Bullpen falters as South Carolina baseball falls to LSU in second SEC Tournament game

South Carolina head coach Mark Kingston quipped before Wednesday’s SEC Tournament game against LSU that he would “flip a coin” to decide who would pitch for the Gamecocks.

Bogged down by injuries to starters Will Sanders, Noah Hall and top freshman Eli Jerzembeck, the No. 6 seed Gamecocks have limited options on the mound right now. Wednesday’s choice was Eli Jones, starting on short rest after last pitching Friday. And though Jones pitched admirably against LSU, USC’s lack of pitching depth became apparent as soon as he exited the game.

The No. 3 seed Tigers exploded against the USC bullpen to deal the Gamecocks a 10-3 loss, sending USC (39-18) to the losers bracket and setting up an elimination game Thursday at 10:30 a.m. against Texas A&M.

“I think when both teams had to go to the bullpen, that’s when (the game) changed,” Kingston said. “We were very inconsistent out of the bullpen. I thought the guys that came in made some big pitches, but my message to the team afterwards was it’s got to be about consistency, what you can show, what you do, but you’ve got to do it over and over.”

After starting Game 1 against Tennessee in USC’s last series of the season, Jones gave USC four solid innings Wednesday — his only blemish a two-run home run off the bat of Brayden Jobert — before he hit a wall in the fifth inning. The Tigers tallied back-to-back hits to start the fifth against Jones and then sunk their teeth into the underbelly of the bullpen.

Reliever Nick Proctor was the first USC reliever to emerge from the bullpen doors, and he promptly allowed a single to top LSU hitter Dylan Crews before walking in two runs on eight straight balls, then allowing two more runs on sacrifice flies. Seldom-used left-hander Jackson Phipps didn’t fare much better, giving up two runs on three hits in the sixth inning to help the Tigers put the game out of reach. Right-hander Brett Thomas gave up two more runs behind him.

A day after scoring nine runs on 12 hits against Georgia, the USC lineup had a tougher go of it against LSU right-hander Thatcher Hurd, who came into the contest with a 6.58 ERA in 41 innings this season. Hurd pitched better than his numbers would indicate, touching 96 mph on the radar gun and retiring the first 12 Gamecocks he faced.

Freshman slugger Ethan Petry ended the perfect game bid with a solo home run to lead off the fifth inning, but the Gamecocks otherwise mustered just three runs on five hits. Two of those runs scored on bases-loaded walks against the Tigers bullpen.

It didn’t help the Gamecocks that they lost catcher and three-hole hitter Cole Messina to an injury in the third inning. Messina took a foul tip off of his catcher’s mask in the second inning, and USC removed him from the game and replaced him with Jonathan French.

“He got a foul tip, and it jolted him a little bit,” Kingston said. “So he is in the concussion protocol. So we’ll have to evaluate that day-to-day.”

The Gamecocks will also need evaluate their pitching options for Thursday, with Kingston offering no hints on who it could be that gets the call. Weekend starters Jack Mahoney and Matthew Becker have yet to pitch during the tournament, and relievers Wesley Sweatt, Sam Simpson and Dylan Eskew also haven’t thrown.

Once again, it could come down to a flip of coin.

SEC Tournament schedule: Next USC baseball game

Thursday: vs. No. 10 Texas A&M, 10:30 a.m. (SEC Network)

Friday: winner of USC-Texas A&M plays at 4 p.m. vs. loser of LSU-Arkansas (SEC Network)