BATON ROUGE — Seventh-ranked LSU begins a five-game road stretch Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. as the Tigers face cross-town rival Southern University at Lee-Hines Field.
The game can be heard on the LSU Sports Radio Network, including flagship WDGL-FM 98.1 in Baton Rouge. The radio broadcast may be also be accessed at www.LSUsports.net.
The game will be televised statewide by Cox Sports Television (Cable Ch. 37 in Baton Rouge).
LSU coach Smoke Laval will send junior left-hander Lane Mestepey (4-1, 2.76 ERA)to the mound Tuesday. Mestepey will be making his first start since March 20, when he pitched three innings in a loss at South Carolina. He picked up a relief win last Wednesday against Southeastern Louisiana, allowing no runs on two hits in four innings with one walk and four strikeouts.
Southern coach Roger Cador plans to counter with sophomore right-hander Emary Frederick (1-0, 5.82 ERA).
“Roger always has a great club,” Laval said, “so we know we’ll have to be at our best to win on their field. Southern has a first-class program; they have been in (NCAA) regionals the last three years and they have outstanding talent.”
LSU improved to 8-7 in the SEC last weekend as the Tigers recorded a series victory (2-1) over Georgia. LSU batted .343 (37-for-108) in the series with three doubles, two triples and three homers. The Tigers trail Ole Miss (11-4) by three games in the SEC Western Division entering this weekend’s conference series at Tennessee.
Left fielder Ryan Patterson was superb in leading LSU to four wins in five games last week. He hit .500 (11-for-22) with two doubles, one triple, three homers, 11 RBI and five runs. Patterson posted a 1.091 slugging percentage, a .500 on-base percentage, and he recorded two stolen bases.
In LSU’s series victory over UGA, Patterson hit .462 (6-for-13) with one double, one triple, two homers, six RBI and three runs. Patterson, who is currently riding a 10-game hitting streak, is batting .339 (59-for-174) this season with seven homers and a team-high 40 RBI.
Center fielder J.C. Holt batted .571 (8-for-14) in the UGA series with five runs and three RBI. Right fielder Jon Zeringue hit .545 (6-for-11) against the Bulldogs with one triple, one RBI and two runs.
The Tigers hit .343 (61-for-178) for the entire five-game week with five doubles, three triples and five homers. Holt hit .545 (12-for-22) in the five games, while Zeringue batted .529 (9-for-17). Holt saw his cumulative average soar to .411 (65-for-168) with 12 doubles, two triples, four homers, 46 runs, nine steals and a .475 on-base percentage. Zeringue is now hitting .399 (57-for-143) on the year with 14 doubles, two triples, 33 RBI and a team-high 10 homers.
Freshman left-hander Clay Dirks became the first SEC pitcher to record seven wins this season as he defeated Georgia on Saturday. Dirks worked eight innings against the Bulldogs, allowing just one run on seven hits with two walks and a career-high seven strikeouts. He earned his seventh win in seven decisions and improved to 3-0 in SEC games.
On the year, Dirks has a 2.43 ERA in 59.1 innings with 10 walks, 54 strikeouts and a .199 opponents’ batting average.
Sophomore left-hander Jason Determann made just his first career start Friday in an SEC regular-season game, and he responded with an excellent outing against Georgia. Determann, who took the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) the next morning, worked 8.1 innings, limiting Georgia to five runs on eight hits with one walk and five strikeouts. The Tigers won the game in 10 innings, 6-5. Determann, a biological sciences major, expects to receive his MCAT results in 6-8 weeks.
The Tigers enter the Southern game Tuesday with an 10-1 mark this season against Louisiana schools. LSU has won 13 of its last 14 games versus its in-state foes over the last two seasons.
LSU has a 38-9 (.809) record against Louisiana schools during Laval’s three-year tenure as head coach.
LSU leads the all-time series with Southern, 38-1, with the Jaguars’ only victory coming in 2001 at Alex Box Stadium. The teams met last season at Lee-Hines Field, but the game was canceled due to heavy rain in the top of the fifth inning with LSU holding a 3-2 lead.
Tuesday’s game will mark LSU’s third official visit to Lee-Hines Field. The Tigers posted wins in 1993 (8-7) and 1995 (14-9) at the Jaguars’ on-campus facility.
GAME FACTS — #7 LSU (28-10) at Southern (24-7)
DATE/TIME: Tuesday, April 20 – 6:30 p.m.
STADIUM: Lee-Hines Field – Baton Rouge, La. (1,000)
RANKINGS: LSU (#7 Baseball America, #8 Collegiate Baseball); Southern (unranked)
RADIO: LSU Sports Network, including flagship WDGL-FM 98.1 in Baton Rouge
INTERNET: www.LSUsports.net
TV: Cox Sports Television (Cable Ch. 37 in Baton Rouge)
PITCHING MATCHUP
LSU – Jr. LHP Lane Mestepey (4-1, 2.76 ERA, 42.1 IP, 16 BB, 24 SO)
SU – So. RHP Emary Frederick (1-0, 5.82 ERA, 17.0 IP, 9 BB, 17 SO)