LSU Baseball Report/Bill Franques

TCU POSTS 8-4 CWS WIN OVER LSU; SEC CHAMPION TIGERS COMPLETE SEASON WITH 54-12 MARK

OMAHA, Neb. -- After entering in a tie game in the fourth inning, TCU reliever Trey Teakell retired all 13 batters he faced to help eliminate the LSU baseball from the 2015 College World Series, 8-4, on Thursday night at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha.

LSU (54-12), champion of the Southeastern Conference, saw its season come to an end just short of the CWS "final four." The Tigers managed seven hits while TCU collected 10 off eight Tigers pitchers.

“Right now my feelings are just very, very sad for our players that gave so much and so much effort this year with the goal of winning a national championship, and we've come a little bit short,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “In particular, it's going to be really difficult to say goodbye to a group of really wonderful kids that have played their last game for LSU. The tough thing about this business is you work so hard all year, really for the years leading up to this year. And you have hopes and aspirations, and then the finality of it is so quick and so cruel, really. You expect to be playing for the championship, and your team wins 54 games during the season and you win championships along the way, but the one you really want to win is so difficult.

“And tonight we just got outplayed. We got outplayed by a team that brought in a really good relief pitcher and he baffled us for five innings. We just didn't pitch quite well enough today. And they got a few big hits. We scratched and clawed and fought as hard as we could, but it was just not enough tonight. Because of that, our season comes to an end. But we've won a lot of games. We just couldn't win the last game of the year.”

Teakell (3-1) needed only 36 pitches to complete 4 1/3 perfect innings that put the Horned Frogs in a bracket final rematch against Vanderbilt on Friday. He entered with the game tied at 3-3 in the fourth inning and exited with two outs and no one on base in the eighth, leading 8-3.

LSU took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first innings against TCU starter Mitchell Traver. With one out, Jake Fraley drew a walk after an 11-pitch at bat, stole second and scored on a single through the right side by Kade Scivicque.

In the bottom of the second, the Horned Frogs responded with three runs off LSU starter Zac Person, who gave up singles to Evan Skoug and Dane Steinhagen before walking Derek Odell and then Keaton Jones with the bases loaded to tie the game, 1-1. After Hunter Newman entered relief of Person, Crain singled on the first pitch to drive in two runs and give TCU a 3-1 lead.

The Tigers came back in the next frame to tie the game at 3-3. Alex Bregman singled with one out and scored on a triple by Fraley, who then scored on a wild pitch by Traver.

Though Scivicque added another single, the Tigers were unable to drive home a go-ahead run off Traver.

After a walk in the top of the fourth, TCU went to Teakell in relief. He didn't allow a hit until he was lifted in the top of the eighth with two outs.

Meanwhile, the Horned Frogs added three more runs in the fifth when Austin Bain walked two of the first three batters in the inning. A double by Skoug scored Wanhanen to send Bain to the dugout. With Jake Godfrey on the mound, Steinhagen's single to right added two more runs to put the Horned Frogs ahead, 6-3.

TCU scored two runs in the seventh when Jesse Stallings walked Cody Jones to lead off the inning and Jeremie Fagnan added a bunt single. Jones came around to score on an RBI groundout by Skoug, and Steinhagen drove in Wanhanen for the Horned Frogs' final run.

Of LSU's five walks, four of the TCU runners scored.

LSU attempted to mound a rally with one out in the top of the ninth, as Chris Sciambra reached when TCU couldn't field a high pop-up in shallow left field. Andrew Stevenson hit a double inside the third base bag to cut the deficit to 8-4. A two-out single by Mark Laird and a stolen base put runners at second and third for Jared Foster, who struck out on three pitches from TCU reliever Preston Guillory.

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