White Leads LSU to Sweep Over Ole Miss With 9-3 Victory
Saturday’s win completed a three-game sweep of the SEC series for the Tigers, who are 10-5 in their last 15 conference games and 14-5 in their last 19 contests overall.
BATON ROUGE, La. – Third baseman Tommy White blasted two homers – including a grand slam – on Saturday to lead LSU to a 9-3 win over Ole Miss in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
Saturday’s win completed a three-game sweep of the SEC series for the Tigers, who are 10-5 in their last 15 conference games and 14-5 in their last 19 contests overall.
LSU improved to 36-20 overall, 13-7 in the SEC, while Ole Miss dropped to 27-28 overall and 11-19 in conference play. The Tigers have won six straight games over the Rebels dating back to last season’s three-game series sweep in Oxford, Miss.
“The whole theme of this weekend was focus,” said LSU coach Jay Johnson. “Playing in the present moment is a staple of what we do, and that’s what it needed to be. We needed to play mature baseball, and we did that.
“We’re playing as well as anyone in the country right now. We were not in a good place five weeks ago at the midpoint of our league schedule, but I don’t think there’s five teams in the country that could accomplish what we’ve just done on the back half of our schedule.”
LSU will play on Tuesday in the first round of the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala. The time and opponent for Tuesday’s game will be determined on Saturday night after all league teams have completed their regular seasons.
White launched a grand slam and a solo homer on Saturday, collecting five RBI and increasing his season home run total to 23.
LSU designated hitter Hayden Travinski was 3-for-4 on the day with two doubles and two RBI.
Left-hander Nate Ackenhausen (3-4), the second of seven LSU pitchers, was credited with the win as he worked 2.0 scoreless innings and limited the Rebels to one hit with three walks and two strikeouts.
Ole Miss starting pitcher Mason Nichols (4-2) was charged with the loss, as he surrendered four runs on five hits in 3.0 innings with three walks and one strikeout.
Travinski’s two-run double in the first inning gave LSU the early lead, and the Tigers erupted for six runs in the fourth inning, an outburst highlighted by White’s grand slam.
Shortstop Michael Braswell III and catcher Alex Milazzo each contributed RBI singles during the fourth-inning rally.
White’s solo shot in the sixth gave the Tigers a 9-1 advantage. The blast was the 74th homer of White’s three-year collegiate career, which includes 47 homers in two seasons at LSU and 27 dingers in one season at North Carolina State.
“I’m really excited to keep playing baseball with this team,” Johnson said. “We’re playing a brand of baseball right now that is sustainable at the highest level.”