Lexington, (Ky.) ? Kentucky will be looking to snap a seven-game Southeastern Conference losing streak when it takes on the No. 5 LSU Tigers this weekend at Cliff Hagan Stadium in Lexington. The Wildcats have already taken series from top ten opponents twice this season. They beat then-No. 7 Auburn twice on the road to start SEC play and took the first two games from South Carolina, which was ranked sixth at the time.
LSU comes to Lexington with an impressive 34-12 mark and is in second place in the SEC West with a 12-9 league record. The Tigers have won 10 of their last 13 games overall and two out of three in each of the last three SEC series.
Kentucky has seen its record fall to 20-23 after losing four in a row and eight of the last nine. The Wildcats dropped their last game to intrastate rival Louisville, 9-6, on Wednesday night.
UK has enjoyed much more offensive production this season than last. With 13 games still remaining on the schedule, the Cats have already scored more runs than last year, as well as accumulating more doubles, triples, home runs, walks and hit by pitches.
?Our progress may not be reflected in wins and losses,? said UK head coach John Cohen. ?But we?re playing very hard and being more competitive in games. I?m very excited about the direction our program is headed in.?
LSU leads the all-time series between the two schools, 29-13. The Tigers and Wildcats have not squared off on the baseball diamond since the 2001 season, when LSU took two of three from UK.
UK will send its ace, Kalen Gibson (4-3) to the mound in a 6:30 p.m. (ET) Friday night start. Gibson has already been crowned the SEC Pitcher of the Week twice this season. He will be opposed by LSU freshman Clay Dirks (8-1). Saturday?s scheduled starters are Kentucky?s Seth Stanley (5-2) and LSU?s Justin Meier (5-2). The Tigers will go with Nate Bumstead (7-2) on Sunday, while UK is yet to announce a starter. Saturday?s game is at 2 p.m. and Sunday?s series wrap-up is slated to start at 1 p.m.
All the weekend action, which is sponsored by Bluegrass RV, can be heard on 96.1 FM in Lexington. Friday?s broadcast will be on a delayed basis at 10:30 p.m., while Saturday and Sunday are both on live. Live stats and audio are available at www.ukathletics.com, as well as live video for users with ?Extreme Access.?
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