In one last SEC showdown, LSU baseball rallied in a 6-5 walk-off victory over Arkansas on Wednesday night to advance to the College World Series finals.
Jared Jones hit the game-winner, an RBI single that drove in Luis Hernandez and changed the trajectory of the tournament.
“We’ve had a lot of these games throughout the season,” Jones said. “Whether we’ve had to fight back from being down or teams tie it up late, we’ve kind of stuck with it no matter what. There’s no clock in baseball. There are 27 outs, and with our offense, it’s a tough ask to do.”
At stake for Arkansas–a second chance at survival. A win for the Razorbacks would have sent both teams into a final elimination game on Thursday.
Since LSU is undefeated in Omaha, all the Tigers needed was a win tonight to extend their stay.
With their two aces on rest, LSU’s bullpen provided a wealth of options for head coach Jay Johnson.
Zac Cowan was the decided starter on the mound after last appearing in regionals for one inning.
On offense, the bats were slow to fire. After scoring nine on UCLA the previous day, the Tigers went scoreless for five innings against Arkansas.
At the top of the fourth, Arkansas got the go-ahead run. Ryder Helfrick homered to center field on the first pitch of the at-bat.
A pitchers’ duel was brewing as defense continually dominated play on both ends, but Cowan was the first to go after 5.1 innings. Cowan put up one of his better performances of the season with six strikeouts and one run allowed for a 2.94 ERA.
“He got us probably three more outs than I thought he would, which was huge,” Johnson said.
Jaden Noot relieved with one out already handed to him in the inning. A fly ball caught by Josh Pearson claimed the second, and Noot earned a strikeout to strand a runner on third.
Arkansas’ starting pitcher, Landon Beidelschies, followed suit in the sixth after giving up a double to Ethan Frey and a wild pitch that allowed him to steal third.
Steven Milam advanced on a hit-by-pitch, and a sacrifice bunt by Hernandez put Milam on second. In prime scoring position, Jones struck out swinging to give LSU its second out.
Enter pinch-hitter Jake Brown, who singled to score Frey and Milam and got the ball rolling for LSU.
“It was the time to use him,” Johnson said. “We needed to score right there.”
Now 2-1, LSU had the one-run advantage, but the two teams would continue to play tug-of-war with the lead as the night went on.
At the top of the seventh, Noot was relieved by Chase Shores, who was fresh off his clutch performance in the 1.1 final innings against UCLA on Tuesday.
Shores struck out two to close the inning, but in the eighth, a series of hits from Arkansas loaded the bases. Helfrick hit an RBI single, and a second runner scored because of an error by Jones.
LSU fell back 3-2 as Arkansas took its one-run advantage back.
Immediately after, the score flipped again.
With two outs already in the bottom of the eighth, Jones homered on the first pitch.
Tied 3-3 going into the ninth, everything was reset for a do-or-die final inning.
Shores was relieved by Jacob Mayers at the top of the ninth after allowing a single and a double that got runners on second and third.
With his first pitch, Mayers gave up a heart-dropping 2 RBI single.
He closed the inning with two strikeouts, but the damage was done. LSU’s batters had to work a miracle.
John Pearson led off, pinch-hitting for Braswell, but struck out swinging. Derek Curiel singled and stole second followed by a Frey walk. Milam singled, and Curiel got put out at third.
That left Frey and Milam on base, two outs and Hernandez up to bat.
He hit a fly ball, but in a catastrophic error, it was dropped by an outfielder. Frey and Milam ran home as the stadium erupted in disbelief.
Arkansas’ lead crumbled before its eyes, and the score evened at 5-5.
Then, the score flipped one last time.
Jones was at bat, and Hernandez was on second. Jones hit a line drive that just tipped over the second baseman’s glove, and Hernandez bolted.
As he rounded third, it became apparent that LSU’s miracle had happened. Hernandez slid home.
“I thought he had caught it honestly because it fell in behind him,” Jones said. “But once I saw the ball hit the grass, I blacked out in the moment, just celebrating with my teammates.”
For a ninth time in program history, LSU is headed to the CWS finals.
Earlier in the day, an also undefeated Coastal Carolina became the last man standing from Bracket 1 when the team eliminated Louisville 11-3. As the Bracket 2 victor, the Tigers will meet Coastal Carolina for the first and last time this season in Game 1 of the championship series at 6 p.m. CT on Saturday.
“I said two years ago for Tommy’s walk-off homer against Wake Forest that I felt something in my body that I’d never felt before,” Johnson said. “It was the greatest moment of my life, but now it has a tie for first.”
