Mississippi State erupts late to rout Lipscomb in Starkville Regional opener
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Mississippi State woke up from an early offensive slumber and ultimately had no problem beating Lipscomb on Friday afternoon in the Starkville Regional opener.
On a first day of the NCAA baseball tournament marked by some drama and also some shocking upsets, No. 14 overall seed Mississippi State scored 3 times in the fourth inning to break a scoreless tie and tacked on 5 runs in the seventh to put things away in a 10-1 victory that got the Bulldogs’ drive for Omaha off to a rousing start.
The Bulldogs pounded out 10 hits on those 10 runs, played error-less baseball and came within one frame of earning a shutout in its regional opener. Right-hander Duke Stone was in complete control all day, tossing 6 scoreless innings while allowing 3 hits, walking none and striking out 10.
Tyler Pitzer took the pitching baton from Stone, throwing 2 scoreless frames in relief while allowing 1 hit and 1 walk. Jack Gleason closed it out in the ninth, getting the ball with a 10-0 lead and needing 27 pitches to grind through that last frame while allowing Lipscomb’s only run of the game.
While Mississippi State got stellar pitching against the Bisons, it got plenty of offense, too, with freshman right fielder Jacob Parker giving the Bulldogs a 4-0 cushion in the sixth inning with this blast to right.
Parker was back at it during the 5-run seventh, working a bases-loaded walk to start the outburst and give Mississippi State (41-17) a 5-0 lead.
Gehrig Frei put the finishing touches on the blowout victory with a solo homer to center field in the eighth inning, giving the Bulldogs a 10-0 cushion against overmatched Lipscomb (29-25).
While the Bisons head to an elimination game in the double-elimination format, Mississippi State will face an undetermined opponent on Saturday night at 9 p.m. ET right back in the friendly confines of Starkville as it tries to get out of its home regional and advance to the next step of the NCAA Tournament. The Bulldogs will next face the winner of Friday’s other Starkville Regional game between Cincinnati and Louisiana.
Mississippi State is trying to get out of this home regional and move on to the super regionals next week, but it also obviously has its eyes on a berth in the College World Series next month. Here is what the Kalshi market is currently saying about the odds for those top teams in the mix to be playing in Omaha come June:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
