Mississippi State’s Reese, Valincius Named Finalists for Ferriss Trophy

STARKVILLE, Miss. — Mississippi State’s Ace Reese and Tomas Valincius are finalists for the Ferriss Trophy, given annually to the top college baseball player in Mississippi, according to the university.

Reese, a junior third baseman from Canton, Texas, was also a finalist last year. He is batting .335 this season and leads the Southeastern Conference with 21 doubles. He ranks third in total bases (143), fourth in RBIs (63), fifth in runs (61), sixth in home runs (18), and slugging percentage (.704). He is eighth in on-base plus slugging (OPS) at 1.134 and ninth in hits with 68, according to Mississippi State.

Valincius, a sophomore left-hander from Lockport, Illinois, owns an 8-2 record with a 2.52 ERA through 75 innings. He has struck out 105 batters and issued only 16 walks. Opponents are batting .209 against him. He ranks second in the SEC in strikeouts and wins, third in innings pitched and walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP) at 0.99, and fourth in strikeout-to-walk ratio at 6.56, the university said.

The winner will be announced May 18 at 11:30 a.m. at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in Jackson. Mississippi State players have won the Ferriss Trophy nine times in its 21-year history, the most of any program. Past winners include Thomas Berkery (2006), Ed Easley (2007), Chris Stratton (2012), Hunter Renfroe (2013), Jake Mangum (2016, 2019), Brent Rooker (2017), Tanner Allen (2021) and Dakota Jordan (2024). Mangum is the only player to win twice.

Fans can find updates on Mississippi State baseball at www.HailState.com or follow the team on X, Facebook, and Instagram under the handle ‘HailStateBB,’ the school added.

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