COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Getting deep into ballgames hasn't been a strength for .
°Õ³ó±ðÌý junior right-handed pitcher had pitched past the sixth inning just once before his start Saturday night against . The lone outing was a seven-inning, 15-strikeout performance against North Alabama on March 8.
But as the seventh inning approached at Blue Bell Park, Eyanson was still in the game. A hitter reached on a dropped third strike in the inning, but he retired the other three batters before needing just six pitches to end the eighth.
Suddenly, it was the ninth inning and Eyanson had thrown only 94 pitches. Even as his outing ventured further into the night, his fastball velocity remained in the mid-90s.
"Adrenaline, you know? This is a great environment, a hostile environment, and (he's) a competitor," LSU coach Jay Johnson said. "I mean, to me, he looked like Michael B. Jordan in the movie 'Creed' going into the ring to face Drago's kid."
Eyanson allowed a single in the ninth but recorded three more strikeouts to close out the 2-1 win for LSU, handing the Tigers a victory in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader to even the series at a game apiece. The Aggies won the first game Saturday 3-1.
"That's the performance of the year on the mound," Johnson said. "I'm just proud of him. One recruit (can) tip your team one way or the other in this league, you know that. And he was the guy this summer we felt like we had to have.
"And everybody saw why tonight. He's one of the best pitchers in the country."
Eyanson allowed just three hits and struck out 14 on 112 pitches, three shy of his season-high. Johnson admitted afterward there was no way he was taking Eyanson out in the ninth.
"There's so much to be motivated about," Eyanson said. "I play for my family. They sacrifice so much for me to be in a position that I'm in. How could you not be grateful and excited to play with a team like this, in an environment like this? It's everything that I've ever wanted."
After tossing the final out, he turned toward the Texas A&M fans sitting in the second deck on the first-base line and cupped his hand around his ear. They had been relentlessly jeering him and his teammates since the first pitch of the night.
"They were loud all game," Eyanson said. "Nothing personal, but they let me hear it when the home run was hit, so I let them hear it when the game was over."
Eyanson cruised through the first four innings, striking out five and not allowing his first hit until the fifth. He ran into some trouble in the frame, letting two runners reach base with one out, but he recorded a pair of strikeouts to escape the inning.
He didn't allow a run until second baseman Ben Royo blasted a solo homer in the sixth that cut LSU's lead to 2-1.
Like in Game 1, LSU's bats were silent early on. The Tigers (38-10, 15-8 SEC) had just two hits and put only one runner in scoring position through the opening five innings.
They didn't break through until the sixth when junior Jared Jones and junior Ethan Frey hit back-to-back doubles off Aggies left-handed starter Justin Lamkin to give LSU a 1-0 lead.
The Tigers eventually got Lamkin out of the game after a sacrifice bunt from freshman Derek Curiel. The next batter, junior Daniel Dickinson, worked a walk before senior Josh Pearson laid down a push bunt that drove in Frey from third base and doubled LSU's advantage.
Junior Chris Stanfield nearly handed the Tigers a five-run lead with a three-run home run, but the ball landed just a few feet foul of the left-field pole. Stanfield eventually struck out to end the inning.
"That ball clearly went behind the foul pole. I think it's kind of bogus," Frey said. "But, I mean, we've got the rest of the game to play and worry about."
LSU finished with six hits and went 1 for 10 with two outs. It was a big night for Frey who had three of LSU's first four hits.
"(I was) just trying to get my pitch. Seeing a lot of pitches helped me a lot, seeing what the kid on the mound had," Frey said. "Just waiting to get mine, and kind of just going when I did get mine."
LSU and Texas A&M (26-20, 9-14) conclude their three-game series on Sunday. First pitch from Blue Bell Park is set for 1 p.m. and the game will be available to stream on SEC Network+.
