LSU Defeats Kentucky in SEC Tournament Opener for Wildcats
HOOVER, Ala. – Kentucky was presented with the Southeastern Conference regular season championship trophy prior to Wednesday’s opening game at the conference tournament but not much went the Wildcats’ way the rest of the morning as it dropped an 11-0 decision to LSU at the Hoover Met.
Locked in a tight 2-0 affair into the seventh inning, the Tigers blasted a pair of grand slams over the next two innings to push the Cats (39-13) into the elimination part of the bracket.
Kentucky was unable to get much traction against LSU ace Luke Holman, who tossed six no-hit innings. Mitchell Daly broke up the no-hit bid against reliever Gavin Guidry in the seventh.
LSU, who has been one of the hotter teams in Division I the last month, took a 1-0 edge in the first after a leadoff home run off Travis Smith by Michael Braswell III. A leadoff double in the second led to another run before the UK pitchers settled in and retired 13 straight batters.
But back-to-back one-out walks and an intentional walk led to a two-strike grand slam by Jared Jones. Tommy White added a second grand slam in the eighth.
NOTES
- Kentucky now is 39-13 in 2024.
- Kentucky is 23-10 in day games.
- Kentucky is 6-4 in May.
- Kentucky is 13-5 vs. ranked teams and 21-7 vs. Quad 1 opponents.
- Kentucky owns the most Quad 1 wins in Division I.
- UK Coach Nick Mingione is in his eighth season at the helm and now owns a 255-163 career record.
- Mingione needs four victories to become the second-winningest coach in school history.
- UK is 46-45 in the month of May under Coach Mingione.
- Mingione now is 4-11 vs. LSU.
- Junior INF Emilien Pitre extended his streak of games reaching base safely to 29.
- Junior RHP Robert Hogan pitched 3.0 shutout innings.
- He allowed just one hit and struck out five.
- Senior RHP Johnny Hummel pitched 2.0 hitless innings.
- He struck out two.
