Video: Mississippi State Ready to Start Road to Omaha
Photo Courtesy: Kelly Price, MSU Athletics
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STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI/MSU Athletics) – As the calendar rolls to June, the fourth-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs (41-16-1) set forth on the Road to Omaha as they embark on their 35th NCAA Tournament in program history.
After earning their first-ever national seed, the Bulldogs host the first round of that journey within the friendly confines of Dudy Noble Field. The top-seeded Bulldogs are joined by No. 2 seed Cal State Fullerton (35-21), No. 3 seed Louisiana Tech (40-18) and No. 4 seed Southeast Missouri (39-19) in the 2016 Starkville Regional.
The 2016 SEC Champion Diamond Dawgs will kick off the Starkville Regional with a 1:30 p.m. C.T. matchup against the Redhawks of Southeast Missouri Friday on SEC Network +.
Need To Know
· The Bulldogs are making their 35th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and the fifth in the last six seasons. State is hosting a regional for the 13th time in history and the first since 2013, when MSU made its historic run to the finals of the College World Series
· The Bulldogs earned the No. 6 National Seed on Monday, the first time in program history the Bulldogs have been awarded a national seed.
· The Diamond Dawgs are 94-76 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and 70-41 in NCAA Regionals.
· Head coach John Cohen was named SEC Coach of the Year for the second time in his career. He became the second coach in the history of the league to win the award at two different schools (MSU, Kentucky), joining former Bulldog skipper Ron Polk (MSU, Georgia).
· The Bulldogs took home their 11th SEC Regular Season Championship with a clean sweep of Arkansas, the Bulldog’s first since the 1989 season.
· MSU won nine of 10 conference series this season, the most in program history.
· Junior right hander Dakota Hudson was named one of 25 semifinalists for the prestigious Golden Spikes Award Wednesday.
· Juniors Dakota Hudson and Nathaniel Lowe were each named second-team All-Americans by Collegiate Baseball Thursday morning.
· The Bulldogs had five players earn All-SEC awards: Jake Mangum (First Team), Nathaniel Lowe (First Team), Jack Kruger (First Team), Dakota Hudson (First Team), and Brent Rooker (Second Team). The Five honors tie for the most in program history and the four players on the first team are the most since 1984.
· In the latest rankings released Monday, MSU was voted 4th in the Coaches Poll, 4th by Baseball America, 4th by Collegiate Baseball, 4th by Perfect Game, 4th by the NCBWA and 4th by D1 Baseball.
· As of June 2, Mississippi State’s offense ranks 22nd in the country in doubles (123, 1st in SEC), 14th in hits (637, 2nd in SEC), 32nd in on-base percentage (.391, 1st in SEC), and 15th in batting average (.312, 2nd in SEC).
· The Bulldog’s pitching staff is 12th in the NCAA in strikeouts per nine innings (9.00, 5th in SEC)
· After hitting .243 with two outs in 2015, the Bulldogs are terrorizing opposing pitching with a .304 batting average (1st in SEC) with two down this season. The Bulldogs are the only team in the league hitting above .300 with two down.
Weather
Friday’s Forecast (June 3) – High 89, Low 68 – Cloudy (20%)
Saturday’s Forecast (June 4) – High 83, Low 66 – Thunderstorms (80%)
Sunday’s Forecast (June 5) – High 85, Low 63 – Thunderstorms (80%)
Monday’s Forecast (June 6) – High 87, Low 60 – Sunny (0%)
Live Video and Television
All seven games of the Starkville Regional will be broadcast on the SEC Network+.
#NCAAStarkville
Information regarding the 2016 Starkville Regional (Box Scores, Postgame Video, Updated Schedules and more) will be updated daily on Mississippi State’s website and can be accessed by visiting HailState.com/NCAABaseball
Live Audio and Radio
Tuesday’s game will be broadcast statewide on the Mississippi State Baseball Radio Network and also locally on WKBB 100.9 FM. The contest will also be audio streamed live online at HailState.com/Plus (requires subscription).
LIVE STATS
Tickets
Reserved seating for the 2016 Starkville Regional is SOLD OUT, but General Admission All-Tournament Passes ($50) and Single-Game Tickets ($10) are still available at HailState.com/Tickets and or at the MSU Ticket Office.
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