ATHENS, Ga. - LSU right fielder Josh Pearson and third baseman Tommy White combined for five runs batted in to lead the fourth-ranked Tigers to an 8-4 victory over Georgia Friday night at Foley Field.
With the win and series clinch, LSU improved to 42-12 on the season and 19-9 in the SEC, while the Bulldogs dropped to 28-26 and 10-19 in SEC action.
The Tigers return to action at 12 p.m. CT Saturday to take on the Bulldogs in the third game of the series. The contest can be streamed on SEC Network+, and it can be heard on the LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates.
“I think we’ve played two very good games, head coach Jay Johnson said. “I like how we have responded all weekend in a park that’s particularly tough to pitch in.
“We gave up the home run early and their 2-3-4 hitters have a lot of power. We got behind but kept putting pressure on them early even though we didn’t score.”
LSU starter Ty Floyd moved to 7-0 on the year. Floyd went 7 innings and allowed four runs and just five hits. The junior struck out seven and walked one.
“Ty starting like that simplifies the game for the rest of the staff and helps those guys be better., Johnson added. “It also helps our hitters relax a little bit. It was a really good performance.”
Charlie Goldstein started for the UGA and dropped to 3-2. He went 4.1 innings and allowed five runs on six hits with three walks and a pair of strikeouts.
Freshman Gavin Guidry entered in the 8th and pitched two scoreless innings, allowing just one hit, and striking out three.
UGA got on the board first in the bottom of the first inning to take a 2-0 lead. With a runner on after a hit by pitch, third baseman Parks Harber hit a two-run home run to right field.
LSU capitalized in the top of the fourth inning and plated three runs to take the lead. With the bases loaded after a hit by pitch and two walks, right fielder Josh Pearson drew a walk to bring in Cade Beloso for the first run of the game. Center fielder Dylan Crews laced a single to left field to tie the game and White scored Jordan Thompson on a sac fly to right field.
The Tigers loaded the bases in the fifth after a one-out single by Beloso and a pair of hit by pitches. Thompson hit a sac fly to left field to plate a run. With a pair of runners in scoring position after a failed pickoff attempt, Pearson beat the shift and scored two on a single to right to give LSU a 6-2 lead.
LSU added two more runs in the sixth to make it an 8-2 game after solo home runs off the bat of White and catcher Hayden Travinski.
“Those were some good at bats in the fourth inning that set us up with the walks and hit by pitches,” Johnson said. “Then you have Dylan and Tommy there, which is exactly where you want to be, and they execute. Ty came back out and went three up, three down to continue to control the momentum. It allowed us to go out and immediately put more runs on the board and then once again in the sixth with Tommy and Hayden.”
UGA scored two runs in the bottom half of the seventh inning with a two-run home run to right field by shortstop Sebastian Murilllo.
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