Baseball To Battle Arch-Rival LSU At Alex Box Stadium
Apr 14, 2003 | Baseball
April 14, 2003
NEW ORLEANS, La. - The Tulane University baseball accomplished an impressive feat over the weekend with a three-game sweep of Conference USA foe Houston, but the road to the postseason gets even steeper on Tuesday when the Green Wave travel to Baton Rouge, La., to take on arch-rival LSU at 6:30 p.m. at Alex Box Stadium.
The clash between the nationally-ranked programs should be an interesting one as both teams enter the contest playing well as of late. Tulane is riding the crest of a four-game winning streak and LSU has won four of its last five. The Tigers have won eight of their last 10 contests while the Green Wave has seven victories over the same span.
None of that will matter on Tuesday, however, as the teams once again battle for state bragging rights in game two of a three-game season series. Tulane won the first meeting 5-4 in an 11-inning thriller at Zephyr Field on March 11, and the Louisiana baseball powers lock horns again on April 29 at the Louisiana Superdome.
Tuesday's game will feature one of Tulane's talented freshman hurlers as right-hander Matt Goebel will take the mound for the Green Wave where he will go up against senior righty Jake Tompkins of LSU. Goebel, who started the first Tulane/LSU game of the year, has had an up-and-down rookie campaign. He enters the contest 3-3 on the year with a 5.00 ERA, 31 strikeouts and seven walks in 45.0 innings of work.
Tompkins, meanwhile, comes into the game 0-3 with a 4.89 ERA. Tompkins has been good at keeping the ball over the plate and leads the Bayou Bengals with 47 strikeouts to just 15 walks. The Tiger veteran is one of several LSU hurlers expected to appear in the game.
Offensively, the Green Wave are hitting .323 as a team and are led by All-America candidate Michael Aubrey with a .469 batting average to go along with eight home runs and 47 RBI. Senior centerfielder Jonny Kaplan is next with a .366 average and a league-leading 33 stolen bases, and junior shortstop Tony Giarratano is close behind with a .354 mark and 17 stolen bases.
The Tigers counter with a .309 batting average and a .491 slugging percentage courtesy of 74 doubles, 11 triples and 45 home runs. Preseason All-American infielder Aaron Hill leads the team with a .385 batting average, followed by Ryan Patterson with a .325 mark. Patterson paces the squad with seven home runs while Hill leads the way with 33 RBI.
Tuesday night's matchup between Tulane and LSU marks the 280th meeting between the two teams on the diamond. LSU holds a 158-118-3 advantage in the all-time series, but Tulane has won six of the last nine matchups, including a three-game series victory over the Tigers in the 2001 Super Regional that sent Tulane to its first College World Series. Under 10th-year head coach Rick Jones, Tulane is 11-13 against the Tigers.
Following the showdown with the Tigers, Tulane returns home to take on C-USA foe UAB in a three-game series beginning Friday, April 18 at Turchin Stadium. For ticket information, contact the Tulane Athletics Ticket Office at (504) 861-WAVE.
