BATON ROUGE — LSU (21-7, 6-3 SEC) travels to Athens, Ga., this weekend to face the Georgia Bulldogs (24-3, 7-2 SEC) in a Southeastern Conference showdown matching the nation’s top two teams.
Georgia enters the series ranked No. 1 by Collegiate Baseball and USA Today/ESPN, while LSU is ranked No. 2 by Baseball America.
Game 1 of the series begins at 6 p.m. CT Friday, Game 2 starts at Noon CT Saturday, and first pitch for Game 3 is 11 a.m. CT Sunday.
The games will be carried by the affiliates of the LSU Sports Radio Network. The Baton Rouge affiliate is WDGL 98.1 FM.
Saturday’s game will be televised by Comcast Sports Southeast, and it will be replayed at 6 p.m. on Cox Sports Television (Cable Ch. 37 in Baton Rouge).
All three games may be seen live in the Geaux Zone at www.LSUsports.net.
LSU enters the series in second place in the SEC Western Division, two games behind Arkansas (8-1). Georgia has a one-game lead over Florida (6-3) in the SEC Eastern Division.
LSU has won seven straight SEC series, dating back to last season. Georgia was the last team to defeat LSU in a conference series, April 18-20, 2008 in Baton Rouge.
“This will be a great matchup of the two teams that represented the SEC last year in the College World Series,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “Georgia is a very well-balanced team that is strong in every aspect of the game. We know we have a tremendous challenge this weekend, but I feel our team is ready to play its best baseball of the season in what will be a very exciting series.”
Mainieri said sophomore right-hander Anthony Ranaudo (2-2, 3.08 ERA) will start Friday’s game on the mound for LSU. The remainder of the Tigers’ rotation is tentative, but probable starters on Saturday and Sunday are senior right-hander Louis Coleman (6-1, 1.23 ERA) and sophomore right-hander Austin Ross (4-2, 2.48 ERA).
Ranaudo leads the SEC with 60 strikeouts this season, and he is No. 2 in the league in opponent batting average (.191).
Coleman is No. 1 in the league in wins (6) and opponent batting average (.181), and he is No. 3 in strikeouts with 50.
Ross is No. 5 in the league in opponent batting average (.200), and he was named SEC Pitcher of the Week Monday after defeating Ole Miss last weekend.
Georgia coach Dave Perno will counter this weekend with senior right-hander Trevor Holder (5-1, 3.06 ERA), junior left-hander Alex McRee (2-0, 1.80 ERA) and sophomore right-hander Justin Grimm (2-1, 4.11 ERA).
LSU is fifth in the SEC with a .306 team batting average, and the Tigers have collected 44 homers (No. 5 in the league) and 61 stolen bases (No. 1). The Tigers have a 3.62 team ERA, which ranks No. 2 in the conference.
LSU junior first baseman/catcher Sean Ochinko is fifth in the SEC with a .394 batting average, and he is No. 5 in the league in RBI with 32.
Junior outfielder Jared Mitchell leads the SEC in stolen bases with 23, and he is hitting .370 with five doubles, two triples, five homers and 20 RBI.
Sophomore shortstop DJ LeMahieu is batting .355 on the year with two doubles, three triples, three homers and 15 RBI.
The Bulldogs have the best team ERA in the league (3.47), and Georgia has allowed the fewest home runs among conference teams (14).
The potent Georgia offense boasts a .323 batting average that trails only Alabama (.341) among SEC clubs. The Bulldogs are led by junior first baseman Rich Poythress, who is hitting an SEC-best .451 with 13 homers and a league-high 49 RBI.
Georgia junior catcher Joey Lewis is hitting .346 with 12 doubles, one triple, eight homers and 28 RBI, while freshman infielder Colby May is batting .343 with six doubles, one triple, nine homers and 30 RBI.
LSU leads the overall series with Georgia, 51-17-2, though the Bulldogs won last year’s series in the original Alex Box Stadium. Georgia captured the first two games by scores of 6-3 and 9-8, and the third game ended in a 10-10 tie (12 innings).
LSU had won four straight series over Georgia prior to last season’s meeting in Baton Rouge.
#2 LSU Fighting Tigers (21-7, 6-3) at #1 Georgia Bulldogs (24-3, 7-2)
DATES/TIMES
Friday, April 3 ? 6 p.m. CT; Saturday, April 4 ? Noon CT; Sunday, April 5 ? 11 a.m. CT
STADIUM
Foley Field in Athens, Ga.
RANKINGS
LSU – No. 2 by Baseball America, No. 5 by Collegiate Baseball; No. 5 by USA Today/ESPN
Georgia ? No. 1 by Collegiate Baseball, No. 1 by USA Today/ESPN; No. 6 by Baseball America
RADIO
LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates
The Baton Rouge affiliate is WDGL 98.1 FM
INTERNET
www.LSUsports.net ? live video, audio and stats
TV
Saturday’s game will be televised live by Comcast Sports Southeast; the game will be replayed at 6 p.m. CT on Cox Sports Television (Cable Ch. 37 in Baton Rouge)
SERIES RECORD
LSU leads, 51-17-2
PITCHING MATCHUPS
Game 1
LSU ? So. RHP Anthony Ranaudo (2-2, 3.08 ERA, 38.0 IP, 13 BB, 60 SO)
UGA ? Sr. RHP Trevor Holder (5-1, 3.06 ERA, 35.1 IP, 10 BB 34 SO)
Game 2
LSU ? Sr. RHP Louis Coleman (6-1, 1.23 ERA, 36.2 IP, 10 BB, 50 SO)
UGA — Jr. LHP Alex McRee (2-0, 1.80 ERA, 20.0 IP, 17 BB, 25 SO)
Game 3
LSU ? So. RHP Austin Ross (4-2, 2.48 ERA, 36.1 IP, 3 BB, 33 SO)
UGA ? So. RHP Justin Grimm (2-1, 4.11 ERA, 30.2 IP, 9 BB, 36 SO)