The LSU baseball team plays at Kennesaw State at 6 p.m. on Friday in the Hattiesburg Regional. The winner of Friday’s game will advance to Saturday’s elimination game and face the team from the other regional. The losers will play at noon on Saturday. Unless there are any major injuries, this game should be a close one.
Donovan Cash named
Donovan Cash was named SEC Baseball player of the week for this game between LSU and the Owls. The freshman catcher has already made a big impact on the Owls’ program. He is a three-time All-American and has hit 29 home runs. His outstanding play helped the Owls avoid a first round upset. The Owls are the only team to beat LSU this season.
The Owls are 35-26 overall and 19-11 in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The Owls earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The team is batting.301 with 61 doubles, seven triples, and 17 homers. They pitch very well, with a combined 6.08 ERA. The team has several solid players in the starting lineup, including Cash Young, who is a second-team All-American.
Josh Hatcher top-2 in two offensive categories
As of the time of this writing, Josh Hatcher is in the top two of the SEC Baseball rankings in hits and doubles. He’s tied for the lead in hits with 103 and is second in doubles with 25. His double against Liberty broke the KSU single-season record. Chris McGowan held the previous mark with 230.
The Owls have a strong offense, led by Cash Young, who became just the second KSU player to hit three home runs in the same game. The Owls also have an impressive hitting average, as Josh Hatcher went 3-for-4 with a double against the UGA Bulldogs. Meanwhile, LSU’s starting pitcher Devin Fontenot entered the game with two outs and pitched 3.1 scoreless innings. He only allowed two hits and walked one batter. That gave the Tigers plenty of time to interrupt their offense.
Tyler Simon top-2 in two offensive categories
Senior shortstop Tyler Simon led the Owls with four hits and drove in four runs against the University of Georgia. He has 126 hits in his four years in the SEC and was top-two in two offensive categories against the Tigers. In his 191st career game, Simon became the 10th Owl to reach 200 hits.
Both Simon and Money Younger are top-two in two categories in the SEC Baseball. Tyler Simon is the second Owl to reach the top of the rankings in both categories. He has 17 complete games and holds the KSU record for most house runs hit in a season. While Simon leads the Owls in two offensive categories, Money Younger leads the Tigers with 17 RBIs.
LSU pitching staff near top of SEC
LSU’s pitching staff is stacked with talent. Starting pitcher Ma’Khail Hilliard has a 6-0 record with a 4.31 ERA in 20 games this season. Right-hander Will Hellmers is a transfer from Arizona State who was 6-2 with a 3.93 ERA in 18 games last season. At the end of the season, Hilliard was the third starting pitcher in the SEC.
Hilliard and Fontenot were both discussed as returning for the 2022 season. Both will likely be competing for the starting job. Meanwhile, Johnson has worked hard on adding Trey Shaffer and Eric Reyzelman to his pitching staff. The pitching staff will have several top-level arms to choose from. LSU will have an extremely deep rotation in 2022. It’s important to remember that LSU will be competing for a national title this year, so any emergence of a top-level pitcher is a good sign for the Tigers.
Donovan Cash named as ASUN Freshman of the Year
Donovan Cash is a freshman at Kennesaw State. He has been named ASUN Freshman of the Year. The freshman has had a great season, posting 54 starts and leading his team with 28 multi-hit games. He is also ranked second on the team with 54 RBI and has 19 doubles and nine home runs. Cash was also named second-team all-conference and all-freshman team.
The award is Donovan Cash’s first Freshman of the Year honor since his first season at KSU. The outfielder has been a standout in the ASUN this season, and is a two-time team captain. He als
o earned the honor for being the first Owl to earn the distinction. Cash’s first ASUN Freshman of the Year honors come ahead of the start of the conference’s tournament in Fort Myers this week.
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