Live Updates: LSU Baseball vs. South Carolina (SEC Tournament Semifinals)

Jay Johnson and Co. look to punch their ticket to the SEC Tournament Championship Game, face the Gamecocks in Hoover.

Tigers Herad Coach Jay Johnson as the LSU Tigers take on the Vanderbilt Commodores at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge LA. Friday, April 5, 2024. / SCOTT CLAUSE/USA TODAY Network / USA

Jay Johnson and the LSU Tigers are set to take on the South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday afternoon with a chance to punch their ticket to the SEC Tournament Championship Game.

We've seen the program roll with Gage Jump, Luke Holman and Thatcher Hurd as the starting pitchers through three games.

Now, with the semifinal matchup rolling, the Tigers have revealed who will take the mound on Saturday: LHP Javen Coleman.

The redshirt junior has made limited appearances this season, but Johnson and Co. believe their veteran can make an impact on Saturday.

In a game where LSU will utilize its bullpen, Coleman gets the nod to handle business early.

During the 2024 season, he posted a 3-1 record with a 4.84 ERA in 22.1 innings pitched. He walked 17 batters with 24 strikeouts.

On the other side, South Carolina will put redshirt sophomore Roman Kimball on the bump. In an interesting matchup between a pair of pitchers who have seen limited action this season, KImball has also appeared in a limited number of games.

Roman went 2-2 this season for the Gamecocks with a 5.86 ERA in 27.2 innings pitched. He walked 30 batters with 42 strikeouts on the season.

Now, all attention shifts to the right-handers with a chance to propel their programs to the SEC Tournament Championship on Sunday.

Here's a look into both programs starting lineups, what Jay Johnson said ahead of the showdown and live updates from Saturday in Hoover:

LSU's Starting Lineup	South Carolina's Starting Lineup
SS Michael Braswell III	CF Austin Brinling
3B Tommy White	1B Ethan Petry
1B Jared Jones	RF Blake Jackson
LF Josh Pearson	DH Cole Messina
DH Hayden Travinski	2B Parker Noland
2B Steve Milam	LF Kennedy Jones
CF Jake Brown	C Dalton Reeves
RF Ashton Larson	3B Talmadge L:eCroy
C Alex Milazzo	SS Will Tippett
LHP Javen Coleman	RHP Roman Kimball

What Jay Johnson Said:

“We’re playing as well as we have all year, as well as anybody in the country. It was tough at the midway point of our league schedule, we were not in a good place. I don’t think there are five teams in the country that could accomplish what we just did on the back half of our schedule. I’m really excited, I want to keep playing baseball with this team. I’m really proud of our team based on their response to where we were earlier in the season. We’re playing a brand of baseball right now that is sustainable at the highest level.”

LIVE UPDATES:

[Make sure to refresh your browser for the latest information. Scroll down for the most recent updates each inning].

Top First:

Javen Coleman (LSU) pitching

Brinling: Reaches first base on fielding error

Petry: Fly out to right field

Jackson: Single to left field, Brinling advances to second base

Messina: Strikeout

Noland: Fly out to centerfield

Score Update: LSU 0, South Carolina 0

Bottom First:

Roman Kimball (South Carolina) pitching

Braswell: Fly out to centerfield

White: Single to right field

Jones: Fly out to left field

Pearson: Fly out to left field

Score Update: LSU 0, South Carolina 0

Top Second:

Javen Coleman (LSU) pitching

Jones: Double to right center

Reeves: Single through the right side, Jones advances to third base

LeCroy: Fly out to centerfield, RBI. Jones scores from third base. (South Carolina 1, LSU 0)

Tippett: Strikeout

Brinling: Single through right side, Reeves advances to second base

Petry: Popped up to centerfield

Score Update: South Carolina 1, LSU 0

Bottom Second:

Roman Kimball (South Carolina) pitching

Travinski: Single down left field line

Milam: Popped up to shortstop

Brown: Hit by pitch, Travinski advances to second base

Larson: Popped up to shortstop

Milazzo: Reached first on fielders choice, Travinski out at third base

Score Update: South Carolina 1, LSU 0

Top Third:

Javen Coleman (LSU) pitching

Jackson: Strikeout

Messina: Walked

Noland: Walked, Messina advances to second base

*Pitching Change: Aiden Moffett replaces Javen Coleman*

Jones: Line out to centerfield

Reeves: Three-run homer to left field (South Carolina 4, LSU 0)

LeCroy: Popped up to right field

Score Update: South Carolina 4, LSU 0

Bottom Third:

Roman Kimball (South Carolina) pitching

Braswell: Single to left field

White: Hit by pitch, Braswell advances to second base

Jones: Strikeout

Pearson: Popped up to shortstop

*Wild Pitch: Braswell advances to third base, White advances to second base*

Travinski: Strikeout

Score Update: South Carolina 4, LSU 0

Top Fourth:

Aiden Moffett (LSU) pitching

Tippett: Single to centerfield

Brinling: Walked, Tippett advances to second base

Petry: Hit by pitch, loads the bases

Jackson: Fly out to centerfield, RBI. Tippett scores from third base (South Carolina 5, LSU 0)

Messina: RBI single scores Brinling. Petry advances to third base, Messina advances to second base on throw. (South Carolina 6, LSU 0)

*Pitching Change: DJ Primeaux replaces Aiden Moffett*

Noland: RBI single scores Petry and Messina (South Carolina 8, LSU 0)

Jones: Strikeout

Reeves: Strikeout

Score Update: South Carolina 8, LSU 0

Bottom Fourth:

Roman Kimball (South Carolina) pitching

Milam: Double to right field

Brown: Fly out to left field

Larson: Walk

Milazzo: Popped up to shortstop

Braswell: RBI single scores Milam, Larson advances to second base (South Carolina 8, LSU 1)

White: Walked, loads bases

*Pitching Change: Drake Quinn replaces Roman Kimball*

Jones: Walked, scores Larson (South Carolina 8, LSU 2)

Pearson: RBI single scores Braswell and White, Jones advances to third base. (South Carolina 8, LSU 4)

Travinski: RBI single scores Jones and Pearson (South Carolina 8, LSU 6)

Milam: Groundout to first base

Score Update: South Carolina 8, LSU 6

Top Fifth:

Sam Dutton (LSU) pitching

Ellis: Single to second base

Tippett: Grounds into double play

Brinling: Strikeout

Score Update: South Carolina 8, LSU 6

Bottom Fifth:

Sam Simpson (South Carolina) pitching

Brown: Walked

Larson: Groundout to first base, Brown advances to second base

Milazzo: Fly out to center field, Brown advances to third base

Braswell: Walked

White: Strikeout

Score Update: South Carolina 8, LSU 6

Top Sixth:

Sam Dutton (LSU) pitching

Petry: Hit by pitch

Jackson: Single, Petry advances to third base

Messina: Fly out to centerfield, Petry scores. Jackson advances to second base (South Carolina 9, LSU 6)

Noland: RBI single scores Jackson (South Carolina 10, LSU 6)

Jones: Strikeout

*Pitching Change: Justin Loer replaces Sam Dutton*

Reeves: Strikeout

Score Update: South Carolina 10, LSU 6

Bottom Sixth:

Sam Simpson (South Carolina) pitching

Jones: Solo homer to left field (South Carolina 10, LSU 7)

Pearson: Groundout to first base

Travinski: Strikeout

Milam: Groundout to shortstop

Score Update: South Carolina 10, LSU 7

Top Seventh:

Justin Loer (LSU) pitching

Ellis: Walked, called out stealing second base

*Pitching Change: Will Hellmers replaces Justin Loer*

Tippett: Groundout to shortstop

Brinling: Groundout to second base

Score Update: South Carolina 10, LSU 7

Bottom Seventh:

Matthew Becker (South Carolina) pitching

Brown: Single to the pitcher, advances to third base on throwing error

Larson: Fly out to center field, RBI. Brown scores (South Carolina 10, LSU 8)

Milazzo: Strikeout

Braswell: Solo homer to left field (South Carolina 10, LSU 9)

White: Fouled out to right field

Score Update: South Carolina 10, LSU 9

Top Eighth:

Will Hellmers (LSU) pitching

Petry: Fly out to right center field

Jackson: Strikeout

Messina: Fly out to center field

Score Update: South Carolina 10, LSU 9

Bottom Eighth:

Matthew Becker (South Carolina) pitching

Jones: Strikeout

Pearson: Hit by pitch

Travinski: Fly out to right field

Milam: Single up the middle, Pearson advances to third base

Brown: Strikeout

Score Update: South Carolina 10, LSU 9

Top Ninth:

Kade Anderson (LSU) pitching

Noland: Popped up to left field

Jones: Walked, Brewer in to pinch run

Reeves: Hit by pitch, Brewer advances to second base

Ellis: Strikeout

Tippett: Strikeout

Score Update: South Carolina 10, LSU 9

Bottom Ninth:

Garrett Gainey (South Carolina) pitching

Frey (pinch hitting for Larson): Double down the left field line, Paxton Kling in the pinch run

Milazzo: Reaches first on throwing error, advances to second base. Bingham in to pinch run for Milazzo. Kling scores from second base. (LSU 10, South Carolina 10)

Braswell: Walked

White: Popped up to first base

Jones: Fly out to center field. Braswell advances to second base, Bingham advances to third base

Pearson: Groundout to second base

Score Update: LSU 10, South Carolina 10

Top 10th:

Gavin Guidry (LSU) pitching

Brinling: Groundout to first base

Petry: Strikeout

Jackson: Walked

*Wild Pitch: Jackson advances to second base*

Messina: Walked, Jackson advances to third base on wild pitch

*Pitching Change: Griffin Herring replaces Gavin Guidry*

Noland: Reaches first base on catchers interference

*UPDATE: Upon umpire discussion, LSU catcher Brady Neal has been called for catchers interference. Jackson has been ruled safe after stealing home plate. LSU pitcher Griffin Herring has been called on a balk. Messina advances to second base. South Carolina takes an 11-10 lead. LSU head coach Jay Johnson has also been ejected from the game.*

Brewer: Groundout to second base

Score Update: South Carolina 11, LSU 10

Bottom 10th:

Garrett Gainey (South Carolina) pitching

Travinski: Walked

Milam: Two-run homer to walk it off in extra innings

FINAL: LSU 12, South Carolina 11

Other LSU News:

The Pitching Matchup: LSU vs. South Carolina Starters Revealed (SEC Tournament)

The Bracket: The Updated SEC Tournament Bracket, LSU Remains Alive in Hoover

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