As the Super Regional in Baton Rouge began, it was primed to play host to two of the nations best hurlers with opposing styles. Oklahoma's Jonathan Gray possess a 100+ mph fastball that he can break out at will while Aaron Nola, of LSU, throws with impressive control to keep batters guessing where the ball will cross the plate. With such high profile players going head to head, the pitch count was of utmost concern.
Locked in a stalemate, the Oklahoma Sooners couldn't get much going offensively off Nola who now stands 12-0 in starts. However, the moment to put pressure on the home team presented itself in the top of the 5th. Matt Oberste recorded the Sooners first hit with a double. Following him, Hector Loranzana laid down an increbible bunt to bring Obi around to the third and the pressure was on.
With one out and a runner in scoring position, Oklahoma failed to capitalize at the moment slipped through their fingers as LSU remained calm and collected. Nola allowed just two hits on the evening while pitching a complete game shutout.
For those watching the game live, it was easy to tell that Nola was winning the pitch count battle as he forced batters to ground out or pop out time and time again to retire the side in order.
Gray on the other hand was stellar as well, but the offensive power of the LSU ballclub was present from the early going. It wasn't until the eighth inning that the first run of the game would cross the plate. Jacoby Jones started it off with a triple marking the first time a Tiger had been in scoring position all night long. Tyler Moore then stepped in and knocked a double to bring Jones home.
It is time to regroup and focus as the aces are done. Hopefully Dillon Overton has a trick up his sleeve to slow down a potent LSU offense while Sunny Golloway motivates his Sooners to put the ball into play. Game two will be at 6:00 PM CST and can be found on ESPN2.