STARKVILLE — Mississippi State’s baseball team is headed back to Omaha, Nebraska.
For the second time in as many years, MSU (51-13) will play in the College World Series after dispatching of Stanford (45-14) by an 8-1 score Sunday night at Dudy Noble Field in Game 2 of the Starkville Super Regional.
The Bulldogs’ win gave the hosts a series sweep after taking down the Cardinal 6-2 on Saturday.
Junior catcher Dustin Skelton led the offensive charge with a 2-for-4, three-RBI night. Skelton’s three-run triple off the top of the right-center field wall in the third inning broke a 1-1 tie and put MSU ahead for good.
Senior outfielder Elijah MacNamee notched a storybook ending to his final game at Dudy Noble with a three-run, ninth-inning home run.
On the mound, senior starter Peyton Plumlee threw 6 2/3 innings, allowing just one run on two-hits. Plumlee’s six strikeouts were his second-highest single-game total of the season.
Seniors Jared Liebelt and Cole Gordon closed things out in relief of Plumlee, combining for 2 1/3 innings of two-hit ball.
The victory gives MSU its 11th ever CWS appearance and third since 2013.
The Bulldogs will face, in their Omaha opener, the winner of today’s decisive Game 3 of the Chapel Hill Super Regional between No. 14 seed North Carolina (46-18) and Auburn (37-26).
Joining MSU in its half of the bracket will also be Michigan and No. 2 seed Vanderbilt, both of whom advanced Sunday. The Commodores won two straight to stave off elimination against Duke, while Michigan knocked off overall No. 1 seed UCLA in a three-game super regional.
CWS game times have yet to be announced.
Ben Portnoy reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @bportnoy15.
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