Video: Mississippi State Rally Falls Short in Pearl Versus Southern Miss

PEARL, Miss. (WCBI/MSU Athletics) – A strong performance from the bullpen and a late-inning rally were not enough for the Mississippi State baseball team Tuesday night.

Down by six runs, the Bulldogs rallied late, before falling 7-5 to in-state rival Southern Mississippi at Trustmark Park.

Southern Miss (17-4) built a 7-1 lead by scoring four times in the first inning and adding three scores in the third inning. MSU (12-10) rallied with a single score in the fifth inning and three more runs in the eighth inning.

“This was a tough defeat for us,” head coach Andy Cannizaro said. “I was proud of how we battled. The bullpen did a great job of keeping the score where it needed to be to give us a chance. This was a terrific night for college baseball in Mississippi. Southern Mississippi has a really good team.

“We just have to continue to get better. We made some really nice plays defensively. Some of the guys struggling at the plate had some good at-bats. We are close to winning some of these close games. We just have to keep punching and keep battling.”

Denver McQuary drew the start for the Bulldogs. McQuary (0-1) was lifted after two innings. He allowed three hits and four runs (all earned), with two strikeouts, four walks and a hit batsman.

Trey Jolly allowed three hits and three runs (all earned), while pitching the third inning.

The quartet of Graham Ashcraft, Trysten Barlow, Cole Gordon and Jacob Barton held the Golden Eagles in check from there. Only one hit was allowed by those four pitchers.

Offensively, the Bulldogs collected 11 hits and stranded seven base runners. The hits were scattered throughout the lineup with seven starters getting at least one.

Cody Brown, Josh Lovelady and Tanner Poole each had two hits apiece. Brent Rooker had two RBIs.

The Bulldogs got their first run on the board when Rooker lined an RBI-triple in the third inning.

Lovelady and Poole each singled before Rooker drove in another run with a ground-ball out in the fifth inning.

In the eighth inning, Ryan Gridley, Elijah MacNamee and Brown singled to load the bases. After a strikeout, Hunter Vansau had a two-run, pinch-hit single. With two outs, Lovelady followed with an RBI-single.

The Bulldogs left two base runners in the eighth inning and were retired in order in the ninth inning.

Taylor Braley (2-0) pitched seven strong innings to get the win for the Golden Eagles. Braley allowed nine hits and five runs (all earned), with four strikeouts and no walks. Matt Wallner pitched the perfect ninth inning for his second save.

Offensively for Southern Miss, Cole Donaldson had two hits and two RBIs. Dylan Burdeaux also drove in a pair of runs.

State will return to Southeastern Conference play this weekend with a three-game series at Dudy Noble Field. The action will commence with the series opener on Friday at 6:30 p.m. CT.