STARKVILLE, Miss. – It was a tale of two baseball games on Thursday night, as the Lipscomb University Baseball team had a 1-0 lead through five and a half innings and held No. 4 Mississippi State University to three hits, but that all changed in the bottom of the sixth, as the Bulldogs scored five unanswered runs as they defeated the Bisons, 8-3, Thursday evening from Dudy Noble Field.
Mississippi State is ranked fourth in the nation by D1baseball and the USA Today Coaches Poll.
Final Score: No. 4 Mississippi State 8, Lipscomb 3
Location: Starkville, Mississippi (Dudy Noble Field)
Records: Lipscomb (6-6), Mississippi State (12-2)
HOW IT HAPPENED
A traditional pitcher's duel was how this started, as neither team could scratch across a run through the first five innings.
Alexander Llinas retired the first eight batters he faced before the Bulldogs used a two-out double from Bryce Chance in the third. However, a flyout by Drew Wyers at the top of the lineup ended the threat.
The scoreless battle went into the sixth. After two quick outs on three pitches,
Aaron Stelogeannis went through the right side for a base hit. After moving up to second base on his fourth steal of the season,
Blake Carter came through with a double down the line on a breaking pitch to dent the scoreboard first.
However, the bats for the Bulldogs came to life in the bottom half. After Wyers doubled off of him in his first at bat, he took Llinas deep for the home run and evened the game at a run apiece.
Unfortunately for the Bisons, that is where the wheels fell off, as the Bulldogs added four more runs to make it a 5-1 lead.
The Bisons did get to reliever Maddox Webb, as three straight reached base to start the inning. However, a strikeout double play was the momentum killer and ended the seventh-inning threat.
In the bottom half, Wyers smashed his third hit of the game with his second long ball to start the frame and increase the lead to 6-1.
The Bisons did pull the deficit to 6-3 with a two-run double by
Damion Kenealy Jr. in the top of the eighth, but RBIs by Ryder Woodson and Chance in the bottom half helped the Bulldogs get the win at home.
KEY STATISTICS
Alexander Llinas held a team that entered the weekend 10th in Division I in batting average, to just three hits over five innings with four strikeouts before the Bulldog bats got to him in the sixth.
Aaron Stelogeannis had a 3-for-5 day at the plate with two runs scored.
Kai Holm added two hits.
Damion Kenealy Jr. had a two-run double, while
Blake Carter also drove in a run on a double.
UP NEXT
With the impending weather continuing to threaten the southeast this weekend, game two of the series will now be played on Friday night at 6 p.m.
