BATON ROUGE, La. – Second-ranked LSU (10-1) plays host to Stephen F. Austin (4-8) at 6:30 p.m. CT Tuesday in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
The game will be carried on affiliates of the LSU Sports Radio Network (98.1 FM in Baton Rouge), and live audio and stats for the contest may be accessed at www.LSUsports.net. The game may be viewed live online on SEC Network +, accessible at WatchESPN.com and the Watch ESPN app.
Tuesday’s game is the first of five contests for LSU this week, as the Tigers play host to Grambling at 3 p.m. CT Wednesday, and they play this weekend in the Houston College Classic at Minute Maid Park.
“This is the final full week of non-conference games before we begin SEC play, so it’s a very important week for us,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “We’ve been very pleased with the progress the team has made thus far, and we want to continue to build momentum and play at a high level.”
Mainieri said senior left-hander Kyle Bouman will start the game on the mound for the Tigers, while SFA coach Johnny Cardenas will counter with junior left-hander Eric Polivka.
LSU remained No. 2 in the Baseball America poll and No. 3 in the Collegiate Baseball rankings after winning four games last week. LSU recorded a three-game sweep of Princeton, outscoring the Ivy League squad, 25-8, and batting .337 (35-for-104) in the series with eight doubles, three triples and two homers.
Sophomore outfielder Jake Fraley batted .467 (7-for-15) last week, as he collected two doubles, three triples, six RBI, four runs, a 1.000 slugging percentage and a .467 on-base percentage. He provided the game-winning two-run triple in the bottom of the eighth inning in LSU’s 9-8 victory over Southeastern Louisiana on Thursday. On the year, Fraley is hitting .385 (10-for-26) with two doubles, three triples, six RBI, seven runs and three steals.
Junior outfielder Mark Laird batted .400 (6-for-15) in four games last week with one double, one RBI, five runs and one stolen base. Laird hit .455 (5-for-11) in the Princeton series with one double, one RBI and four runs.
Sophomore third baseman Danny Zardon batted .444 (4-for-9) against Princeton with one RBI and one run, and junior shortstop Alex Bregman hit .400 (4-for-10) in the series with one triple, one homer, three RBI, four runs and four stolen bases.
Senior infielder Conner Hale has hit safely in all 11 of LSU’s games this season, and he is batting .348 (16-for-46) on the year with four doubles, eight RBI and eight runs scored.
Stephen F. Austin is hitting .231 as a team with three home runs and 21 steals in 26 attempts. Freshman infielder Hunter Wilson is batting .375 with one double and one RBI, junior outfielder Matthew Dickey is hitting .304 with four doubles and eight runs scored, and sophomore infielder Nick Ramos is hitting .293 with two doubles, one triple and seven RBI.
LSU leads, 10-0, in the all-time series with Stephen F. Austin that began in 1986. The teams last met in 2013, when LSU recorded a 9-2 win over the Lumberjacks in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks (4-8) at #2 LSU Fighting Tigers (10-1)
DATE/TIME
Tuesday, March 3 – 6:30 p.m. CT
STADIUM
Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field (10,326) in Baton Rouge, La.
RANKINGS
LSU – No. 2 by Baseball America; No. 3 by Collegiate Baseball; No. 5 by USA Today
SFA – unranked
RADIO
LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates, including WDGL 98.1 FM in Baton Rouge
LSUsports.net – live audio and live stats
ONLINE TELECAST
The game may be viewed on SEC Network +, accessible at WatchESPN.com and the Watch ESPN app
SERIES RECORD
LSU leads,10-0, in the all-time series with Stephen F. Austin that began in 1986. The teams last met in 2013, when LSU recorded a 9-2 win over the Lumberjacks in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
PITCHING MATCHUP
LSU – Sr. LHP Kyle Bouman (0-0, 12.00 ERA, 3.0 IP, 2 BB, 1 SO)
SFA – Jr. LHP Eric Polivka (0-0, 14.85 ERA, 6.2 IP, 4 BB, 4 SO)