LSU knocks off No. 1 seed Florida
HOOVER, Ala. -- No. 8 seed LSU eliminated No. 1 seed Florida and clinched a spot in the SEC tournament semifinals with an 11-0 victory in seven innings.
The game was suspended in the bottom of the sixth inning on Friday night when fog rolled into the stadium. The Tigers and Gators played the final four outs of the run-rule contest on Saturday morning.
LSU built a big lead before the fog arrived. In the bottom of the third, LSU right fielder Antoine Duplantis drilled a double to right center to bring Jake Slaughter across the plate for the first run of the game. Austin Bain reached on a throwing error, sending Duplantis and Beau Jordan racing home to give the Tigers a 3-0 lead.
LSU capitalized on Florida's mistakes in the sixth to increase its lead. Daniel Cabrera scored when Zach Watson advanced to second on a wild pitch. Watson then crossed the plate after Hunter Feduccia advanced to second on a passed ball. Feduccia also came home when Jake Slaughter reached on a throwing error.
A pair of two-run singles by Duplantis and Cabrera made it 10-0.
When the game resumed Saturday morning, Watson slapped a base hit and Bain scored, bringing the Tigers' sixth-inning run total to eight.
LSU starter Matthew Beck (3-1) tossed four shutout innings, allowing three hits with four walks and three strikeouts. Reliever Cam Sanders retired six of the seven batters he faced while recording four strikeouts on Friday night.
Freshman Devin Fontenot took over for the Tigers on the mound Saturday morning. Deacon Liput led off with a single, but Fontenot struck out the next three Gators to secure the run-rule victory.
"I can't tell you how proud I am of the guys," said LSU head coach Paul Mainieri. "They just handled it all like pros and you know, no excuses. They did what they had to do, and I didn't hear an ounce of complaining. They came out today and picked up right where they left off last night. If you would have told me before the game that Beck and Sanders would have combined to shut out the No. 1 team in the country for six innings, I probably would have had a tough time believing you. It was a great day for us, a great day and a half."
UP NEXT: LSU faces No. 4 seed Arkansas in Saturday's second semifinal game on SEC Network.