Pontiff Classic tix on sale Thursday

Tickets go on sale Thursday, February 14 for the Wally Pontiff, Jr. Baseball Classic between the Louisiana State University Tigers and the University of Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles, to be played at Zephyr Field on Wednesday, April 3 at 7:00 p.m.

All tickets are $15 each, and are available at the Zephyr Field box office or at any Ticketmaster location. Tickets may be charged by phone with Ticketmaster at 800-745-3000 or online at ticketmaster.com.

The 10th annual contest will mark the fourth consecutive year LSU and USM have met in the Classic. In 2010, the Tigers won a 6-5 extra-inning thriller, rallying for two runs in the bottom of the 12th and winning the game on pinch-hitter Wet Delatte's two-out single.

In 2011, the Tigers again came from behind to defeat the Golden Eagles, scoring three times in the bottom of the eighth.

Last year, LSU overcame an early 2-0 deficit, taking advantage of 10 walks issued by Southern Miss pitchers to earn an 8-3 victory, the Tigers' fifth in a row in the Classic.

The event began in 2004 with LSU taking on Southeastern Louisiana, and the Tigers hold a 7-2 all-time record in the game.

Pontiff Jr., a Metairie native who died unexpectedly on July 24, 2002, was a three-year letterman for LSU. He was the designated hitter on LSU's 2000 NCAA championship team, and was the Tigers' starting third baseman in 2001 and 2002. A Biological Sciences major with a 3.25 GPA, Pontiff was named to the 2002 District VI Academic All-America team, and he was a two-time member of the Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll. Pontiff was taken in the 21st round of the 2002 draft by the Oakland Athletics, and had not decided whether to return to LSU for his senior year.

Some of the charities and non-profit organizations in the community the Wally Pontiff Pontiff Jr. Foundation supports are Jefferson Parish Recreation Department, Camp Summer Tribe, LSU Scholarship Programs, and Sisters Servants of Mary.

Pontiff Classic results
4/14/04: LSU 9, Southeastern Louisiana 3
4/6/05: LSU 8, Rice 2
5/16/06: Rice 6, LSU 3
4/18/07: New Orleans 5, LSU 4
5/13/08: LSU 7, New Orleans 6 (15 innings)
4/22/09: LSU 10, Louisiana-Lafayette 6
4/7/10: LSU 6, Southern Miss 5 (12 innings)
4/20/11: LSU 8, Southern Miss 6
4/11/12: LSU 8, Southern Miss 3