Top-rated Frogs hammer No. 4 LSU in Houston opener

TCU countered with five runs in the second inning after No. 4 LSU scored four in the bottom of the first and the top-ranked Horned Frogs went on to a 9-6 victory Friday night in the Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic before a crowd of 17,145 at Minute Maid Park.

Catcher Evan Skoug led TCU’s 12-hit attack, going 4 for 5 with an RBI. Designated hitter Luken Baker was 2 for 5 with two RBIs.

In the top of the second, Austen Wade’s three-run home run scored Connor Wanhanen and Ryan Merrill. Baker followed in the inning with a two-run home run, scoring Skoug to give the Frogs a 6-4 lead.

That was the end of the night for LSU ace Alex Lange, a junior who came into the game 2-0 with an 0.82 ERA. Lange gave up five hits, three walks and six earned runs in 1 2/3 innings.

Cam Warner singled in Nolan Brown in the fifth to make it 7-4, and Skoug singled in Elliott Barzilli in the seventh.

Baker made it 9-4 in the top of the ninth when he advanced to third base on a wild pitch and scored on a throwing error.

The Frogs (8-1) got on the board in the top of the first when Josh Watson doubled to score Barzilli

Brian Howard started on the mound for the Frogs and weathered the four-run first by LSU (8-2). He pitched five innings, giving up eight hits and four runs. Freshman Charles King provided a sparkling four innings of relief, allowing only two hits and two runs.

In the opening game, No. 20 Texas A&M (9-1) rolled to a 9-0 win over Texas Tech (9-2) behind the pitching of Brigham Hill.

Baylor (10-0) shut out No. 9 Mississippi 4-0 as Nick Lewis allowed two hits in seven innings.

This story was originally published March 3, 2017 at 11:55 PM with the headline "Top-rated Frogs hammer No. 4 LSU in Houston opener."