COLUMBIA, S.C. — For the second consecutive day, an LSU rally fell short, as South Carolina held off the Fighting Tigers for a 4-3 victory in the rubber match of a three-game Southeastern Conference series Sunday at Sarge Frye Field.
The Gamecocks (31-9, 11-6), who maintained first place in the SEC East, won their first series from the Fighting Tigers (26-15, 9-8) in seven tries.
The Tigers stay on the road for a 6:30 p.m. game Tuesday at Louisiana-Monroe, a team LSU swept in a three-game series in March at Alex Box Stadium. The game will mark the return of LSU coach Smoke Laval to the school where he coached from 1994-2000, helping the Indians to three NCAA regional berths.
USC busted open a 1-0 game in the seventh on a three-run double by Steve Thomas, a shot that drove LSU starting pitcher Bo Pettit from the game.
Reliever Jake Tompkins came in and promptly walked Yaron Peters and Trey Dyson to reload the basis, but Tompkins got out of it when Thomas was forced at home on Garris Gonce’s ground ball, then Brian Buscher lined out to right to end the inning.
South Carolina hurler Gary Bell allowed the Tigers just four hits through seven innings, and at one point retired 15 consecutive batters in the first through fifth innings.
Finally, LSU began to show offensive life in the eighth, as Chris Phillips drew a leadoff walk, and after a ground out by Jon Zeringue and a wild pitch moved Phillips to second, Rocky Scelfo’s double scored Phillips with the first LSU run.
Gamecock relief ace Blake Taylor came in for Bell to face Aaron Hill, but Hill singled, and another base hit by Wally Pontiff scored Scelfo to cut the USC lead to 4-2. But Taylor recovered to get Sean Barker to foul out before Pontiff was caught stealing.
J.C. Holt led off the ninth with a pinch hit home run to bring LSU to within one and allowed a two-out single to Phillips to bring the lead run to the plate, but Taylor
South Carolina scored the game’s first run in the fourth. Pettit hit Gonce to start the inning, and after Buscher and Justin Harris were retired on fly balls, Landon Powell’s single moved Gonce to second before a base hit to right by Kevin Melillo scored Gonce. Melillo was caught in a rundown, preventing the Gamecocks from doing further damage.
Two innings earlier, Pettit had to work himself out of a bases loaded jam, as hits by Gonce and Harris and a walk to Melillo brought up All-America candidate Drew Meyer, but Meyer flew to left to end the inning.
LSU got its first two runners on as Rocky Scelfo and Aaron Hill led off with back-to-back hits, but Bell began to dominate from there, getting two fly balls and a strikeout to leave the runners stranded.
Bell would not allow another LSU baserunner until Zeringue led off the sixth with a single. The Tigers would eventually load the bases for Barker, but Barker lined into a double play to Peters at first to end the inning.