Bayou Brew 4/14: Gymnastics Is Championship Bound!

Good morning. LSU women’s golf leads the SEC Championship after two rounds! Stay tuned throughout the weekend to see where they land.

What's steeping in today's Brew?

🤸‍♀️ Gymnastics keeps climbing
⚾️ Baseball blasts by Kentucky
🐯 And much, much more!

Star Power. Dylan Crews and Paul Skenes have been dominating not only the SEC, but the entire country all season long. If you remember when Dylan Crews hit his first collegiate home run, Paul Skenes was on the mound. This week’s episode of The Powerhouse features this duo and their journey as LSU Tigers. You can watch this episode for free on LSU Gold all weekend!

🔼 The Climb Continues. LSU gymnastics advanced to the NCAA Championship Final, which will be held on Saturday at 3:00pm. LSU and Florida both advanced in session one and will be competing against Oklahoma and Utah. The Tigers brought in the highest score of session one with a 197.4750. Haleigh Bryant dominated the bars, scoring a 9.9375. Aleah Finnegan scored an amazing 9.9625 on her floor routine. Before the final, check out the newest episode of The Climb to follow their incredible post season journey.

🔼 Grand Ol’ Time. LSU’s bats went crazy in last night’s 16-6 win over Kentucky. There was not one, but two grand slams launched by the Tigers. Jordan Thompson extended his home run streak to 4 games when he hit the first grand slam of the evening. Brayden Jobert decided that he wanted one too, so he grand slammed in the second inning. Cade Beloso joined the home run party in the third, making it his fifth of the season. Paul Skenes did his thing on the mound, striking out 13 batters and picking up his career 100th strikeout. It was a fantastic night for the Tigers. The series continues tonight at 6:30pm.

🔼 Beachin’. The 21-9 beach volleyball squad is back in Baton Rouge for the last time this season. The Tigers are hosting the Battle on the Bayou Tournament and Senior Weekend, welcoming Nicholls, No. 10 Stanford, North Florida, and Houston Christian throughout the weekend. Duo Lara Boos and Ella Larkin earned CCSA Pair of the Week this week after going 2-0 last weekend. Game one for LSU is today at noon against Nicholls, followed by a top-10 matchup with Stanford at 6:00pm.

🔼 Top-25 SEC Showdown. LSU softball heads to No. 21 Auburn tonight for a weekend SEC series with the Tigers. LSU is 7-3 in the last ten meetings with Auburn, but this will be LSU’s first trip there since 2017. Auburn sits on a two-game winning streak and have the second most home runs in the conference with 49.

Coffey Talk ☕️. Danieca Coffey still leads the SEC with a phenomenal .450 batting average and 59 hits. She leads the team with 34 runs scored and is tied with Ciara Briggs with nine stolen bases.

Pleasantville 🏠. Shortstop Taylor Pleasants is No. 4 in the SEC with 41 RBIs. She sits at No. 5 in program history with 37 career home runs. She’s batting .350 with 8 homers, 36 hits, and 25 runs scored this season.

In The Circle ⭕️. Freshman Sydney Berzon is No. 10 in the SEC with 85 strikeouts and a 1.68 ERA. Ali Kilponen has a 2.05 ERA with 82 strikeouts and three shutouts. She sits at No. 9 in the LSU record book with 444 career strikeouts.

The fun starts tonight at 5:00pm on SEC Network.

Final Four. LSU gymnastics has advanced to the NCAA Team Final more than once, but have never won.

Do you know how many times the team has advanced to the Final (including this season)?

Think you got it? Scroll to the bottom of this email for the answer. 

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Friday 4/14

⛳️ Women’s Golf at SEC Championship (Stroke Play, Day 3) @ 8:00am CT

🎽 Track & Field at Bryan Clay Invitational (Day 2) @ 9:00am CT

🏐 Beach Volleyball vs. Nicholls @ 12:00pm CT

🎾 Women’s Tennis at Vanderbilt @ 12:00pm

🎽 Track & Field at Tom Jones Memorial (Day 1) @ 1:00pm

🎾 Men’s Tennis vs. No. 17 Auburn @ 5:00pm

🥎 Softball at No. 21 Auburn @ 5:00pm | SEC Network

🏐 Beach Volleyball vs. No. 10 Stanford @ 6:00pm CT

⚾️ Baseball vs. No. 12 Kentucky @ 6:30pm CT | SEC Network+ 

Saturday 4/15

⛳️ Women’s Golf at SEC Championship (Match Play, if nec.)

🎽 Track & Field at Tom Jones Memorial (Day 2) @ 9:00am CT

🏐 Beach Volleyball vs. North Florida @ 10:30am CT

⚾️ Baseball vs. No. 12 Kentucky @ 1:00pm CT | SEC Network+

🥎 Softball at No. 21 Auburn @ 1:00pm CT | SEC Network+

🏐 Beach Volleyball vs. Houston Christian @ 2:00pm CT

🤸‍♀️ Gymnastics at the NCAA Championship @ 3:00pm CT | ABC

Sunday 4/16

🎾 Women’s Tennis at Kentucky @ 11:00am CT

🎾 Men’s Tennis vs. Vanderbilt @ 12:00pm CT

🥎 Softball at No. 21 Auburn @ 3:00pm CT | ESPN2

Answer: 9

This will be LSU’s ninth appearance in the NCAA Team Final.

Have a great weekend, y'all.