.
LSU’s road trip continues Friday at 6:30 p.m. when the Tigers visit Ole Miss to start a three-game SEC series. The Tigers will also play next Tuesday at Southeastern Louisiana before returning home on March 29 to start a series with SEC rival Mississippi State.