Southern Miss Baseball to Face Mississippi State in In-State Matchup

The University of Southern Mississippi baseball team will play its second game against Mississippi State this season on Tuesday at Dudy Noble Field in Starkville. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m., and the game will be available on SECN+ and via the Southern Miss Sports Network radio affiliates, according to university officials.

Southern Miss, ranked as high as No. 11 nationally, holds a 19-5 record. Mississippi State, which is ranked as high as No. 4, owns a 20-4 record. The teams previously met earlier this month in Hattiesburg, with Southern Miss winning 7-6. In that game, Drey Barrett hit a three-run homer, and Seth Smith hit his first collegiate home run of the season. The Golden Eagles led 5-0 early but had to rally after the Bulldogs took a 6-5 lead. Southern Miss scored two runs on wild pitches in the seventh inning to secure the victory.

Southern Miss’s offense is led by Kyle Morrison, who has hit in 11 straight games and owns a .354 batting average. Morrison has eight home runs and 24 RBIs. His current hitting streak is the longest for the program since Joey Urban’s 13-game streak last season. Urban is batting .319 with seven homers and 23 RBIs, while Davis Gillespie is also hitting .319 with six homers. Seth Smith is batting .304 with a solo homer and 13 RBIs.

The Golden Eagles recently won a Sun Belt Conference series against Troy at home, while Mississippi State swept Vanderbilt in Starkville. Southern Miss plans to start junior right-hander Thomas Crabtree, who is 0-1 with a 5.02 ERA, against Mississippi State’s Chris Billingsley Jr., who is 1-0 with a 6.75 ERA.

Following Tuesday’s game, Southern Miss returns home for a Sun Belt series against Appalachian State at Pete Taylor Park.

Source: Original Article