Gage Jump's stellar start moves LSU Baseball on in the SEC Tournament

Tigers starting pitcher Gage Jump 23 on the mound as the LSU Tigers take on the Vanderbilt Commodores at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge LA. Friday, April 5, 2024.
Tigers starting pitcher Gage Jump 23 on the mound as the LSU Tigers take on the Vanderbilt Commodores at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge LA. Friday, April 5, 2024. / SCOTT CLAUSE/USA TODAY Network / USA
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The LSU baseball team entered Tuesday with a great opportunity to bolster it's NCAA Tournament resume taking on the Georgia Bulldogs in round one of the SEC Tournament. The Bulldogs provided a chance to add a great win to the LSU resume as Georgia entered the matchup ranked sixth in the Baseball RPI.

Taking the mound for LSU was Gage Jump on just four days rest something that Jay Johnson said the staff has been preparing him for. On just four days rest, Jump was stellar pitching seven innings, allowing just four hits and one earned run striking out seven on 105 pitches. Jump was incredibly efficient throwing 75 of his 105 pitches for strikes. The defense gave Jump and the bullpen help all day make several plays worth of Sportscenter recognition.

At the plate, the Tigers were dominant racking up 14 hits and drawing seven walks as they harassed Bulldogs pitchers. The top of the order set the tone as Braswell and White combined for six hits and two RBIs while Josh Pearson drove in three runs.

The bullpen was solid in its two innings of relief as Griffin Herring pitched two scoreless frames allowing two groundball singles but, working around them. The Tigers shut down the dangerous Charlie Condon holding him hitless in four at-bats which played a huge role in the team's win.

LSU Baseball: One more win makes Tigers a lock for NCAA Tournament

The LSU Tigers entered this series needing atleast two wins to be a lock for the NCAA Tournament while many had the Tigers in regardless. Now LSU has picked up a win over the sixth ranked team in the sport and will have a chance to add another against Kentucky on Wednesday. The Tigers have avoided the single elimination portion of the tournament and now have two cracks at getting the win needed to ensure the season rolls on.