LSU baseball sweeps Kentucky in NCAA super regional 2023, ending Wildcats' historic season
BATON ROUGE, La. — Needing a win Sunday to keep its season alive, Kentucky couldn’t have asked for a better start. Center fielder Jackson Gray smashed a solo homer to give the Wildcats — playing as the home team in enemy territory at Alex Box Stadium — a 1-0 lead over LSU in the bottom of the first inning.
But that was as good as it got for UK.
The Tigers roared back and won 8-3 in the second game of the NCAA super regional, sweeping the best-of-three series following a 14-0 rout Saturday. LSU scored the next five runs Sunday to go up 5-1, highlighted by a four-run third inning. Though the Wildcats plated two more runs, it wasn’t enough, and the Tigers added three more insurance runs in the top of the ninth to put the finishing touches on the sweep.
Kentucky lost Sunday despite out-hitting LSU 10-9.
UK ends the 2023 campaign with a 40-21 overall record.
NCAA super regionals: Complete coverage from the Kentucky vs LSU series in Baton Rouge
"Congrats to LSU on a well-played game, amazing season," UK coach Nick Mingione said. "They played great. Really proud of the group of men that I have in our program. ... I think you guys could see how tough and gritty and unselfish (they are), how much they love Kentucky, how they're willing to do whatever it takes to win. And I feel bad I couldn't help lead them to do something that's never been done before in the history of our program.
"But this group of men have changed our program forever. And I'm forever grateful for them."
With the victory, the Tigers (48-15) clinched their 19th College World Series appearance, sixth most all-time. Other teams that have already sealed CWS bids this year are Florida, Oral Roberts, TCU, Virginia, Wake Forest.
The College World Series starts Friday at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska.
Tigers win Game 1: After 7-hour delay, LSU routs Kentucky to open super regionals
After missing postseason last five years, Kentucky's season to remember comes to an end
Sunday’s loss brought an end to an unexpectedly good season for Kentucky. The Wildcats were picked to finish sixth in the seven-team SEC East in the league’s preseason coaches’ poll.
And it was a bounce-back campaign for Mingione. After reaching the NCAA super regionals for the first time in program history during his debut season in 2017, the Wildcats failed to make the postseason each of the next five years. But UK athletics director Mitch Barnhart gave Mingione a vote of confidence last summer.
Mingione and his team then went out and delivered this season.
Kentucky won 21 of its first 23 games — its 17-game winning streak was the fourth longest in the Wildcats’ annals, and the best run of success since a school-record 22-game streak in 2012.
The 2023 Wildcats joined the 2017 club as the only teams in program history to advance to the super regional round of the NCAA tournament. Their 40 victories are tied for sixth most in a single campaign in school history — only the seventh time the Wildcats have reached the mark. In May, Kentucky swept then-No. 3 South Carolina, its first time sweeping a top-five foe since 2012. And 2023 marked only the third time UK has ever hosted an NCAA regional — two of them during Mingione’s tenure.
Keith Madison: Kentucky baseball still feeling ex-coach's impact during postseason run
"I couldn't even throw a baseball a year ago," said senior pitcher Darren Williams, a Maysville native who made 26 appearances for UK the last two years after transferring from Eastern Kentucky. "And to be able to do what this team did, I'll never forget it. Nobody picked us at all at the beginning of the year. And just the togetherness, the grittiness, unselfishness, like coach always talks about, it's so true. (This was) the dream season — what a Kentucky kid wants to do if he plays for Kentucky."
After previous seasons when the Wildcats’ non-conference schedule was criticized for its lack of stout competition, UK purposely beefed up its slate in 2023. It entered the regional boasting the country’s toughest schedule, and No. 9 nationally when only accounting for non-conference games. Kentucky rose to the challenge, earning 10 victories against teams ranked among the top 11 in RPI and 18 against teams in the top 50.
UK didn’t lean on any one area for its success this season, excelling offensively and defensively. At the end of the regular season, the Wildcats led the SEC in batting average, doubles, triples and steals. They also paced Division I in fielding percentage during the regular season while committing the fewest errors in the conference and ranking second among SEC clubs in home runs allowed.
Kentucky baseball roster: Who is leaving? Who will be back for 2024 college baseball season?
Multiple Wildcats have exhausted their eligibility and won't be part of next season’s roster.
That eight-man group consists of first baseman Hunter Gilliam (213 starts since 2019), center fielder Gray (153 combined starts between UK and Western Kentucky), third baseman/outfielder Jase Felker (69 starts past two seasons after starting career at Rend Lake College in Illinois) left-handed pitcher Tyler Bosma (22 starts at UK), third baseman Isaiah Byers (more than 100 career appearances between UK and North Florida), catcher Chase Stanke (18 starts this season, backing up Devin Burkes) and Williams. Right-hander Ryder Giles, who started in 158 games as an infielder and pitcher at East Carolina from 2019 through 2022, pitched in relief in 26 games for Kentucky in 2023.
Three UK players have graduated but could be back in 2024: ace Zack Lee (5-3 record, 3.74 ERA, 73 strikeouts and 27 walks in 67 1/3 innings pitched in 2023), Kendal Ewell (12 starts, the majority as designated hitter) and relief pitcher Logan Martin (4.44 ERA in 26 1/3 IP).
Big Blue Nation heads south: Fans rally behind Kentucky baseball in LSU super regional
Barring transfers, UK could return six starting position players in Burkes, second baseman Emilien Pitre, shortstop Grant Smith, left fielder Ryan Waldschmidt, and James McCoy and Nolan McCarthy, who split time at right field this season.
"We'll see what happens with the (MLB) draft. We'll see what happens with guys making decisions about the transfer portal and things like that," Mingione said. "But we definitely have some holes to fill. ... But we're close. It's not far off. We're really close.
"And these next two, three, four, five, six, eight weeks will help determine how the Wildcats will be next year."
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @RyanABlack.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: UK vs LSU baseball score: Kentucky swept in NCAA super regionals 2023
