The sixth-ranked LSU Tigers are back in action on Friday night, when they play host to the Tennessee Volunteers in the opening game of a three-game, weekend, SEC baseball series at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge.

The conference series will mark the seventh of the season for LSU, who trails Alabama by one game in the loss column in the SEC west.

The Tigers, who beat the Tulane Green Wave, 6-0, in non-conference play on Tuesday night, will come in at 31-10-1, overall, and 10-7-1 in SEC play.

Tennessee, who lost to East Tennessee St., 9-7, in non-conference action on Tuesday night, is currently 25-14, overall, and 7-11 in league play.

The Volunteers are currently in sixth place in the SEC east, five game behind first-place Florida.

LSU is currently hitting a .272 as a team, along with 19 home runs, 225 runs batted in, and 30 stolen bases. The Tigers are led, offensively, by Andrew Stevenson, who is hitting a .360, and Kade Scivicque, who is hitting a .313.

Tennessee, is currently hitting a .280 as a team, along with 15 home runs, 201 runs batted in, and 64 stolen bases. The Volunteers are paced by Nick Senzel and Christin Stewart, who are hitting a .352 and a .340, respectively.

Pitching-wise, the Tigers bring in a 2.41 team earned run average into  the series, with right-hander Aaron Nola, who will start on Friday night, leading the way, with a 7-1 record, and an ERA. of 0.88. Jared Poche  (6-3, 2.59) is the likely starter on Saturday, with Saturday TBA.

The Volunteers, who currently have an overall 3.39 ERA., are paced by sophomore left-hander Andy Cox, who is 3-1 with a 1.62 ERA, mostly out of the bullpen. Senior right-hander Nick Williams (4-4, 3.54) and freshman right-hander Hunter Martin (2-2, 3.23) are the likely starters in the first two games of the series, with TBA on Sunday.

LSU ranks 11th in the SEC in hitting, and fourth in pitching, while Tennessee ranks eighth in both hitting and pitching.

Game times are 7 o'clock on Friday night, 6:30 pm on Saturday night, and noon on Saturday afternoon.

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