OMAHA, Neb. — Florida spotted LSU a 3-1 lead before scoring 23 straight runs to take Game 2 of the Best-of-Three series 24-4 and set up a winner-take-all contest for Monday night in Omaha.
Florida, which was in a must-win situation, scored 6 runs in the third, one in the fourth, five in the sixth, two in the seventh, four in the eighth and five in the ninth – 24 runs in all on 23 hits.
The 24 runs were the most in a Men’s College World Series game.
"It was a tough one, obviously," said LSU coach Jay Johnson. "Really good job by Florida swinging the bat. You have to credit them. It was just an onslaught of good at-bats and barrels. And they're a great team, and they played great today."
The silver lining for LSU is that despite being outscored by 19 runs over the first two games, the series is tied at one game apiece and Monday night’s winner will take home the prize.
LSU ace Paul Skenes’ status for the game is uncertain. On only three days rest, it is unlikely he would get a traditional start, but, he could possibly throw a small amount of pitches.
LSU’s pitching had been stellar all CWS long until Sunday when the dam broke and the water poured through.
"Look at the two teams that are playing," Johnson said. "These are the two best teams in college baseball. Would I have liked today to have been different? Yeah. I think we were prepared to play at the beginning of the game. And then we asked Nate to get out there and give us everything he could. I'm really excited about tomorrow night. And I know our players are too."
