Tuesday was another painful night for Mississippi State baseball. The No. 4-ranked Bulldogs traveled to Hattiesburg fresh off a gut-check weekend in Arlington, Texas, with an extra-innings loss to No. 1 UCLA still fresh on the mind.
The ball didn’t bounce the Bulldogs’ way against the Bruins in a game of fine margins on Sunday, and it was the case again, only twice in quick succession, against the Golden Eagles in a 7-6 loss at Pete Taylor Park.
The Golden Eagles (12-1) extended their winning streak to 11 straight games, and came out with the confidence of a team on a hot run. Drey Barrett got things going with a three-run home run launched 450 feet beyond the outfield wall and into the Longleaf Trace for a 3-0 lead at the bottom of the first inning. An error at shortstop got another run home in the second, and Seth Smith added a solo home run in the fourth to make it 5-0.
The mounting pressure on MSU was palpable, but the Bulldogs found a response from the veterans. Noah Sullivan and Reed Stallman got MSU on the board with a three-run fifth, and two innings later, the top of the order all got aboard to put the pressure on the hosts.
It had the feeling of a make-or-break moment for MSU in the seventh with Reed Stallman at the plate. He was down 0-2 in the count with loaded bases and two outs. He needed a moment to refocus and chat with third base coach Kevin McMullan. He came back to take a ball low and out of the zone before ripping a hit through the gap into left field. James Nunnallee and Bryce Chances scored, and Ace Reese got home on the next at-bat from Ryder Woodson to give the Bulldogs a 6-5 lead.
The momentum seemed to finally break MSU’s way after a long game of struggling against USM’s bullpen, but the hosts weren’t done yet.
Freshman Maddox Miller, a Hattiesburg native and Oak Grove graduate, took the mound for MSU and did what he was supposed to do. He got a pair of strikeouts on USM batters swinging at balls in the dirt. The problem was that both pitches got past catcher Andrew Raymond to allow the batters a free run at first and bring in runners from scoring position. The first brought Matthew Russo home to tie the game at 6-6, and the second, nearly identical to the first, brought Drey Barrett in for the eventual winning run.
The Bulldogs still had two more innings at the plate, but they failed to find any hits. Nunnalle got close to a two-run home run in the eighth, but was robbed by the right fielder tracking it down at the wall. They’ll be back in Starkville for the next home series against Lipscomb, starting with Game One at Dudy Noble Field on Friday at 6 p.m.
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
