College World Series Finals: LSU Takes First Game Of Championship Series

After a week of some of the best baseball during the "The Greatest Show on Dirt," the Men's College World Series is down to the final two teams. Saturday night was the first game of a best-two-out-of-three series to determine the 2023 national champion.
It took extra innings to get there. No. 5 LSU has the advantage going into Sunday's second game after they beat No. 2 Florida by a score of 4-3 on Saturday.
College World Series Finals - Game One
No. 5 LSU (1-0) 4 - No. 2 Florida (0-1) 3
LSU left fielder and lead-off hitter Dylan Crews was hit by a pitch on the fourth pitch of the game. A couple of batters later, he crossed the plate on a base hit by Cade Beloso to give the Tigers the 1-0 advantage.
LSU would add another run in the top of the 3rd. Florida got on the board in the bottom of the 3rd and tie it at 2-2 in the bottom of the 5th. Florida would take a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the 6th with a solo homer by catcher BT Riopelle. LSU would counter with a solo homer of their own in the top of the 8th with a bomb to left field by Tommy "Tanks" White.
LSU starting pitcher Ty Floyd was on fire all night. He had 17 strikeouts, the most of any game in college baseball this season.
LSU would get three home runs in this game. None were more important than the solo bomb by Beloso to lead off the top of the 11th. That would put the Tigers up 4-3. Florida would not be able to score in the bottom of the 11th, giving LSU the win.
Winning Pitcher: Riley Cooper; Losing Pitcher: Brandon Neely
LSU takes a 1-0 lead in the finals series. Game Two will be Sunday, June 25, at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN.
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Barry is the managing editor/publisher of TCU Horned Frogs On SI and oversees a team of 15+ writers, photographers, and podcasters covering all 22 of TCU’s sports. He writes on football, basketball (men’s and women’s), baseball, men’s tennis, and other sports as needed. His weekly articles include Big 12 Power Rankings and Poll Watching during the football, basketball, and baseball seasons. He is a frequent guest on one of the many podcasts that TCU Horned Frogs On SI writers host covering football, baseball, basketball, and other sports. Barry is a member of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA), and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). He has represented TCU Horned Frogs On SI at the 2022 Fiesta Bowl, the 2023 College Football National Championship, the 2023 College World Series, the 2024 NCAA Men’s Tennis National Championship, Big 12 Football Media Days, and Big 12 Basketball Media Days. Barry has followed TCU sports since the Jim Wacker days. He is an avid sports fan and traveler, and he loves any opportunity to see a sporting event in person. He has been to 18 of the 30 MLB ballparks, experienced game day at 25 college football stadiums, seen 21 NFL stadiums, and been to 16 bowl games.
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