LSU: College World Series Champions

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LSU fans are excited.  The school has become College World Series Champions.

The Tigers won their sixth national title on Wednesday night.  The team broke open Game 3 of the College World Series finals with a five-run sixth inning that led them to an 11-4 win over Texas.

Jared Mitchell hit a three-run homer in the first inning as LSU (56-17) built a 4-0 lead. Texas (50-16-1) pulled even, but Mikie Mahtook’s tie-breaking double ignited the Tigers’ big sixth against the mistake-prone Longhorns.

“It’s everybody pulling together, a sense of urgency we had, and we began to play our best ball at the end of the year,” said Mitchell, voted the CWS Most Outstanding Player.

Mitchell added to the title he earned as a wide receiver on the 2007 LSU team that won the BCS championship. Earlier this month, he was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the first round.

It was the first national title for coach Paul Mainieri, who played his freshman year at LSU in 1976 and returned to the school after coaching stops at St. Thomas (Fla.), Air Force and Notre Dame.

“I’ve had wonderful kids everywhere I’ve been,” Mainieri said. “They’re all feeling a part of this. I’m so happy for these kids. They’ve done everything I’ve asked.

“They played great. They played great defense. Our pitching has been solid all year. When we got to the end of the season everyone was determined they would get it done. It’s been a coach’s dream to have a group like this.”

Anthony Ranaudo (12-3) got the win in a so-so outing that saw him allow four runs on eight hits and five walks in 5 1/3 innings. Brandon Workman (3-5) took the loss.

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