It was a stellar weekend of college baseball in Mississippi with all three of the state’s major programs opening conference play with big series wins.
Ole Miss, Mississippi State, and Southern Miss, though unranked, made great cases to appear in the upcoming top 25 rankings after taking care of business. In Oxford, the Rebels (15-6) took two out of three from No. 20 South Carolina. The Bulldogs (15-6) run-ruled the defending national champion LSU squad in a rubber match to secure the series at home. The Golden Eagles (14-6) brought out the brooms for a clean sweep over Marshall at Pete Taylor Park.
Ole Miss vs. No. 20 South Carolina
Game one (Ole Miss 5, South Carolina 4)
Recap: Ole Miss took a two-run lead in the bottom of the sixth inning and relied on a strong showing from the bullpen to win the closely contested game.
Winning pitcher: Mitch Murrell — One strikeout recorded and nothing allowed in one inning pitched. Gunnar Dennis got the start, throwing five innings, striking out seven, and surrendering three runs from five hits. Conner Spencer was credited with the save with one strikeout amassed in 1.2 innings pitched.
Impact batter: Luke Hill — Two hits, one score, and two RBIs.
Game two (Ole Miss 12, South Carolina 3)
Recap: The Rebels held a one-run lead going into the bottom of the eighth and got not one, not two, but eight insurance runs to put the game out of reach.
Winning pitcher: Liam Doyle — 10 strikeouts, but three runs surrendered from six hits in 5.1 innings pitched.
Impact batter: Andrew Fischer — Three hits, three home runs, five RBIs.
Game three (Ole Miss 2, South Carolina 6)
Recap: South Carolina, in desperation mode to salvage a game of the series, took an early lead and capitalized on a dominant showing on the mound for the win.
Losing pitcher: Grayson Saunier — Only two strikeouts recorded and six runs given up from nine hits through 4.1 innings pitched.
Impact batter: Tyler Causey (South Carolina) — One hit, one home run, and two RBIs.
Mississippi State vs. No. 2 LSU
Game one (Mississippi State 10, LSU 4)
Recap: Trailing 3-1 going into the bottom of the ninth, Mississippi State’s bats heated up, scoring three runs to take the lead, and added five more runs of insurance in later innings to wrap game one in maroon and white
Winning pitcher: Nolen Stevens — Eight strikeouts recorded and only one run surrendered in 5.1 innings pitched. Evan Siary got the start and struck one batter out, but allowed three runs from five hits in three innings pitched.
Impact batter: Hunter Hines — Two hits, two home runs, and four RBIs.
Game two (Mississippi State 8, LSU 9)
Recap: Comeback efforts proved futile as the Bulldogs were unable to fully climb out of a 9-1 hole that was dug by the Tigers in the first three innings.
Losing pitcher: Khal Stephen — One strikeout, five earned runs allowed from five hits through two innings pitched.
Impact batter: Tommy White (LSU) — Two hits, one home run, three RBIs.
Game three (Mississippi State 15, LSU 5)
Recap: A two-out rally in the bottom of the eighth inning helped turn a seven-run lead into a 10-run advantage, cutting the game short with Mississippi State run-ruling LSU in the rubber match.
Winning pitcher: Jurrangelo Cijntje — 10 strikeouts amassed, but three earned runs surrendered from five hits through six innings pitched.
Impact batter: Dakota Jordan — Two hits, one home run, and four RBIs.
Southern Miss vs. Marshall
Game one (Southern Miss 8, Marshall 4)
Recap: Southern Miss took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first and never allowed the Thundering Herd to flip the scoreboard to open Sun Belt play on a high note.
Winning pitcher: Nikko Mazza — 10 strikeouts recorded, but four earned runs allowed from six hits through 6.1 innings pitched. Kros Sivley was credited with the save, striking out three through 2.2 scoreless innings.
Impact batter: Davis Gillespie — Three hits, one home run, and five RBIs.
Game two (Southern Miss 2, Marshall 1)
Recap: A walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 13th inning gave Southern Miss the series win and fans at Pete Taylor Park a thrilling finale to a round of low-scoring baseball.
Winning pitcher: JB Middleton — Nothing allowed in 0.2 innings pitched. Billy Oldham got the start, striking out eight and only surrendering one run through eight innings pitched.
Impact batter: Davis Gillespie — One hit, one home run, and one RBI.
Game three (Southern Miss 7, Marshall 5)
Recap: Southern Miss scored four runs in the bottom of the seventh to end a scoring stalemate and staved off Marshall’s comeback attempt in the top of the ninth to mount the clean sweep.
Winning pitcher: McCarty English — Two strikeouts, but three earned runs given up from four hits in 2.2 innings pitched. Will Armistead got the start, striking out one, and only allowing one run in five innings pitched. JB Middleton was credited with the save, closing out 0.1 innings of scoreless ball.
Impact batter: Carson Paetow — One hit, one home run, and three RBIs.
