The Preview: LSU Tigers Baseball vs. Louisiana Tech Bulldogs in Midweek Clash

Jay Johnson and the LSU Tigers return to Alex Box Stadium on Tuesday night for a non-conference clash against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs with first pitch set for 6:30 p.m. CT.

The No. 7 ranked Tigers enter the matchup following an impressive SEC series win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs over the weekend.

Now, all focus shifts towards the midweek showdown in Baton Rouge with the program looking to remain hot.

The Preview: Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (17-11) at No. 5 LSU Tigers (26-3)

DATE/TIME
• Tuesday, April 1 at 6:30 p.m. CT
STADIUM
• Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field in Baton Rouge, La. (10,718)
RANKINGS
• LSU – No. 5 Baseball America; No. 6 USA Today; No. 7 D1 Baseball
• La. Tech – unranked
RADIO
• LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates
• Live audio at www.LSUsports.net/live; Live stats at www.LSUstats.com
TV/ONLINE
• The game will be streamed live on SEC Network +

LSU SERIES RECORD VS. LOUISIANA TECH
• LSU leads the all-time series versus Louisiana Tech, 46-20, in a series that began in 1902 … LSU defeated Louisiana Tech, 11-1 (8 innings) on March 19 of last season in Baton Rouge … prior to last season, the most recent meeting occurred on Feb. 23, 2022, in Ruston, when Louisiana Tech posted an 11-6 win over LSU.

- LSU has won 16 of its last 18 meetings with Louisiana Tech – along with their 2022 win, the Bulldogs’ only other victory over LSU in the last 18 meetings was a 12-1 victory in 2019 in Baton Rouge … prior to 2019, Louisiana Tech’s last win over the Tigers came on April 16, 1987, a 5-4 victory in Ruston.

QUOTING COACH JAY JOHNSON
“I was very pleased with the way our team performed last weekend (vs. Mississippi State). We take a lot of pride in being able to win any type of game, and we accomplished that in the series with a comeback win, a win in a pitchers’ duel and a great offensive performance in the final game. We’re looking forward to taking on the challenge of facing an excellent Louisiana Tech team.”

ABOUT THE TIGERS:

• LSU’s 26-3 overall record is its best through 29 games since the 2013 season, when the Tigers posted a 27-2 mark through 29 games … LSU’s 7-2 SEC record this season is its best conference mark through nine games since the 2013 team logged an 8-1 league record.

• LSU is No. 1 in the SEC and No. 3 in the nation in batting average with a .338 mark … the Tigers also lead the league in hits (324) and doubles (71), and LSU is No. 4 in the nation in hits and No. 5 in doubles … LSU is No. 2 in the SEC and No. 3 in the nation in on-base percentage (.456) and No. 3 in the league and No. 4 in the nation in runs scored (289) … the LSU pitching staff is No. 1 in the SEC in total strikeouts (333), No. 4 in the league in strikeouts per nine innings (12.2) and No. 4 in opponent batting average (.216) … LSU is No. 5 in the nation in strikeouts per nine innings.

• LSU first baseman Jared Jones is No. 2 in the SEC in hits (46), No. 3 in RBI (45), No. 3 in total bases (86), No. 5 in batting average (.404), No. 5 in runs scored (37), No. 5 in home runs (10), No. 5 in doubles (10) and No. 6 in slugging percentage (.754) … leftfielder Derek Curiel is No. 2 in the SEC in walks (29), No. 3 in on-base percentage (.555), No. 4 in batting average (.408), No. 4 in runs (38) and No. 6 in hits (42)

• Junior right-hander Anthony Eyanson defeated Mississippi State on Friday, working 5.0 innings and limiting the Bulldogs to just one unearned run on five hits with three walks and 12 strikeouts … Eyanson’s 12 Ks represented the most by an LSU pitcher in an SEC game this season and the most by any SEC pitcher in last weekend’s league games … he increased his season strikeouts total to 58, and he is No. 5 in the SEC in strikeouts and No. 6 in the league in strikeouts per nine innings (14.11) … Eyanson improved to 4-0 this season, and he has a 3.89 ERA with 11 walks and 58 strikeouts in 37.0 innings.

• Junior second baseman Daniel Dickinson helped lead LSU to four wins in four games last week, batting .375 (6-for-16) with two doubles, one homer, seven RBI and five runs … in the Tigers’ three-game sweep of Mississippi State, Dickinson hit .385 (5-for-13) with one double, one homer, six RBI and three runs … with LSU trailing Mississippi State, 6-2, in the fifth inning of Game 1 on Thursday, Dickinson launched a two-out, two-strike, three-run homer to narrow the deficit to 6-5 and spark the Tigers’ 8-6 comeback victory … he was 3-for-5 in Saturday’s win over the Bulldogs with a double, three RBI and two runs … he is hitting .362 this season with nine doubles, seven homers, 35 RBI and 36 runs … Dickinson is No. 6 in the SEC in on-base percentage (.531), No. 7 in the league in runs scored and No. 8 in RBI.

• Freshman right-hander Casan Evans earned his fifth save of the season on Friday versus Mississippi State, working a career-long 4.0 innings to preserve a 2-1 LSU victory … Evans entered the game with a runner at first base and nobody out in the sixth inning with the Tigers holding a 2-1 advantage, and he blanked the Bulldogs for the remainder of the contest, allowing just two hits with three walks and six strikeouts … he fired a career-high 72 pitches in the outing and lowered his cumulative ERA to 0.90 … Evans is 1-0 this season with five saves in nine appearances, and he has recorded eight walks and 34 strikeouts in 20.0 innings … his total of five saves this season ranks No. 4 in the SEC.

ABOUT LOUISIANA TECH:

• The Bulldogs are 17-11 this season, 4-2 in Conference USA … Louisiana Tech opened conference play March 21-23 by winning two of three games at Sam Houston, and the Bulldogs won two of three games over Kennesaw State last weekend in Ruston.

• The Bulldogs’ lineup features outfielder Garrison Berkley, who is hitting .313 with 10 doubles, two triples, four homers and 16 RBI … infielder Michael Ballard leads Louisiana Tech in home runs (5) and RBI (21) … three former LSU players are now members of the Louisiana Tech team – outfielders Brody Drost and Zeb Ruddell, and infielder Will Safford.

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