Alex Box Stadium has been home to some ridiculous comebacks. Sunday afternoon was the site of one of those, but it was all for nothing when it comes to LSU, resulting in a 19-15 loss to the Ole Miss Rebels.
How It Happened:
Things went off the rail in a hurry with the Rebels getting out to a 4-0 lead in the second inning, highlighted by a two-run double from Grae Kessinger. The onslaught continued in the third with a three-run inning thanks to a two-run double by Cooper Johnson and a single by Jacob Adams.
The Tigers responded though with a solo shot from Cade Beloso in the bottom of the fourth, but Ole Miss came up huge in the fifth off of a pair of home runs by Cole Zabowski and Kevin Graham.
LSU responded in the bottom frame with a three-run inning of their own, highlighted by an RBI double from Chris Reid. After Johnson hit an RBI double in the sixth, Antoine Duplantis with a two-run single to chip away at the lead. After Ole Miss put up two more runs in the seventh, Saul Garza got one just over the wall in center field to plate three runs.
The Rebels seemingly put the game out of reach in the ninth with a pair of RBI singles, making it a 15-9 ballgame. However, with two outs in the bottom of the ninth the Tigers put together a phenomenal rally starting with Zach Watson’s RBI single to shortstop. Duplantis followed that up with a three-run home run to right field. Beloso and Smith followed that up with a pair of home runs to force extra innings.
The Rebels wasted little time getting out in front once again with a four-run inning that was jumpstarted by a two-run single out to right field to take the rubber game.
Big Number: 45
This was one of the highest-scoring games in recent memory and a big reason for that was a whopping 45 hits between both teams.
Player of the Game: Antoine Duplantis
Even in a losing effort, Duplantis was an impact player at the dish, going five-of-six with five RBIs and a three-run home run that sparked a two-out rally that many LSU fans, especially those that stayed at the Box for the entire game, won’t soon forget.
Next Up: Tuesday vs Louisiana Tech; First Pitch at 6:30 pm
-Clint Domingue