Kentucky Ace Dominates LSU, Tigers Fall in Opener
David Billiot Jr • March 28, 2026
Kentucky - 7, LSU - 4
Friday Night Recap
If it’s possible for a series to be a “must win” in week 3 of conference play, it felt like this one is just that for LSU. After dropping each of their first two series in SEC play, the Tigers are already a couple of games behind the 8-ball and the schedule gets even tougher when they leave Baton Rouge following this weekend. So, with Kentucky coming to town, a team that Jay Johnson has mostly controlled since becoming Head Coach, LSU has to have this one. Unfortunately, a 7-4 Friday night loss has them immediately on their heels. The Wildcats jumped on top from the very beginning and never looked back. Following his historic 15 strikeout performance against Oklahoma last week, Casan Evans crashed back down to Earth early tonight. He issued 8 free passes within the first 3 innings, making it nearly impossible to limit the damage. He was able lock in and prevent the night being a disaster, but the damage done early put the Tigers in a hole that they were unable to climb out of.
Despite two half-hearted punches from the Tiger offense, Kentucky came in to Alex Box on a Friday night and cruised to a series opening win. Jaxon Jelkin showed why he is the ace of their staff for 8 innings, severely limiting an already limited offense. Although the 8 strikeouts is down from what that total had been in some recent games, drawing only 2 free passes is no where near how Jay Johnson wants to see his lineup operate. As a unit, they were searching for answers and unable to string together good at bats, which has been the case for the last 5 weeks.
Pitching
Casan Evans was off from the very beginning, walking the leadoff hitter on 4 pitches. A hit by pitch put runners on 1st and 2nd for Kentucky’s star sophomore Tyler Bell. The shortstop did Evans a favor, though, swinging at the first pitch and grounding in to a 6-3 double play to Steven Milam. A strike away from escaping the rough start, Evans through a wild pitch and put the Wildcats on the board first. He’d give up a walk and infield hit, but was able to get out with any further damage. The damage would come in the 2nd after Kentucky got their first two hitters on base, again. A fly out to advance the runner to third base would set up an RBI single. Back to back walks and a sacrifice fly would push the deficit to 4-0 for the Tigers. Evans would allow the first two hitters to reach base for the third straight time to start the game in the 3rd, but was able to retire the next three hitters to finish his first scoreless inning. That’s where he started to work ahead and settle in, retiring 12 up, 12 down. The ace only allowed one more base runner from that point forward and he was erased with the second 6-3 double play of the night. Evans through less pitches in his final 4 innings than he did in his first 2 of the game. As bad of a start that it was, his ability to lock in and stay in as long as he did saved LSU’s short-staffed bullpen for the rest of the weekend.
- Final line: 6.0 IP / 4 hits / 4 runs / 3 Ks / 6 BBs / 100 pitches (53 strikes, 53%)
Ethan Plog entered for the 7th and was not as sharp as we’ve seen him be. A swinging bunt put him in a tough spot to start the inning, but he followed that with a walk. After a big first out with a strikeout looking, Ethan Hindle hit a ball deep to centerfield and despite the leaping attempt and the ball hitting his glove, Derek Curiel was unable to make the gold glove catch and Kentucky was on the scoreboard for the first time since the 2nd inning. Plog’s night was over, but the damage to his final line was not.
- Final line: 0.1 IP / 2 hits / 3 runs / 0 Ks / 0 BBs / 16 pitches (11 strikes, 69%)
Mavrick Rizy entered with runners on 2nd and 3rd and only 1 out with LSU already down 5-2. For LSU to have any chance considering the state of their offense, it felt like the Wildcats simply could not score anymore, but certainly not twice. With the infield drawn in, a Trent Caraway fielded a ground ball way too far back to have a chance at making a play at home, but tried anyway. The runner was safe by a mile and the Tigers failed to record an out, which set up a sacrifice fly from the next hitter and both of Plog’s baserunners that Rizy inherited ended up scoring to make it 7-2. He returned in the 8th and was lights out, striking out two and recording a ground out to Ethan Clauss, who came in to the game as a defensive replacement. In the 9th, Rizy struck out the leadoff hitter, but a 1-out single would end his night.
- Final line: 2.0 IP / 1 hit / 0 runs / 3 Ks / 0 BB / 25 pitches (20 strikes, 80%)
Seldom used Danny Lachenmayer would enter for his first ever SEC appearance. He threw 2 pitches, both in the strike zone, and recorded a flyout.
- Final line: 0.1 IP / 0 hits / 0 runs / 0 Ks / 0 BBs / 2 pitches (2 strikes, 100%)
With 2 outs in the 9th, Jay Johnson would bring in Zion Theophilus. On his fourth pitch, Eddie Yamin, who came in for Omar Serna for the final inning, would throw out Bell trying to steal second base.
- Final line: 0.1 IP / 0 hits / 0 runs / 0 Ks / 0 BBs / 4 pitches (4 strikes, 100%)
Hitting
Seth Dardar was the only true positive for the offense tonight. After a couple games out of the starting lineup, the senior was back in there at DH and likely earned a spot for the rest of the weekend. Dardar finished 3-4 with 3 doubles and an RBI. His final double in the 9th inning was the hit that brought Alex Box to life and gave the team a sliver of hope to make the comeback. He also garnered praise from Jay Johnson after the game, as Coach noted the improvement that Dardar made with his plate approach.
The only other big swing of the night came from Derek Curiel. In the 3rd inning when LSU was down 4-0, they loaded the bases with no outs. Omar Serna had a fairly uncompetitive strikeout, brining up Curiel. The sophomore was up in a similar situation last Friday against Oklahoma, albeit later in the game, and was unable to come through. Tonight, Curiel ripped a single through the infield to drive home the first two runs of the game for the Tigers. He finished 1-4 with those 2 RBI.
Omar Serna, Zach Yorke, and Chris Stanfield each contributed 1 hit in tonight’s loss. Yorke and Stanfield each scored once.
Up Next
LSU and Kentucky will return tomorrow afternoon for a 2 pm central first pitch. William Schmidt (3-1) will make his first game 2 start of the season, moving up from his game 3 spot to fill the void following Cooper Moore’s triceps injury. Kentucky will answer with sophomore RHP Nate Harris. He holds a 4.97 ERA with his 3-1 record. In his start at Ole Miss last week, Harris only went 3.0 innings and gave up 5 runs on 4 hits, so the Tigers could have opportunities to get the offense on track.
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