Robson and Rooker Lead Gray To 4-2 Victory Versus Maroon
October 06, 2015 | Baseball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - RBI doubles from outfielders Jacob Robson and Brent Rooker led Gray to a 4-2 victory Tuesday afternoon in Mississippi State's 12th scrimmage of the fall. The seven-inning exhibition took place at Dudy Noble Field. All at-bats from the fifth inning on started with a 1-1 count.
Robson and Rooker both finished the day 1 for 3 with a double and an RBI, with Robson scoring once. Teammate Jacob Barfield went 2 for 3 with a run scored for Gray, while Josh Lovelady and Jake Mangum combined for three hits and two runs.
Freshman left-hander Jared Padgett earned the win in the start for Gray, tossing three shutout innings. The southpaw allowed two hits and one walk and struck out one. Fellow freshman Keegan James relieved Padgett in the fourth, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits and a walk. Lefty Andrew Mahoney picked up the save with a scoreless seventh.
Leading the way offensively for Maroon was freshman catcher Elih Marrero, who belted out three hits to go along with a stolen base. Outfielder Cody Brown went 1 for 3 with an RBI and a run, while sophomore infielder Ryan Gridley (1 for 2, double, hit by pitch) scored the other run for the visitors.
Maroon starter Konnor Pilkington had a strong start for Maroon, allowing one earned run in three innings of work. The only run came off a Jack Kruger two-out RBI single to left in the third, giving Gray a 1-0 lead.
Trailing 1-0 in the top of the fourth, Gridley launched a two-out double to right center and advanced to third on a wild pitch. Brown then singled to center to tie the game. With a man on first, Marrero singled to right center. Gray's center fielder failed to field the ball cleanly, allowing Brown to give his team a 2-1 lead.
Gray tied the game in the bottom of the fourth when Barfield scored on a throwing error by the Maroon shortstop.
The deciding inning came in the fifth, when Mangum made it to first vi a abunt single, before scoring the winning run on a double to deep center by Robson. Robson and Rooker traded places on a double to the left field corner by Rooker, giving Gray a two-run lead it would never relinquish.
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2015 Mississippi State Fall Scrimmage Schedule
Scrimmage 1 - Gray 3, Maroon 1 (Reynolds 3 RBIs, Rooker HR)
Scrimmage 2 – Maroon 4, Gray 3 (Hudson 1 ER in 3.0 IP, Rooker 2 for 3 with 2 R)
Scrimmage 3 – Maroon 9, Gray 6 (HR by Barfield and Rooker)
Scrimmage 4 – Gray 8, Maroon 5 (James 1 ER in 3.0 IP, HR by Stovall)
Scrimmage 5 – Maroon 5, Gray 1 (Small/Hughes: 9 K in 7 IP, 1 ER)
Scrimmage 6 – Maroon 6, Gray 2 (HR by Alexander and Gordon)
Scrimmage 7 – Gray 3, Maroon 2 (Tatum 4 IP, 0 ER; M. Smith 3 for 3, 3SB)
Scrimmage 8 – Maroon 4, Gray 3 (Robson 2 for 3, 2 2B; Kruger HR)
Scrimmage 9 – Maroon 11, Gray 3 (Stovall 3 for 3, Breaux 3 IP, 0 ER)
Scrimmage 10 – Gray 3, Maroon 0 (D. Brown 5 K in 3 IP, 0 ER)
Scrimmage 11 – Gray 6, Maroon 5 (Sexton 4 IP, 4 K, 0 ER)
Scrimmage 12 – Gray 4, Maroon 2 (Padgett 3 IP, 0 ER)
Scrimmage 13 – Friday, Oct. 9
Scrimmage 14 – Saturday, Oct. 10*
Scrimmage 15 – Sunday, Oct. 11
Scrimmage 16 – Wednesday, Oct. 14
Scrimmage 17 – Friday, Oct. 16 (Game 1 of Bulldog World Series)
Scrimmage 18 – Saturday, Oct. 17* (Game 2 of Bulldog World Series)
Scrimmage 19 – Sunday, Oct. 18 (Game 3 of Bulldog World Series)
* = Will take place before or after MSU football's home game
NOTES: All dates are subject to change due to weather. All schedule changes and game times will be announced on Twitter at @HailStateBB. Admission to all scrimmages is free and open to the public.
