LSU baseball survives weather delay, three-run deficit to defeat Oregon State
BATON ROUGE – Good things usually come to those who wait.
For No. 1 seed LSU baseball, waiting meant sitting through a three-hour weather delay in the midst of an NCAA Regional game that had already been pushed back a day because of inclement conditions.
And as the saying goes, the Tigers' patience eventually paid off.
LSU is moving on to the Baton Rouge Regional championship game. The Tigers punched their ticket after defeating No. 2 seed Oregon State on Sunday, 6-5.
Even besides the weather, Sunday wasn't easy for LSU. The Tigers had to come back from a three-run deficit in the fourth inning and stage a second charge after losing the lead in the seventh.
But ultimately, it was Brayden Jobert's solo-home run in the eighth inning that made the difference. It was the Tigers' fifth home run of the day and broke the tie before Gavin Guidry closed out the win in the ninth.
LSU will face the winner of Sunday night's matchup between Oregon State and No. 3 seed Sam Houston on Monday and will have two chances to clinch a super regional berth.
An adventurous outing from Thatcher Hurd
With Ty Floyd done for the day following the weather delay, coach Jay Johnson turned to Thatcher Hurd in relief.
And much like his season, Hurd had an up-and-down performance against the Beavers.
He allowed two runs in the fourth inning, which gave Oregon State a three-run lead and another two in the seventh that allowed the Beavers to tie it. But Hurd also recorded a season-high 12 strikeouts and provided valuable rest for the Tigers' bullpen.
He wasn't perfect, but Hurd was ultimately just good enough.
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LSU leans on the long ball in comeback
LSU was still struggling at the plate when the game restarted. After a scoreless first two innings, in which the Tigers stranded the bases loaded twice, they failed to score in the third following the rain delay.
But Dylan Crews changed that in a flash.
Crews hit a two-run home run in the fourth inning to cut LSU's deficit from three to one. Back-to-back solo home runs from Hayden Travinski and Cade Beloso in the fifth then gave the Tigers the lead. And to keep the streak going, Josh Pearson hit his second home run of the season in the sixth, a solo shot to extend the lead.
Koki Riley covers LSU sports for The Daily Advertiser. Email him at kriley@theadvertiser.com and follow him on Twitter at @KokiRiley
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: LSU baseball defeats Oregon State after delay in Baton Rouge Regional
