By Hunt Palmer
THE STORY: For the first time in 2025, LSU needed its bullpen to step up Friday.
It did.
A pair of freshman fireballers led a three-arm bullpen effort to slam the door on a 4-2 win over Omaha.
Mavrick Rizy and Casan Evans combined to pitch a scoreless seventh, eighth and ninth innings as LSU clung to that 4-2 lead. Rizy worked around a bloop leadoff single in the seventh with three consecutive outs. Evans issued a one-out full count walk in the eighth but struck out the next two men he faced. The ninth went in order with two more strikeouts.
Evans may make a bid to be LSU’s closer. He’s got an upper 90s fastball and two plsu breaking pitches. Based on Friday, he’s got the poise to do it as well.
Right hander Connor Benge navigated a second and third, one out spot with the score 4-1 in the sixth by getting a sacrifice fly that scored a run and then a ground ball out in relief of Kade Anderson who started the game.
Anderson handcuffed Omaha hitters over five and a third innings.
The sophomore lefthander efficiently and effectively maneuvered the Maverick lineup over the first five, but he ran out of gas in the sixth allowing a pair of walks and a pair of hits. Prior to the sixth, no Maverick runner reached second base.
Anderson’s velocity wasn’t quite as firm as last week, but the southpaw leaned on his changeup to keep the Mavericks off balance early on.
LSU offense manufactured what it could on a tough day to hit. It was not a work of art.
In the second, Steven Milam reached on an error in front of a Michael Braswell walk. Milam scored on a Jake Brown RBI single, and Braswell came in on a double play ball off of Luis Hernandez’s bat.
Brown and Hernandez doubled back-to-back in the fifth for a third run, and Milam was able to drive in the fourth an inning later after a no-out sacrifice bunt from Daniel Dickinson to move runners over from first and second.
Sometimes when it’s cold and windy, you just have to find runs wherever they’re available.
LSU had a chance to add to the lead with the bases loaded in the seventh, but Braswell fanned on a high fastball from Maddox Mayer.
Hernandez doubled with one out in the LSU eighth, but he was left there after a pair of Tiger strikeouts.
THE SCORECARD: Anderson finished his day with 5.2 innings pitched, two earned runs on three hits. He struck out eight, walked two and hit another.
Benge stranded two of the three runners he inherited.
LSU struck out eight times. They’d only struck out 17 times in the previous four games.
Jake Brown finished 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored.
Chris Stanfield was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.
Benge, Rizy and Evans combined to throw 3.2 innings of shutout ball with six strikeouts and one walk.
LSU did not commit and error.
Derek Curiel went 2-for-4 with a bunt single and a double to right field.
LSU’s pitching held Omaha to four hits.
Hernandez double twice.
THE QUOTES: Anderson on his outing…
“We got the win. At the end of the day that’s all that matters. But I feel like there’s a lot of room for improvement. As a starter, you’re trying to go into the seventh or eighth inning. So, I feel like there’s a lot of room for growth. Just continue to work every day.”
Anderson what Omaha did to create problems in the sixth…
“I don’t think it’s what they were doing. I think it was more of a problem that I had. I think I didn’t command the fastball. At the end of the day, that’s what I think happened.”
Jake Brown on LSU’s offense…
“We did really well early on. I think their pitcher was at 60 pitches through two innings. So I think we did a really good job of owning counts, owning our at bats early in the game. And then Kade is rolling out there, so you almost get a little bit comfortable. You get a little bit out of your plan. When we’re able to tighten that up and really not get comfortable, just focus on the task at hand, that’s when our offense is gonna take steps.”
Jay Johnson on the end of Anderson’s outing…
“Taking him out of the game kind of snuck up on me because he’s been so dominant. In my head, as we were through five, it was like, he’s got two more innings for sure, and then we would have gone to Evans regardless of score. So, yeah, credit to Omaha for running some good at bats against one of the best pitchers in the country. I’ll take that outing all day every day. I love him for always wanting to be better.”
Johnson on whether or not he liked his team’s response to a close game…
“Yes and no. I like being able to win the game. We had a very similar game to that last year that we lost. And I think that shows some growth in talent in players and growth in maturity in players and in the program that we were able to win in spite of that. To me it was really two different games. Through four innings, we were owninfg the game, like dominating the game. More than 4-0, we were playing how we want to play. And then it got a little tight. And that’s the first time for these guys. And I think we did get outside of ourselves a little bit on offense. But I think we can fix all of that, and we will.”
WHAT’S NEXT: LSU and Omaha will return to action Saturday for a noon first pitch. Anthony Eyanson will take the ball for LSU, making his second start of the season. Game three of the series, originally scheduled for Sunday, will be played Saturday at 5:00.
