Mississippi State
12-6
Southern Miss
12-5
Diamond Dog Rally Falls Just Short Against Golden Eagles In 10-7 Loss
March 17, 2009 | Baseball
? Official Statistics (PDF)
PEARL, Miss. - A furious rally fell short for the Mississippi State baseball team. The Bulldogs scored the game's final six runs, before falling short to in-state rival Southern Mississippi 10-7 at Trustmark Park.
A crowd of 7,947 watched the activity at the minor league home of the Class AA Mississippi Braves. It is the second largest crowd ever at Trustmark. Ironically, it was also the Bulldogs' first loss at Trustmark, as MSU fell to 5-1 all-time in the three-year-old facility.
With the victory, Southern Miss improved to 12-5 and also won its third straight in the series. Meanwhile, MSU lost its second straight and fell to 12-6. The teams play again April 8 at Dudy Noble Field.
The Bulldogs trailed 10-1 before scoring once in the seventh inning, three times in the eighth inning and twice more in the ninth inning. MSU also left the bases loaded in their final at-bat.
In the eighth inning, Justin Bussey reached as a hit batsman. After back-to-back-outs, Cody Freeman singled and Nick Hardy walked to load the bases. Frank Rawdow followed with a two-run single to center field. An additional run scored on that hit thanks to an error.
The ninth inning rally started when USM reliever Collin Cargill walked the bases loaded. Wade Weathers then entered in relief was touched for an RBI infield hit by Ryan Duffy. Weathers then closed out the contest, but not before allowing a sacrifice-fly to Freeman and also hitting Nick Hardy to reload the bases.
The Golden Eagles chased MSU starter Ricky Bowen during a four-run first inning. Bo Davis had a two-run single and Joey Archer had an RBI-single during that big inning.
The lead then grew to 10-1 thanks to three runs in both the fourth and fifth innings. A two-run single by Corey Stevens was the big blow in the fourth inning, while Josh Fields swung the big stick an inning later with a towering three-run home run - his first of the season.
The Bulldogs totaled eight hits in the contest. Rawdow had two hits and two RBIs to pace the MSU offensive attack.
The Golden Eagles finished with 12 hits. Archer had three hits, while Fields and Travis Graves had multiple hits for Southern Miss.
The teams combined to use 12 pitchers. Todd McInnis (3-1) started and worked the first five innings for Southern Miss. McInnis allowed five hits and one run (earned), with two walks and three strikeouts. Weathers retired three of the five batters he faced to earn his first save. Bowen (1-1) lasted only 1/3 of an inning. Michael Busby, Greg Houston, Forrest Moore, Caleb Reed, Paxton Pace and David Hayes threw in relief for the Bulldogs.
MSU returns home for a Wednesday night contest with UAB. The Bulldogs and Blazers are set for a 6:30 p.m. first pitch at Dudy Noble Field. MSU then returns to the road for a Southeastern Conference series this weekend at Georgia.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: McInnis (3-1)
L: Bowen, Ricky (1-1)
Batting:
2B: Rawdow, Frank 1
RBI: Nappi, Jason 1 ; Adkins, Luke 1 ; Duffy, Ryan 1 ; Freeman, Cody 1 ; Rawdow, Frank 2
SH: DeLoach, Scott 1
SF: Nappi, Jason 1 ; Freeman, Cody 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Nappi, Jason 1 ; Allen, Johnny 1 ; Bussey, Justin 1 ; Freeman, Cody 1 ; Hardy, Nick 2 ; Powers, Ryan 1
HBP: Bussey, Justin 1 ; Hardy, Nick 1
Batting:
2B: Dozier 1
HR: Fields 1
RBI: Davis, B. 2 ; Stevens 2 ; Archer 1 ; Graves 1 ; Fields 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Brunty 2 ; Dozier 2 ; Davis, B. 2 ; Stevens 1 ; Koelling 1 ; Graves 1 ; Fields 1
CS: Stevens 1 ; Archer 1
HBP: Archer 1
