The LSU Fighting Tigers will face the No. 19 Kentucky Wildcats in a three-game Southeastern Conference baseball series at Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field, beginning Friday, March 27.
The matchup is significant as both teams are seeking to improve their conference records. LSU holds a 17-9 overall record and is 2-4 in SEC play, while Kentucky enters with a 20-4 record and stands at 4-2 in the SEC. The games are scheduled for Friday evening, Saturday afternoon, and Sunday midday.
LSU leads the all-time series against Kentucky, having won 60 of their previous meetings compared to Kentucky’s 32 wins and one tie. The teams last met on May 22, when LSU defeated Kentucky by an 11-0 margin during the SEC Tournament’s second round. Head coach Jay Johnson has guided LSU to six wins out of eight games against Kentucky since taking over as head coach.
Johnson said about this weekend’s opponent: “(Kentucky) Coach (Nick) Mingione is a great coach and a great human being; his team is very fundamentally sound. Their pitching staff always has a good identity, and they use their strengths really, really well. Offensively, they try to put pressure on you, and they’re playing with a lot of confidence right now. So, it’s going to be a big challenge, and we need to come out ready to go.”
LSU sophomore pitcher Casan Evans recently helped lead his team past seventh-ranked Oklahoma by allowing just one unearned run over nearly eight innings with a career-high fifteen strikeouts. Freshman Omar Serna Jr., senior Zac Cowan, Grant Fontenot, Deven Sheerin, Santiago Garcia, Trent Caraway, Derek Curiel and Zach Yorke have also contributed strong performances leading up to this series.
Kentucky arrives ranked No.19 nationally according to several polls and features standout players including Hudson Brown (.390 batting average), Jayce Harnish (.347), Ethan Hindle (six home runs), along with pitchers who have compiled an earned run average of just under four so far this season.
