No. 6 Mississippi State sweeps Alabama with 7-3 win Saturday, locks up No. 3 seed

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The No. 6 Mississippi State baseball team beat Alabama 7-3 on Saturday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium to claim a three-game series sweep.

With the win, the Bulldogs end the regular season with a record of 40-13 (20-10 SEC), while the Crimson Tide finish at 29-22 (12-17 SEC). And with Vanderbilt losing to Kentucky, MSU has locked up the No. 3 seed for next week’s Southeastern Conference Tournament.

The Crimson Tide led 3-0 through two innings before the Bulldogs scored four runs in the fifth inning and three in the sixth to come away with the win.

MSU outhit Alabama 12-5 and all nine starters recorded a hit. Senior Tanner Allen, junior Luke Hancock and graduate student Scotty Dubrule each recorded two hits.

Freshman pitcher Jackson Fristoe got the start on the mound and tossed two innings, allowing three runs on two hits with three walks and a strikeout. Senior Houston Harding (6-2) then pitched 5 ²⁄₃ scoreless innings to earn the win. He allowed just two hits with two walks.

Alabama redshirt sophomore pitcher Landon Green (3-1) was charged with the loss after walking two batters and allowing one run in one-third of an inning.

In the bottom of the first inning, sophomore Peyton Wilson drew a leadoff walk before sophomore William Hamiter singled down the right-field line to put runners on the corners. A wild pitch then advanced Hamiter to second base. Both runners scored on sophomore Zane Denton’s two-RBI single through the right side.

Fristoe walked freshman Bryce Eblin and sophomore Jim Jarvis to begin the bottom of the second inning. A sacrifice bunt advanced both runners before Eblin scored on a groundout to make it 3-0.

After two scoreless innings, the Bulldogs struck for four runs in the top of the fifth inning. Dubrule led off with a single before freshman Kellum Clark hit another single and made his way to second on the throw, putting runners on second and third. Senior Tanner Leggett then reached on a fielder’s choice and Clark was called out for interference. Freshman Lane Forsythe followed with an RBI single and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Senior Rowdey Jordan was then hit by a pitch before Leggett scored on Allen’s groundout. A bases-loaded walked scored another run before Jordan scored on an error to give the Bulldogs a 4-3 lead.

MSU increased its lead to a game-ending 7-3 in the top of the sixth inning. Clark hit a ball to third and reached on an error. Leggett then bunted for a single before Forsythe laid down another bunt. The throw to first was wide, advancing Forsythe to second and scoring Clark. Jordan followed with a two-RBI single through the right side to end the game’s scoring.

The Bulldogs will now travel to Hoover, Alabama, and will open SEC Tournament play on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. CT against the winner of Tuesday’s Florida-Kentucky game. The winner of that game will play at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, while the loser will play at 9:30 a.m.