Tigers continue climb in SEC West

• By CARL DUBOIS
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: May 4, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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LEXINGTON, Ky. — After 19 innings of baseball Saturday, the LSU Tigers left Cliff Hagan Stadium with an eight-game winning streak and a lot of smiles.

LSU defeated Kentucky 3-1 in 10 innings to start a doubleheader, then finished it with an impressive 12-5 victory in which the Tigers never trailed.

Two weeks after falling to 6-11-1 in the Southeastern Conference, LSU is 11-11-1 and could finish the weekend alone in first place in the Western Division.

“I feel good about the way the kids are playing,” LSU coach Paul Mainieri said. “I’ve felt good about the way they’ve been playing for more than a month.

“Now we’re finding the secrets to winning, and their confidence is growing with each passing day. They’re starting to really believe that they can do it, and it’s fun to watch them. They’re a confident group.”

LSU (31-16-1) hasn’t lost since April 19 against Georgia, a 9-8 loss that saw the Tigers erase a seven-run deficit in one inning, only to lose in the next inning.

Senior pitcher Jared Bradford, who closed out both victories Saturday, was among those smiling, but he insisted he wasn’t surprised by LSU’s hot streak.

“Nobody ever lost confidence,” Bradford said. “I think everybody’s gotten better, myself included. I’ve learned a lot as this year’s gone on, and I think everybody’s done the same. Everybody’s matured, and not only individually, but as a whole.

“I think we’ve understood how to fight back. Coach said earlier that we were very resilient, and I agree with that. It’s just finally starting to pay off.”

Kentucky (34-13) is tied with Tennessee for last place in the SEC East at 11-12. LSU handed Kentucky its only back-to-back losses of the season at Cliff Hagan Stadium, where the Wildcats are 25-4.

The final game of the series is scheduled for noon today.

LSU can become the first team to sweep Kentucky in a three-game in Lexington since 2004, when Florida did so in Kentucky coach John Cohen’s first season as coach of the Wildcats after being a Florida assistant coach.

The Tigers won the first game Saturday with a two-out rally in the 10th inning. Chris McGhee singled and stole second, and Michael Hollander drove him in with a double to left-center for a 2-1 lead.