BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — LSU got yet another complete game from Lane Mestepey, as the first team All-SEC selection gave up just one run on five hits as the Bayou Bengals edged Auburn, 2-1, in a first-round game of the SEC Tournament Wednesday evening at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium.
LSU needed every bit of Mestepey’s pitching, because Auburn hurler Colby Paxton limited LSU to a season-low three hits and struck out nine.
LSU (39-17) advances to play at 8 p.m. Thursday in a winner’s bracket game against the winner of Wednesday’s late game between Arkansas and South Carolina. Auburn (34-23) faces the loser of the Arkansas-South Carolina game at 1 p.m. Thursday.
Sophomore left-hander Mestepey gave up just six hits and one walk in firing his fourth complete game in his last five outings and his seventh of the season in improving to 11-3 and matching his season record of 2001.
Paxton set down three of the first four LSU hitters on strikes, as the sophomore right-hander fanned J.C. Holt, Aaron Hill and Sean Barker in the first inning after falling behind all three hitters 3-1.
LSU’s only runs of the game came in the fourth when Barker launched a 415-foot home run over the second fence in left-center to score Pontiff ahead of him.
The only other time LSU would get two runners on at once came in the sixth, and that chance ended when Matt Heath flied out to center, and Pontiff was then called out on appeal for tagging up too early.
Mestepey gave up a first inning single to Sean Gamble, but he was erased on a double play, and then gave up just two more singles through the fifth inning before running into his first jam in the sixth.
Auburn got two batters on to start the sixth, as J.C. Holt bobbled Chuck Jeroloman’s ground ball, then Blake Gill couldn’t handle Jonathan Schuerholz’ grounder. Gamble sacrificed the runners to third before Javon Moran hit a ground ball to Hill at short that seemed certain to score Auburn’s first run, but Jeroloman got a slow break and Hill’s throw to Chris Phillips was in time for the second out. The threat then ended when Wally Pontiff stabbed Bobby Huddleston’s grounder and threw to first to retire the side.
Trent Pratt’s double in the seventh led to Auburn’s lone run on a single by Scott Schade. Mestepey stopped the inning by getting Matt Grooms to ground into a double play.
Shreveport native Tug Hulett’s two out double brought Schade to the plate as the winning run in the ninth, but Mestepey got Schade to ground to Pontiff to end the game.