With a free week between the SEC Baseball Tournament and the announcement of the regional lineups for the NCAA Tournament, the Tigers played a three-game series with Louisiana Tech in Baton Rouge. They swept the series, scoring 32 runs to Tech's eight.

LSU was sent to the NCAA Central Regional in College Station TX. The other teams were the host Texas A&M Aggies, the Nevada-Las Vegas Runnin' Rebels, the South Alabama Jaguars, the Jackson State Tigers, and the Brigham Young Cougars.

When asked his opinion of the strength of the College Station Regional, BYU Coach Gary Pullins replied, "It has all the ingredients of being a field that may be the best ever in an NCAA regional."

The #2-seed Tigers met #5 UNLV in the 11 AM opener. It couldn't have started any worse for LSU.

On a blustery day with 90-plus degree temperatures, 86% relative humidity, and an 18-mph wind blowing from home plate to centerfield, what was supposed to be a pitchers' duel turned into Russian Roulette instead.

The Rebels smacked 10 hits and built a 6-0 lead in the first three innings off LSU's All-America ace Ben McDonald. LSU made three errors, and all three beneficiaries scored. UNLV scored four runs in the first inning and single tallies in the second and third.

Righthander Paul Byrd took over in the fourth and held the Rebels scoreless for 2 2/3 innings. That gave the Tigers a chance not only to come back but to take the lead.

"It looked bleak. We needed a momentum change," said Coach Skip Bertman. "We took a gamble to take Ben out and see if we could get the momentum back with Paul Byrd. Paul did a great job. He shut 'em down for eight outs."

UNLV's southpaw starter Donovan Osborne, who, like MacDonald, would pitch in the major leagues, pitched three scoreless innings before the Tigers got to him for three runs in the fourth.

Donovan walked C Mike Bianco and LF Matt Gruver. Back-to-back doubles by 1B Pete Bush and CF Scott Schneidewind clouted a 450' homer over the 25'-high center-field wall.

"Maybe there was only one other ball I've ever hit in my life that went any farther," said an excited Schneidewind afterward. "I know I hit it well and maybe the wind helped it, but I'll take it."

LSU exploded for six runs in the fifth with the help of two defensive mistakes by the Rebels. SS Keith Osik drilled an Osborne pitch into right-centerfield for a sure double but pulled up lame on the way to second. However, the UNLV relay man didn't notice it and didn't throw the ball to the shortstop for what would have been a sure out.

RF Craig Cala popped a fly behind the plate, but the catcher lost the ball in the sun, and it hit the ground behind him. Given new life, Cala cracked his 14th homer of the season over the left-center field fence to cut the lead to 6-5.

Wes Grisham lofted his 18th round-tripper of the season and fifth in the last four games over the left field fence to tie the game at 6-6.

Cala said Grisham's clout "was a timely home run from any standpoint. It boosted the morale of the team. When Grisham hit it out, we went crazy."

But the Tigers weren't finished. Catcher and future Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco lined an 0-2 pitch into center field for a single. LF Matt Gruver lashed an RBI single into right field to put LSU ahead for the first time.

CF Scott Schneidewind put the finishing touch on the six-run inning when he belted Osborne's 1-2 fastball over the center field fence. That made it 9-6 LSU and sent Osborne to the showers.

"I knew I hit it good," said Schneidewind. "I knew it was going to go over the center fielder's head. I didn't know if it was going to go over the wall or not."

The Rebels scored four unearned runs in the 7th on C Der Manouel's grand slam. LSU infielders Keith Osik and Phil Espinosa made two-out throwing errors before reliever Curtis Leskanic walked the next batter to load the bases. That swing made it 10-9 UNLV.

The lead didn't last long. In the bottom of the 7th, Cala's clutch two-out single scored two to put the Tigers back in front 11-10.

LSU added to the lead in the 8th when Bianco scored on a wild pitch. 12-10 LSU.

But Tiger fans still couldn't breathe easy in the 9th. When the Rebels put two men on base with two outs, Bertman brought in lefty Mark LaRosa, who proceeded to load the bases by walking pinch hitter Jesse Medellin. But the southpaw got James Martin to pop out to end the three-hour, 26-minute marathon.

FINAL SCORE: LSU 12 UNLV 10

The Tigers' next foe was South Alabama, which defeated BYU 11-10 in Round 1.

LSU scored a run in the top of the second on Bianco's bad-hop single and another in third on Schneidewind's second homer of the weekend. The Jaguars answered with a run in the third off Russell Springer to cut the lead in half

The Tigers extended the margin to 4-1 in the 6th. DH Grisham drew a leadoff walk and scored on Gruver's double. Espinosa hit another bad-hop single to drive in Gruver. 4-1 LSU

Springer gave up a run in the bottom of the 6th on a triple and a sacrifice fly. 4-2 LSU

Then the roof caved in on the Tigers in the 7th. With Byrd on the mound, LF Logan Collins and 2B Harold Dueitt led off with singles.

Bertman brought in LaRosa to face SS Bob Filotei, but he lashed a drive down the left-field line to score Collins and send Dueitt to third. When Gruver fumbled the ball, Collins scurried to 2nd.

Lefty Mark LaRosa took over for Byrd and got Bobby Kahn on a fly to shallow right field. Then Mike Mordecai, theJaguars' leading hitter, bounced a chopper toward 3B Phil Espinosa. The ball bounced off his shoulder and into foul territory for an error that brought the tying run across the plate.

The sloppy fielding continued when Bobby Robertson lined a single to center, and the ball glanced off Schneidewind's leg to give the Jaguars their first lead of the game and leave two runners in scoring position. 5-4 Jaguars

Espinosa struggled with another grounder before recovering in time to throw the batter out at first, but Mordecai scored to make it 6-4 Jaguars.

Neither team scored again, and LSU dropped into the losers' bracket.