No. 5 Mississippi State Baseball Continues Winning Ways With 7-3 Midweek Win Over Louisiana Tech

STARKVILLE, Miss. — No. 5 Mississippi State baseball finished its final midweek contest of the regular season with a 7-3 win Tuesday night at Dudy Noble Field, finishing the year a perfect 14-0 in midweek contests.

MSU (43-10) scored two runs in the bottom of the second inning, three in the third and two in the fifth. Louisiana Tech (32-21) scored a single run in the top of the fifth inning before two more runs came around to score in the seventh inning.

Offensively, MSU compiled 12 hits in the win. Senior Marshall Gilbert was responsible for three RBIs, including a two-run home run in the bottom of the second. He finished the game 2-for-4 at the plate with one run scored. Joining him with a multi-RBI night was sophomore Rowdey Jordan, who finished with two hits, two runs and two RBIs. Sophomore Justin Foscue tallied a team-high three hits to go along with two runs scored, while sophomore Jordan Westburg and freshman Luke Hancock also joined the multi-hit club with two apiece.

After a scoreless first inning, MSU used a two-run home run to take a 2-0 lead after two innings of baseball. Hancock hit a one-out single to center field before a groundout moved him to second. Gilbert then hit a two-out, two-RBI home run to right field to cap off the inning.

State pushed across three more runs in the third inning to take a 5-0 lead over Louisiana Tech. Sophomore Tanner Allen drew a one-out walk before Foscue followed up with a single to center field and moved up a base on the throw to put runners on second and third. Jordan’s double down the left field line then plated them before an RBI single from Skelton scored Jordan,

Tech ended the shutout in the top of the fifth inning when sophomore Taylor Young sent a ball over the left field fence to make it a 5-1 game. Foscue led MSU’s half of the fifth off with a single up the middle before Jordan drew a walk to put two runners on with no outs. After a strikeout, Hancock plated Foscue with a single through the left side before am RBI single from Gilbert made it 7-1.

The score would remain the same until the eighth inning when Tech managed two runs on three hits. Junior Parker Bates hit a one-out single single to first base. An out via a pop up would follow, but a single from senior Chris Clayton and a two-RBI double from senior Shelton Wallace plated the two runs to make it a 7-3 ballgame.

In the ninth inning, graduate student Cole Gordon pitched a perfect 1-2-3 inning to end the game.

Freshman right-hander Brandon Smith (3-0) got the start on the mound and earned the win after throwing two scoreless innings where he allowed three hits and struck out one batter. Redshirt-junior righty Keegan James then allowed one run on four hits in three innings of work. He struck out two batters and walked one. Junior southpaw Jack Eagan then pitched a scoreless sixth inning where he struck out one batter and surrendered two walks.

Four relievers then combined to pitch the seventh and eighth innings. Redshirt-junior Tyler Spring surrendered a walk and a hit in two-thirds of an inning. Senior Jared Liebelt then struck on one in two-thirds of an inning. Redshirt-junior Trysten Barlow and freshman Eric Cerantola rounded out the eighth inning with both relievers allowing a run.

Gordon closed the door in the ninth inning via lineout, groundout and strikeout.

Redshirt-senior southpaw Logan Robbins (4-4) was charged with the Tech loss after allowing six runs on nine hits in 4 ¹⁄₃ innings of work. He struck out one batter and walked two.

State will be back in action Thursday when the Dawgs host South Carolina in the final regular season series of the year. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. CT. Friday’s game is also scheduled for 6:30 with the series finale at 1 p.m. on Saturday. All three games will be televised by SEC Network+.