BATON ROUGE — LSU scored runs in every inning except the sixth in breezing to a 14-4 victory over Georgia in a Southeastern Conference game Saturday at Alex Box Stadium.
The victory gives the Fighting Tigers (23-13, 7-6) their second consecutive SEC series victory and their seventh in eight contests. LSU is over .500 in the conference for the first time since a 6-0 victory over Vanderbilt on March 15 in the conference opener.
LSU goes for its first three-game conference sweep since last year at Alabama when they host the SEC East leading Bulldogs (18-13, 8-6) in the finale Sunday at 1 p.m. The Tigers haven’t swept an SEC foe at home since taking three from Florida last March.
LSU collected 16 hits in the game, marking the 10th straight game in which LSU has reached double figures in hits. The last time LSU had such a streak came in 1999 when the Tigers had 11 straight games with at least 10 hits. The 16 hits ties a season high also accomplished on Feb. 23 at Houston.
Four of those hits came courtesy of freshman second baseman J.C. Holt, who had not recorded more than two hits in a game prior to today.
The Tigers, who fell behind 2-0 on Friday night before rallying for an 8-2 victory, wasted little time in jumping on top in this game, as Aaron Hill doubled home Holt in the first inning for a 1-0 lead.
Dustin Hahn’s one-out double in the second and a walk to David Raymer set up Chris Phillips for an RBI single to score Hahn for a 2-0 LSU lead. Holt followed Phillips with another base hit to plate Raymer for a 3-0 edge.
Hill then reached when Brandon Moorehead was charged with an error after the Georgia pitcher fell down trying to field a ground ball, and Wally Pontiff then lifted a foul fly ball to deep left field to score Phillips for a 4-0 advantage.
The runs would be more than enough for LSU pitcher Brian Wilson, making his first start of 2002 after coming out of the bullpen in his first 13 appearances. Wilson, a sophomore right-hander from New Hampshire, gave up no earned runs in seven innings in tying the longest outing of his career. Wilson walked just one and threw 82 pitches in improving to 5-2 on the year.
Wilson’s cause was also helped by the Tiger defense, which committed three errors but also turned a school record five double plays.
LSU increased its lead to 7-0 in the third with one blow, as Phillips lined a home run into the left field bleachers, his third in the Tigers’ last six games and his fourth of the year.
The runs kept coming in the fourth, as Sean Barker lined an RBI single to score Pontiff, who led off with a double, then Matt Heath went to the opposite field in right for a two-run home run, his first as a right-handed batter since last year’s SEC Tournament against Florida.
The Tigers got their two fifth inning runs without a hit, as Barker drew a bases loaded walk to force in Holt, while Heath lifted a sacrifice fly to score Hill and give LSU a 12-0 lead.
Georgia finally scored in the seventh as Clay Harris, replacing Pontiff at third, booted Ned Yost’s grounder that would have ended the inning, scoring Justin Holmes. The Bulldogs added another unearned run in the eighth when Chaz Lytle scored after Hill made an errant throw, and a two-run single by Marshall Szabo closed scoring.
Moorhead, who may have pulled a muscle when he slipped in the second inning, was one of five Georgia pitchers, lasting just two innings and giving up four runs (three earned) on five hits to fall to 3-1.