McNeese Cowboys (32-18) at No. 4 LSU Tigers (39-12)
DATE/TIME
- 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 16 @ (SEC Network +)
STADIUM
- Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field in Baton Rouge, La. (10,326)
RANKINGS
- LSU – No. 4 in USA Today, No. 5 all other polls (also No. 5 in NCAA RPI)
- McNeese – unranked
RADIO:
- LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates, including 98.1 FM in Baton Rouge
- Live audio at www.LSUsports.net/live; Live stats at www.LSUstats.com
ONLINE
- The game will be streamed on SEC Network +
LSU SERIES RECORD VS. MCNEESE
LSU leads the overall series with McNeese, 32-12, and the Tigers posted a 6-3 win over the Cowboys last season (March 9) in Baton Rouge.
LSU has won 14 of its past 17 games versus McNeese. The Tigers had won 11 straight games over the Cowboys, but the teams have split the last six meetings.
McNeese defeated LSU 7-0 in 2016 in Baton Rouge and 5-4 in 2017 in Lake Charles. LSU recorded a 13-3 win over the Cowboys in 2018 in Baton Rouge before McNeese defeated the Tigers, 2-0, in 2019 at Alex Box Stadium. LSU has won the last two matchups, both in Baton Rouge – a 14-1 win in 2021 and the 6-3 victory in 2022.
QUOTING LSU COACH JAY JOHNSON
“We’ve got four games in five days this week, so we’re looking forward to the opportunity. Our guys are together, they’re out of school, and we’ve got a ton that we can work on and improve on, and that’s where we’ll put our focus. Hopefully, our players can get some rest and recover, get their legs underneath them, get their minds clear and fresh in order to compete and execute.”
ABOUT THE TIGERS
LSU enters the final week of the regular season in second place in the SEC Western Division, 1.5 games behind division leader Arkansas. The Tigers are in third place in the overall league standings, 1.5 games behind Arkansas and 0.5 behind Florida, which leads the SEC Eastern Division.
LSU’s 39-12 record is its best through 51 games since 2015, when the Tigers were 43-8. LSU’s 17-9 SEC record this season is the Tigers’ best conference mark through 26 games since the 2017 club was also 17-9 in league play.
LSU centerfielder Dylan Crews increased his reached base streak to 55 straight games, which includes all 51 games this season and the final four games of last season.
Junior right-hander Paul Skenes defeated Mississippi State on Friday night, working 7.0 innings and allowing one run three six hits with one walk and 13 strikeouts. He was credited with his first complete game of the season, as LSU established an 11-run margin in the bottom of the seventh inning to activate the 10-run rule. Skenes improved to 10-1 on the year, and he leads the nation with 152 strikeouts – his strikeouts total is already No. 7 on LSU’s all-time list for single-season strikeouts. Skenes is No. 1 in the SEC in ERA (1.69), innings pitched (79.2) and opponent batting average (.162).
Sophomore third baseman Tommy White hit .611 (11-for-18) in four games last week with four doubles, two homers, nine RBI and six runs. In LSU’s SEC series versus Mississippi State, White batted .571 (8-for-14) with three doubles, one homer, five RBI and three runs. White now has 84 RBI, already the seventh-highest single-season total in LSU history. He leads the SEC in RBI, and he is No. 4 in the league in slugging percentage (.797).
Junior leftfielder Tre’ Morgan recorded the first two-homer game of his career when he launched two dingers in Sunday’s game versus Mississippi State. Morgan drove in six runs and scored five times in the weekend series against the Bulldogs.
Junior right-hander Ty Floyd posted a career-high 10 strikeouts in Saturday’s game versus Mississippi State. Floyd worked 6.0 innings and limited the Bulldogs to just one run on five hits with one walk and 10 Ks.
Junior catcher Hayden Travinski started two games behind the plate in the Mississippi State series, and he hit .600 (3-for-5) with a homer, two RBI and two runs scored. Travinski has homered once in each of LSU’s last four SEC series – at Ole Miss, Alabama, at Auburn and Mississippi State.
ABOUT THE COWBOYS
McNeese is 12-12 in the Southland Conference, and the Cowboys dropped two of three games at Northwestern State last weekend in an SLC series
McNeese head coach Justin Hill was a pitcher at LSU in 2001 and 2002. He is in his 10th season (2014-23) at the helm of the Cowboys program
The Cowboys are hitting .276 as a team with 101 doubles, 16 triples, 46 homers and 110 stolen bases in 130 attempts. The McNeese pitching staff has a 4.14 cumulative ERA with 392 strikeouts in 439.0 innings
Infielder Josh Leslie is batting .308 with team highs of 20 doubles, eight homers and 50 RBI … infielder Brad Burckel and outfielder Cooper Hext also each have eight homers, and Hext is second on the club with 37 RBI
(Via LSU Athletics)