BATON ROUGE — LSU quickly removed any doubt as to whether or not it would win its eighth consecutive Southeastern Conference series, scoring eight runs in the first two innings and never looking back as the Fighting Tigers ran away from South Carolina, 12-4, on Sunday at Alex Box Stadium.
LSU (21-10-1, 9-2-1) has not lost an SEC series since dropping two of three to the Gamecocks last year in Columbia. The Tigers are also 13-1-1 in their last 15 conference home games.
The Tigers (No. 10 Collegiate Baseball, No. 12 Baseball America, No. 16 ESPN/USA Today) visit Northwestern State in Natchitoches on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. before returning home next weekend for a three-game series with SEC West rival Ole Miss.
Lost in the offensive explosion by the Tigers was their second complete game of the series, this one turned in by junior right-hander Nate Bumstead. Bumstead won his third consecutive SEC start on Sunday, allowing just one run over the first eight innings and finishing with six strikeouts. Bumstead threw 109 pitches in the game, which was LSUs shortest of the season at 2 hours, 2 minutes.
For the second consecutive game, South Carolina (20-12, 5-7) jumped out to a lead in the top of the first inning on Brian Buschers RBI single that scored Kevin Melillo, who hit the first pitch of the game off the left-center field fence for a double.
The Tigers wasted no time in countering. Bruce Sprowl and Ryan Patterson collected back-to-back singles before Gamecock starter Matt Campbell walked Aaron Hill to load the bases.
Ivan Naccarata then delievered a two-run single up the middle to give the Tigers a 2-1 lead, and LSU would add one more run when Hill came home on Clay Harris double play ground ball.
Campbell (1-3) was removed after walking Blake Gill one batter later, leaving after giving up three runs on three hits in 2/3 of an inning.
South Carolina reliever Zach Reeves ended the first by retiring Quinn Stewart on a ground ball and then got the first out of the second, but as was the case with Campbell before him, he would be hit hard by LSUs potent lineup.
A one-out single by Matt Liuzza, which extended his hitting streak to 12 games, was followed by two more base hits by Sprowl and Patterson to load the bases and bring up Hill, who was 5-for-5 and hit for the cycle on Saturday. Hill didnt disappoint the LSU faithful in this situation, either, lining a triple just inside the first base bag into the right field corner to score all three runners and extend LSUs lead to 6-1.
Following Hills triple, Reeves faced three more batters and failed to retire any of the three, walking Naccarata before giving up a run-scoring single to Harris and an RBI double to Gill to make it 8-1. Reeves, like Campbell prior to him, lasted just 2/3 of an inning, giving up five runs on six hits.
The Tigers padded their lead further in the fourth with a three-run home run by Quinn Stewart, in the starting lineup for the first time following a four-game absence. Liuzza added his third home run of the season in the seventh for the Tigers final run.
The Gamecocks scored three runs in the ninth, including two on a Steven Tolleson two-out double.
South Carolina (20-12, 5-7) 100 000 003– 4 10 2
LSU (21-10-1, 9-2-1) 350 300 10x– 12 14 0
Matt Campbell, Zach Reeves (1), Cliff Donald (2), Forrest Beverly (7), Rico Bravo (8) and Landon Powell, Jared Greenwood (8); Nate Bumstead and Matt Liuzza, Shawn French (9).
WP–Bumstead, 4-1.
LP–Campbell, 1-3.
2B–USC: Kevin Melillo (8), Steven Tolleson (6); LSU: Clay Harris (9), Blake Gill (6).
3B–LSU: Aaron Hill (4).
HR–LSU: Quinn Stewart (5), Matt Liuzza (3).
T–2:02.
A–7,471 (paid); 3,327 (actual).