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Robertson, Deichmann heroics lift LSU past Tennessee, 5-4

Greg Deichmann hit a game-tying home run and Kramer Robertson lined a game-winning single in the bottom of the ninth inning to give LSU a 5-4 victory against Tennessee in a play-in game of the Southeastern Conference tournament at Hoover (Ala.) Metropolitan Stadium on Tuesday night.

Kramer Robertson celebrates as his walk-off hit brought home the winning run
Kramer Robertson celebrates as his walk-off hit brought home the winning run
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HOW THEY SCORED

Tennessee fourth inning – Chris Hall had a leadoff single. After both Nick Senzel and Vincent Jackson flied out to the rightfielder, Hall stole second base. Hall scored on a single by Jordan Rodgers. TENNESSEE 1, LSU 0

Tennessee fifth inning – With one out, Tyler Schultz singled and stole second base. Schultz scored on a single by Max Bartlett. TENNESSEE 2, LSU 0

Tennessee sixth inning – Hall doubled and moved to third on Senzel’s single. After Senzel stole second base, Hall scored on a ground out to the first baseman by Jackson. Senzel, who went to third on the Jackson ground out, scored on a wild pitch by Parker Bugg. TENNESSEE 4, LSU 0

LSU seventh inning – Bryce Jordan doubled. After pinch-hitter Michael Papierski flied out to the centerfielder, Bryce Jordan scored on a double by Deichmann. After Beau Jordan grounded out to the shortstop, Deichmann scored on a single by Cole Freeman. Antoine Duplantis singled and Jake Fraley walked to load the bases. Freeman scored on a single by Kramer Robertson. TENNESSEE 4, LSU 3

LSU ninth inning – Deichmann hit a leadoff home run over the centerfield fence. Beau Jordan walked and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Freeman. Duplantis was intentionally walked. Pinch-runner Brennan Breaux went to third on a wild pitch by Hunter Martin. Fraley was intentionally walked. Breaux scored on a single by Robertson. LSU 5, TENNESSEE 4

LSU MISSED SCORING OPPORTUNITIES

Fifth inning – With one out, Deichmann walked and advanced to third on a single by Beau Jordan. Deichmann was thrown out at the plate by the first baseman Rodgers on Freeman’s bunt. Beau Jordan was thrown out at the plate by centerfielder Brodie Leftridge on a single by Duplantis.

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Robertson, who made a pair of errors, delivered two run-scoring hits late in the game. With LSU trailing by two runs, Robertson came through with a bases-loaded, two-out single in the seventh. Robertson’s hit brought home one run, but Duplantis was thrown out at the plate. With the score tied and the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth, Robertson came through with his game-winning, one-out single down the leftfield line. Robertson, who went 2-for-5, extended his hitting streak to 12 games. Robertson is 18-for-52 during the hitting streak.

Robertson’s comments: “I swung through two fast balls in the ninth. Those were pitches to hit. Normally, I make contact against those pitches. I was wondering what was wrong. I knew he was going to throw me another fast ball. I barely kept it fair. It has been three long years for me. Nights like tonight make it worth it.”

ABOUT THE HITTERS

Four players accounted for all but three of LSU’s 11 hits – Deichmann (2-for-3), Duplantis (2-for-4), Chris Reid (2-for-4) and Robertson (2-for-5). The only starters without a hit were Fraley (0-for-3) and Jordan Romero (0-for-2). . .The Tigers had just three extra-base hits – a double by Bryce Jordan and a double and a home run by Deichmann. .. LSU stranded nine runners – four in scoring position. The Tigers were 5-for-8 with runners in scoring position.

ABOUT THE PITCHERS

Jake Latz gave LSU two impressive innings. After allowing a leadoff single to Leftridge, Latz retired six batters in a row. He struck out Jackson with a runner at third and two out in the first. Latz struck out Rodgers to start the second. . .The pitchers who backed up Latz failed to do the job. Austin Bain gave up a two-out RBI single by Rodgers in the fourth. Russell Reynolds allowed a run-scoring single by Bartlett in the fifth. Parker Bugg yielded two sixth-inning runs. He gave up two hits, walked two and threw two wild pitches. . .Jesse Stallings was the first reliever to shut down Tennessee. Stallings got two ground outs with a runner at second to end the seventh. . .Hunter Newman kept Tennessee in check with a 1-2-3 eighth inning with two strikeouts. He struck out another batter in a scoreless ninth. Newman picked up his first victory of the year. . .Tigers pitchers walked two and struck out eight.

NOTES

LSU used its normal lineup. Romero and Beau Jordan, both of whom are slumping at the plate, were dropped to sixth and eighth in the batting order, respectively. Romero, who struck out in his first two plate appearances, was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the seventh. . .Three Tigers players extended hitting streaks – Robertson to 12 games, Freeman to nine games and Deichmann to seven games. Fraley’s hitting streak ended at 17 games. . .LSU had three runners thrown out at the plate – Deichmann on a bunt by Freeman and Beau Jordan on a single by Duplantis in the fifth and Duplantis on a single by Robertson in the seventh. . .The Tigers committed three errors although none of them figured in Tennessee’s runs. The Volunteers did not make an error. . .Tennessee starting pitcher Will Neely was replaced after allowing a leadoff double by Bryce Jordan in the seventh. Neely allowed one run and five hits with one walk and three strikeouts. . .Andy Cox allowed an inherited runner to score and allowed two more runs to score in the seventh. . .Hunter Martin gave up the two ninth-inning runs. . .Hall had two hits and drove home two runs for Tennessee. The Volunteers stole six bases. . .LSU improved its record to 40-17. The Tigers have won 12 of their last 13 games – seven by one run. . .The Volunteers finished their season with a 29-28 record. . .The paid attendance at the night session was 7,287.

UP NEXT

LSU will play Florida in a first-round game of the Southeastern Conference tournament at Hoover (Ala.) Metropolitan Stadium on Wednesday. First pitch is set for 8 p.m. Central. The Gators (44-11) drew an opening-day bye. Alex Lange (7-3) will be the starting pitcher for the Tigers. The LSU-Florida game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.

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