It was the storyline Mississippi State fans have seen so many times before, getting out to an early lead on LSU only to see the Tigers claw back into it and be in position for some ninth inning Bulldog heartbreak. This time, the script got a rewrite, as Cole Gordon stranded two Tigers upon entering the game in the eighth, then got the save thanks to a Dustin Skelton throw that nailed LSU’s Antoine Duplantis as he tried to get into scoring position, giving the Diamond Dawgs a 6-5 win in Game 1 of this pivotal SEC series. LSU grabbed a 2-0 lead in the first off a Daniel Cabrera two run bomb, but State would get on top in the third off a Justin Foscue three run blast deep into the Left Field Lounge. State would take on three more, two coming off back to back homers in the fifth from Elijah MacNamee and Foscue again. LSU would get back in the game in the eighth, tacking on three runs to get to the final margin, but could do no more against Gordon. State improves to 24-3, 5-2 in the SEC.
WAY OUTTA HERE
MAC MASH!
MacNamee turns on one and drives it over the foul pole in left!#HailState🐶 | State 5, LSU 2 pic.twitter.com/p00Liy36fd
— Mississippi State Baseball ⚾️ (@HailStateBB) March 29, 2019
I tried to find video of this, because if you missed it, you missed what I am saying is the longest home run I have ever seen at Dudy Noble. MSU tracked the ball at 388 feet, but this is a case of technology being off, because this ball literally left the stadium in left field. MacNamee knows a thing or two about big home runs, but this one may have been his biggest in terms of distance. Behind him in the lineup, Justin Foscue now has nine bombs on the season. We asked Foscue if his power surge has caught him by surprise, and he gave a confident answer, saying not at all.
SMALL PITCHES BIG AGAIN
K counter: 9️⃣
Ethan Small is through four.#HailState🐶 | State 3, LSU 2 pic.twitter.com/MJZsEmvHYB
— Mississippi State Baseball ⚾️ (@HailStateBB) March 29, 2019
Small would finish with 10 strikeouts in five innings pitched, as he really settled down after that first inning mistake. He did have an uncharacteristic four walks on the night, but all in all, he was very strong, part of a Bulldog staff that would ring up seventeen Tigers on the evening. State probably would have liked to have Small get a little deeper in the game, but when you are getting those kind of strikeout numbers, the pitch count is going to be high. It’s an issue Coach Chris Lemonis is willing to deal with if Small will continue to keep batters going from the plate to the dugout with such regularity.
WHAT’S NEXT?
If LSU found hitting off Ethan Small challenging, then I have bad news for the purple and gold tomorrow, as super freshman JT Ginn will be on the hill for Mississippi State. Ginn will be looking to run his record to 7-0 on the season, the Tigers will a freshman of their own, right hander Cole Henry. First pitch is set for 6 PM as MSU looks to take its third straight SEC series.
Photo courtesy of Mississippi State athletics
