Baseball Comes Up Short in Friday Contest with 19th-Ranked LSU, 6-5

Friday, May 6

Tuscaloosa, Ala.

6 p.m.

Alabama

25-21, 9-13

LSU

31-14, 13-9

LSU

Alabama

Baseball Comes Up Short in Friday Contest with 19th-Ranked LSU, 6-5

5/6/2022 10:25:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Photo Gallery Highlights Postgame Press Conference

The two teams were even after five with the Tigers scoring the decisive run in the sixth

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama came up short, 6-5, to 19^th-ranked LSU in Friday's matchup at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Crimson Tide is now 25-21 overall and 9-13 in Southeastern Conference play.

Alabama posted single tallies in the first and third frames for the early 2-0 lead, keeping LSU off the board until the fifth. That fifth saw the Tigers score five runs – only one earned – to gain a 5-2 advantage. The Tide countered in the home half of the fifth with a three-spot to knot things up at five apiece, before LSU crossed one run in the top of the sixth to retake the lead. That one run would prove the difference as both teams were held scoreless the rest of the way for the 6-5 final in favor of the Tigers.

The Crimson Tide offense totaled 11 hits on the night, highlighted by a three-hit effort from Jim Jarvis. Jarvis finished 3-for-5 with a stolen base and a team-high tying two runs. Also posting two runs was Caden Rose, with the sophomore going 2-for-4 with a double. Andrew Pinckney led UA in RBI with two as part of a 2-for-4 showing that included a double, a walk and one run.

Garrett McMillan was solid once again, allowing five runs (one earned) on eight hits and a walk with six strikeouts in his 5.0 innings of work. Brock Guffey (2-3) suffered the loss despite 4.0 innings of one-run baseball in relief. The win went to LSU reliever Riley Cooper (4-2) while Paul Gervase recorded his fifth save of the season with a scoreless ninth.

From Head Coach Brad Bohannon

"I tell the kids all the time that you can play well and still lose, and that's kind of what happened tonight. We did a lot of good things. It was probably one of our best offensive performances this year. We had a lot of really quality at-bats up and down the lineup consistently throughout the game. (Garrett McMillan) and Brock Guffey did a good job, competed well, and slowed them down on offense. Tonight, to me, the story of the game was that we just didn't defend the field well enough. LSU has a great team and it's a team that's going to win a Regional; your margin for error is slim when you play teams like that."

How It Happened

B1 | Jim Jarvis led off the game with a single to left and moved all the way to third on a wild pitch and a flyout. The Tide shortstop then used a passed ball to come home for the game's first run. (1-0, Alabama)
B3 | Caden Rose led the inning off with a double and scored one out later thanks to an RBI-double by Andrew Pinckney. (2-0, Alabama)
T5 | LSU scored five runs – only one earned – on four hits, including home runs from Tyler McManus and Tre' Morgan. (5-2, LSU)
B5 | Back-to-back singles by Rose and Jarvis put a pair on for Pinckney. The redshirt sophomore capitalized on the opportunity by sending a 1-2 pitch up the middle to plate one and put runners on the corners. One out later, Dominic Tamez sent the first pitch he saw to left to add one more. The Tide would cap the scoring with an RBI-single through the right side from Tommy Seidl. (5-5)
T6 | A two-out RBI-single to right helped the Tigers regain the lead. (6-5, LSU)

Postgame Notes

Alabama has played in 23 games this season that were decided by two runs or less. The series opener with LSU was the Tide's 17^th one-run affair.
Brock Guffey made his 72^nd career appearance on Friday evening. He is now tied for ninth all-time with Thomas Burrows (2014-16) for career appearances at Alabama.
Alabama finished with 11 hits on Friday night. The Tide has now recorded double-digit hits in 27 games this season.
ATTENDANCE: 3,508

Alabama and LSU will meet for game two of the series on Saturday evening at The Joe. The Crimson Tide will call on senior right-hander Jacob McNairy while the Tigers counter with sophomore righty Blake Money. Game two is set for a 7:30 p.m. CT first pitch with the contest gaining a national audience on SEC Network.

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