No. 7 LSU set to face No. 1 Arkansas in another SEC series

No. 7 LSU Tigers (20-6, 2-4 SEC) at No. 1 Arkansas (20-3, 5-1 SEC)

DATES/TIMES

• Thursday, March 28 @ 6 p.m. CT (ESPN2)
• Friday, March 29 @ 7 p.m. (SEC Network)
• Saturday, March 30 @ 2 p.m. (SEC Network +)

STADIUM

• Baum-Walker Stadium in Fayetteville, Ark. ( )

RANKINGS

• LSU – No. 7 USA Today; No. 8 D1 Baseball; No. 9 Baseball America
• ARK – No. 1 in all college baseball polls

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

TV/ONLINE

• Thursday – ESPN2
• Friday – SEC Network
• Saturday – SEC Network +

PITCHING MATCHUPS
Game 1
LSU – TBA
ARK – Jr. LH Hagen Smith (4-0, 1.24 ERA, 29.0 IP, 10 BB, 62 SO)
Game 2
LSU – Jr. RH Luke Holman (5-1, 0.78 ERA, 34.2 IP, 8 BB, 56 SO)
ARK – Jr. LH Mason Molina (3-0, 2.57 ERA, 28.0 IP, 15 BB, 47 SO)
Game 3
LSU – So. LH Gage Jump (2-0, 2.38 ERA, 22.2 IP, 9 BB, 32 SO)
ARK – Jr. RH Brady Tygart (3-0, 1.59 ERA, 28.1 IP, 16 BB, 39 SO) 

LSU SERIES RECORD VS. ARKANSAS

LSU leads the all-time series with Arkansas, 77-41, and the Tigers have won 14 of the past 18 and eight of the past 11 SEC regular-season series versus the Razorbacks, including a 2-1 series victory last season (March 24-25) in Baton Rouge … Arkansas had won three straight SEC series versus LSU before the Tigers captured the series in 2023 … the most recent meeting between the teams occurred on May 25 in the 2023 SEC Tournament, when the Razorbacks posted a 5-4 win over the Tigers in a winners’ bracket game … LSU has lost five of its last six SEC games played in Fayetteville – Arkansas swept the Tigers in 2022, and the Razorbacks won two of three in 2019 … LSU’s last SEC series win in Fayetteville came in 2017, when the Tigers won two of three games over Arkansas … LSU is 41-23 against Arkansas over the past 19 seasons (2005-23), including two wins over the Razorbacks in the 2009 College World Series. 

QUOTING COACH JAY JOHNSON

“We’ve got a tremendous challenge this weekend at Arkansas. We’re going to have to play in our best character. I think we learned some things last weekend (in an SEC series vs. Florida); we’re not totally where we want to be yet, but at the same time, we were one pitch away from winning that series against one of the best teams in the country. This is what we signed up for, and we’re really excited about going up to Arkansas.” 

ABOUT THE TIGERS

• LSU has won three of its last five games, and the Tigers this week are ranked No. 7 in the nation by USA Today, No. 8 by D1 Baseball and No. 9 by Baseball America … the Tigers posted an 8-4 win over Southeastern Louisiana to begin this week, as leftfielder Mac Bingham, third baseman Tommy White and catcher Hayden Travinski each homered to spark the Tigers’ effort. 
• Junior right-hander Luke Holman defeated sixth-ranked Florida last Friday night, limiting the Gators to one run on one hit in 6.0 innings with three walks and a career-high 13 strikeouts … he threw 104 pitches in the outing, recording 65 for strikes, and he allowed only two Florida players to advance beyond second base … Holman retired nine straight Florida batters to complete his outing, including four by strikeouts … Holman is 5-1 this season with a 0.78 ERA in 34.2 innings … he has recorded eight walks and 56 strikeouts, and he’s limiting opponents to a .157 batting average … his ERA is No. 1 in the SEC, and he’s second in the league in strikeouts. 
• Sophomore left-hander Griffin Herring recorded both a win and a save last week … he earned a relief win over Louisiana Tech on March 19, limiting the Bulldogs to no runs on one hit in 1.2 innings with no walks and two strikeouts … Herring was credited with the save in the March 22 win over Florida, as he worked 3.0 innings and allowed no runs on three hits with no walks and three strikeouts … for the week, Herring was 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and one save in 4.2 innings with no runs on four hits, no walks and five strikeouts. 
• Graduate catcher/DH Hayden Travinski is hitting .400 (6-for-15) in LSU’s last five games with one double, three homers, five RBI and five runs … he’s also walked four times and posted a .550 on-base percentage. 
• Senior outfielder Mac Bingham is batting .400 (8-for-20) in LSU’s last five games with one double, two homers, five RBI and three runs scored … Bingham was 3-for-3 with a homer in the Tigers’ win on Tuesday night versus Southeastern Louisiana. 
• Sophomore first baseman Jared Jones has three homers, four RBI and six runs in LSU’s last five games … he’s also walked four timed and has a .476 on-base percentage in that five-game span. 
• The LSU pitchers lead the SEC with 312 strikeouts, and the staff averages 12.23 strikeouts per nine innings. 
• Last Saturday’s LSU-Florida game generated the second-largest paid attendance figure – 12,892 – in the history of Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field … Saturday’s attendance was second only to the 13,068 that paid to see the LSU-Tennessee game on March 30, 2023 … last Friday’s LSU-Florida paid attendance figure of 12,539 was the sixth-highest home attendance mark in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field. 

ABOUT THE RAZORBACKS

• Arkansas is 5-1 in the SEC with a sweep of Missouri and a 2-1 series victory at Auburn … the Razorbacks, picked as the preseason favorite to win the SEC title by the league coaches, are in first place in the SEC Western Division and tied with Kentucky for first place in the overall league standings.
• Arkansas is No. 1 in the SEC in ERA at 2.50, and the Razorbacks have recorded 296 strikeouts in 201.1 innings … Arkansas is No. 13 in the SEC with a .279 team batting average, and the Razorbacks have collected 36 doubles, three triples and 33 homers.
• Arkansas left-hander Hagen Smith leads the SEC in strikeouts (62) and opponent batting average (.116),and he’s No. 2 in the league with a 1.24 ERA.
• Infielder Wehiwa Aloy, a transfer from Sacramento State, has team-highs of five homers and 24 RBI for the Razorbacks.

LSU release.