Tigers return to national rankings

• Advocate news services
• Published: May 6, 2008 - UPDATED: 6:15 a.m.

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The LSU baseball team surged into the national rankings Monday on the strength of a nine-game win streak, including back-to-back Southeastern Conference series sweeps.

The Tigers (32-16-1, 12-11-1 SEC) are ranked No. 22 by Baseball America magazine and Web site, No. 22 by USA Today/ESPN and No. 23 by Collegiate Baseball magazine.

LSU last appeared in the Baseball America poll on March 27, 2006, when the Tigers were ranked No. 16.

LSU last appeared in the Collegiate Baseball and USA Today/ESPN polls on April 17, 2006. The Tigers were No. 27 in the Collegiate Baseball poll and No. 18 in the USA Today/ESPN rankings.

LSU has recorded consecutive three-game sweeps over South Carolina and Kentucky to move into first place in the SEC Western Division. The Tigers are a half-game ahead of Ole Miss and Alabama in the division race with six conference games remaining.

The six straight SEC wins marked the first time LSU has recorded consecutive conference sweeps since 1998, when the Tigers swept Arkansas and Kentucky.

LSU resumes SEC action this weekend when the Tigers open a three-game series versus Mississippi State at 7 p.m. Friday in Alex Box Stadium.

LSU senior right-hander Jared Bradford, who pitched in all three games of LSU’s sweep at No. 16 Kentucky last weekend, was named SEC Pitcher of the Week on Monday by the league office.

Bradford earned a win and two saves at Kentucky in helping the Tigers extend their win streak to nine games.

Remarkably, Bradford made all three appearances within a 24-hour period as the teams played a doubleheader on Saturday and a single game on Sunday.

In Game 1, Bradford entered the contest in the ninth inning with the score tied 1-1; he worked two scoreless innings to earn the win as the Tigers posted a 3-1, 10-inning victory. Bradford threw 17 pitches, allowing no hits while recording no walks and one strikeout.

Bradford returned to the mound in Game 2 the same day, pitching the final four innings (46 pitches) to pick up a save in LSU’s 12-5 triumph.