LSU, Dirks Stops Bama in SEC Tournament, 4-3
5/25/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
HOOVER, Ala. -- LSU junior left-hander Clay Dirks held the University of Alabama to four hits as the LSU Tigers pulled out a 4-3 win over the Crimson Tide in an opening round game at the 2006 SEC Tournament at the Hoover Met on Thursday evening.
No. 8 seed LSU advances to Thursday night's 8 p.m. game against the Arkansas-Ole Miss winner. No. 1 seed Alabama falls into the loser's bracket and will face the Arkansas-Ole Miss loser at 1 p.m. Thursday afternoon. Junior left-hander Wade LeBlanc (9-0, 2.89 ERA) will try to keep the Tide alive in the tournament as he makes his 16th start of the year on Thursday.
Dirks and LSU third-baseman-turned closer Will Harris held the Crimson Tide the four hits to equal the Tide's lowest hit total of the 2006 season.
LSU (35-22) carried a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the eighth inning and then had to hold off a Crimson Tide rally in the final two innings for the one-run win.
"Dirks was obviously pitched really good today," Alabama head coach Jim Wells said. "It's hard to win when you only get four hits in a college baseball game. I thought we might have been able to get one or two more."
Dirks, who had retired 15 consecutive UA batters and took a two-hit shutout into the eighth inning before the Crimson Tide finally made a run.
Freshman right-fielder Ryan Rhoden led off the eighth inning with a base hit to center field. Senior first baseman Spencer Pennington flied out and sophomore left fielder Brandon Belcher popped out before freshman pinch-hitter Kent Matthes slammed an 0-1 pitch over both walls in left field to cut the deficit to 3-2. It was Matthes first career home run and his first hit for Alabama since going 2-for-3 at Georgia on March 19.
LSU then called upon Harris, who moved from third base to mound. Harris walked junior center fielder Emeel Salem and senior third baseman Matt Downs, before striking out freshman DH Alex Avila to end the inning.
Dirks (5-4) allowed two runs and four hits in 7 2/3 innings for the win. He added seven strikeouts and walked only one batter. He had five of the seven strikeouts in the first three innings.
The Tigers regained the momentum in the ninth when Buzzy Haydel, who replaced Harris at third base, led off the inning with a solo home run to give the Tigers a 4-2 lead.
Alabama (39-18) mounted another threat in the ninth inning, without benefit of a base hit. Senior second baseman Evan Bush drew a one-out walk and was called out on a close play at second place when Rhoden reached on fielder's choice.
The inning was kept alive when LSU second baseman Nicholas Pontiff, who replaced T.J. Wise in the eighth inning for defensive purposes, booted Pennington's ground ball to send Rhoden to third base with two outs. Rhoden scored and pinch-runner Kyle Moore advanced to second on a passed ball by catcher Matt Liuzza.
Belcher, who represented the tying run, was intentionally walked. UA pinch-hitter Matt Bentley grounded out to first base to end the game.
UA starter junior right-hander Bernard Robert (7-6) was the tough-luck loser for Alabama. He held LSU to three runs and five hits in six innings, with one walk and two strikeouts.
LSU grabbed a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Robert hit Steven Waguespack to open the inning and Quinn Stewart followed with double down the left field line to put runners at second and third with no outs. Jordan Mayer grounded out to third baseman Matt Downs score Waguespack to give the lead. The rally ended there as Robert picked Stewart off second base and then got Jarrod Bogany to pop up to Bush at second base to end the inning.
Alabama wasted a golden opportunity in the bottom of the third inning when they wasted back-to-back leadoff singles by Pennington and Belcher. With runners on the corners and no outs, Dirks wriggled out of trouble when he struck out Paiml and Salem and then got Downs to ground out to end the inning.
"We called for the safety squeeze and Paiml took a strike," Wells said. "We did not get a good at bat there. So, there is a run we did not get. Everything is really magnified in a close ball game."
LSU made a it a 2-0 game in the fifth inning when Bruce Sprowl's sacrifice fly to left-center field scored Jordan Mayer from third base. Mayer and Jarrod Bogany had back-to-back singles to open inning. Will Harris reached on a fielder's choice that erased Bogany and sent Mayer to third. Sprowl then flied out to left to plate Mayer from third base.
The Tigers added an insurance run in the seventh inning to make it a 3-0 game. Robert issued a leadoff walk to Stewart and was replaced on the mound by junior right-hander Jake McCarter. Stewart moved around to third base on Mayer's sacrifice bunt and Bogany's ground out. Will Harris plated the run with an RBI double down the right field line. Harris' RBI double was made possible when Pennington could not hang on to a pop up in four territory as he tried to make a running catch near the UA bullpen.
GAME NOTES:
*SEC Commissioner Mike Slive presented Alabama head coach Jim Wells and the seven UA seniors with the 2006 SEC Championship trophy prior to Wednesday's game.
*Alabama saw its five-game winning streak snapped with Wednesday's loss to LSU.
*Alabama has lost back-to-back first-round SEC Tournament games for the first time since 1993-94. In addition to Wednesday's loss to LSU, Alabama also dropped a 3-1 decision to Ole Miss in last year's opening round.
*The first five hitters in the Alabama batting order were 0-for-17, with six strikeouts, in the loss to LSU.
*Robert issued a lead off walk to Stewart in the seventh inning for the first walk issued by an Alabama starting pitcher in 24 innings, dating back to the seventh inning against Tennessee on May 19, 2006.
*Alabama pitchers have issued only four walks in the last four games (36 IP), including three walks by the starters (30 IP).
