Christian Macleod’s Friday night did not go according to plan, as the Mississippi State starter left the mound in the second inning with the bases loaded. From there, Bulldog relievers sat down 22 of the next 23 batters, 19 straight before a ninth inning lead-off walk, and State got 6 runs in the fifth inning to grab an 8-3 win over the Golden Flashes at Dudy Noble Field.
Home Cookin'#HailState🐶 pic.twitter.com/wn5VzMG3KF
— Mississippi State Baseball (@HailStateBB) March 6, 2021
Macleod was down 3-1 when Chris Lemonis finally came to end his evening, throwing 57 pitches in 1.2 IP giving up 3 hits and allowing 4 walks. State turned to Brandon Smith in the jam, who promptly pitched 4.1 perfect innings in relief. The Bulldogs finally cashed in on baserunners in the fifth, getting RBI hits from Tanner Allen, Luke Hancock, and Landon Jordan to go with a couple of Golden Flash miscues, scoring six runs in the frame. State finished the scoring with a Logan Tanner RBI single in the 8th.
Big Hit Hammer 🔨 pic.twitter.com/lEN6LJ8chc
— Mississippi State Baseball (@HailStateBB) March 6, 2021
Perhaps of the most importance for Mississippi State was the first appearance of the season of pitcher Will Bednar, who had missed the previous two weekends with an undisclosed neck injury. Bednar pitched a perfect seventh inning, striking out two and hitting 96 MPH on the stadium radar gun. Carlisle Koestler pitched the final two innings, striking out four batters. State got 15 K’s in the game, one game after the Bulldogs had 20 strikeouts against Southern Mississippi.
1-2-3 @bednar_will 🔥 pic.twitter.com/51EiAA7iag
— Mississippi State Baseball (@HailStateBB) March 6, 2021
State improves to 7-2 on the season. The Bulldogs will look to take the series tomorrow with sophomore Eric Cerantola on the mound, first pitch is set for 2:00 PM.
Photo courtesy of Mississippi State athletics
