Midweek Preview: Tigers Play Host To McNeese Tuesday Night In Alex Box Stadium

McNeese Cowboys (2-5) at No. 1 LSU Tigers (8-0)

DATE/TIME
Tuesday, February 24 @ 6:30 p.m. CT

STADIUM
Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field (10,718)

RANKINGS
LSU – No. 1 NCBWA, No. 1 Perfect Game; No. 2 Baseball America; No. 2 D1 Baseball
McNeese - unranked

RADIO
-LSU Sports Radio Network affiliates
-Live audio at www.LSUsports.net/live; Live stats at www.LSUstats.com

ONLINE
The game will be streamed live on SEC Network +

LSU SERIES RECORD VS. MCNEESE

-LSU leads the overall series with McNeese, 35-12, and the Tigers posted a 10-3 win over the Cowboys last season (April 15) in Baton Rouge … LSU has won 17 of its past 20 games versus McNeese … LSU, however, has just a 6-3 advantage in the last nine meetings between the schools since 2016 … McNeese defeated LSU 7-0 in 2016 in Baton Rouge and 5-4 in 2017 in Lake Charles … LSU recorded a 13-3 win over the Cowboys in 2018 in Baton Rouge before McNeese defeated the Tigers, 2-0, in 2019 at Alex Box Stadium … LSU has won the last five matchups, all in Baton Rouge – a 14-1 win in 2021, a 6-3 victory in 2022, a 7-4 win in 2023, a 16-0 shutout in 2024 and a 10-3 win in 2025.

QUOTING COACH JAY JOHNSON

“We are focused on doing what we need to do and playing the best that we possibly can. We have a lot of players that have played a lot of college baseball; they know what they want to do, and they’re committed to what they want to do. They all have talent; if they’re just committed to what they want to do and what we need them to do, then they can be successful.”

ABOUT THE TIGERS

-LSU posted five wins in five games last week to improve to 8-0 on the season … the 8-0 record marks the best eight-game start for coach Jay Johnson in his five-season LSU tenure … the 8-0 mark is also LSU’s best through eight games since the 2019 team also began its season 8-0.

-LSU claimed the Live Like Lou Jax College Classic title last weekend with three straight wins in Jacksonville, Fla., over Indiana, Notre Dame and UCF … the Tigers hit .388 (40-for-103) as a team in the tournament with seven doubles, one triple and three home runs … LSU outscored its opponents, 34-11, in the three contests in Jacksonville.

-The LSU pitching staff recorded a 2.88 ERA in 25.0 innings of work in the Live Like Lou Jax Classic with 11 walks and 31 strikeouts in three games … opponents hit just .211 against LSU pitching in the three-game weekend event.

-Rightfielder Jake Brown led LSU to five wins in five games last week, batting .440 (11-for-25) with one double, two homers, eight RBI, seven runs and two stolen bases. He helped lead LSU to the Live Like Lou Classic title over the weekend, batting .400 (6-for-15) in three games with four RBI, four runs and one steal. Brown blasted two homers in Monday's win over Kent State, giving him back-to-back two-homer games after he also launched two dingers last Sunday versus Milwaukee.

-Right-hander William Schmidt was named the MVP of the Live Like Lou Jax College Classic in Jacksonville, Fla., after he fired 5.0 shutout innings on Sunday to defeat UCF and clinch the tournament title for LSU. Schmidt limited UCF to no runs on three hits in 5.0 innings with one walk and seven strikeouts. He threw 91 pitches, 57 for strikes, and he retired nine of the first 10 batters that he faced.

-Designated hitter/outfielder Mason Braun batted .500 (5-for-10) in five games last week with one homer, five RBI and four runs. His first career collegiate homer came in Monday's win over Kent State, a three-run blast in the second inning that gave LSU a 4-0 lead. Braun was 3-for-3 in Friday's victory over Indiana in the Live Like Lou College Classic, driving in two runs and scoring once.

-First baseman Zach Yorke hit .421 (8-for-19) in five games last week with two homers, eight RBI and seven runs … his three-run homer in the eighth inning Friday versus Indiana erased a 5-4 deficit and highlighted a nine-run LSU outburst in the frame.

-Second baseman Seth Dardar batted .417 (5-for-12) in five games last week with three doubles, four RBI and five runs … he also walked nine times, posting a .636 on-base percentage for the week.

ABOUT THE COWBOYS

-McNeese is 2-5 through its first seven games this season … the Cowboys opened the season at home in Lake Charles, La., by dropping two of three games to Sam Houston; the Cowboys then posted a midweek win at Louisiana Tech before being swept in a three-game home series by Kansas last weekend.

-McNeese head coach Justin Hill was a pitcher at LSU in 2001 and 2002 … he is in his 13th season at the helm of the Cowboys program … Hill has directed McNeese to NCAA Regional appearances in 2019 and in 2021.

-McNeese is hitting .261 as a team this season with 15 doubles, one triple and five home runs … infielder Bryce Fontenot is hitting .444 with two doubles, one homer and four RBI … infielder Hayden Stringfellow is batting .429 with one double and four RBI, and infielder Danny Barbero is hitting .318 with team-highs of two homers and five RBI.

-The McNeese pitching staff has a 6.65 cumulative ERA, and the Cowboys have recorded 84 strikeouts in 65 innings … opponents are batting a cumulative .267 against the Cowboys staff, which has allowed 10 home runs this season.

(Release via LSU Athletics)