Frisco, Texas - No. 2 Louisiana State University won the 2025 Frisco College Baseball Classic after they defeated Sam Houston State University 12-8. Senior Josh Pearson, who went 6-9 with two RBI and three doubles in the three-day tournament, won the most valuable player award.
LSU head coach Jay Johnson praised Peak Events and how professional the tournament has been. Johnson loves coming to events hosted by Peak and has high respect for them
“First off I want to say thank you to everyone at the tournament. This is a first class event and there’s a reason we come here. It was a great weekend for our team.”, said Johnson.
Sophomore Connor Zaruba started for Sam Houston but was pulled in the second inning after giving up seven runs on six hits. Junior Danny Valadez replaced Zaruba, lasting 2.1 innings and allowing four runs on four hits before being replaced in the fifth.
Sophomore Chase Shores delivered a strong start for LSU, pitching five innings and allowing four runs on seven hits while striking out five. Junior Kade Woods and freshman Cooper Williams struggled in the sixth, combining to allow three runs with both not making it out of the inning. The Tiger bullpen would send another four relievers for the last three innings.
The Tigers’ offense, who was held hitless in the first, exploded in the second. Sophomore Steven Milam led off with a solo home run. Seniors Josh Pearson and Luis Hernandez followed with singles, and senior Michael Braswell laid down a sacrifice bunt to move them to second and third.
Junior Chris Stanfield grounded out to short, scoring Pearson, and freshman Derek Curiel walked. Junior Jared Jones then stepped up and doubled to left-center, driving in two more. Junior Ethan Frey capped the inning with a 386-foot three-run homer, extending LSU’s lead to 7-0.
Sam Houston responded in the third. Sophomore Addison Smith singled, and sophomore Jace Martinez reached on a fielder’s choice error, advancing Smith to second. Freshman Parker Blackman singled through the left side, scoring Martinez, and later stole second. Senior Hunter Autrey followed with an RBI single, cutting the deficit to 7-2.
LSU answered in the bottom of the third. Pearson drew a walk, and Hernandez singled, putting runners on first and second. Braswell laid down another sacrifice bunt, setting up Stanfield to hit a fielder’s choice grounder that scored Pearson. Curiel then doubled to the deepest part of left field on a 2-2 count, driving in Hernandez and pushing the lead to 9-2.
The Bearkats added a run in the fourth when Smith grounded into a fielder’s choice with the bases loaded, making it 9-3. LSU extended its lead in the bottom half. Junior Daniel Dickinson doubled down the left-field line, advanced on a wild pitch, and scored on Milam’s sacrifice fly. Hernandez then singled on an 0-2 pitch, driving in Pearson and giving the Tigers an 11-3 lead.
Sam Houston refused to go away, scoring again in the fifth. Autrey led off with a double, and junior Ty Marthiljohn followed with an RBI single, cutting the LSU lead to 11-4.
The Bearkats mounted a rally in the sixth. Woods allowed a single and two walks to load the bases, and Martinez singled to drive in a run. Williams replaced Woods but walked his first batter, forcing in another run. Autrey grounded out to second, scoring Smith, and sophomore Ryan Franden hit a sacrifice fly, cutting LSU’s lead to 11-7.
When asked about how deep their lineup is, Pearson commented on how many players they have that could be starters, but aren’t because they’re so deep. He mentioned that even with a deep roster, team chemistry is still high and everyone is rooting for everyone.
“You could throw nine different guys out there every single day and they’re going to compete with any team you put in front of us. I think that’s the big difference between what we've had in the past. We have like eight different outfielders that you could put out and win a game. Coach is comfortable putting them out there. Normally that can cause some controversy in the dugout, but that’s not the case here,” said Pearson.
Despite Sam Houston’s late push, LSU’s early offensive explosion and strong bullpen in the final innings secured the win. The Tigers finished the Frisco Classic a perfect 3-0, outscoring their opponents by a combined 12 runs. This win also marks coach Johnson’s fourth championship at a tournament hosted by Peak Events, with two of the three coming in years where he led his team to the College World Series.
Kommentare