State Strikes Back To Even LSU Series With 5-3 Win
May 21, 2005 | Baseball
Official Game Statistics (PDF)
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Mississippi State struck for three runs in the seventh inning Saturday afternoon, lifting the Bulldogs (36-19, 13-15 SEC) to a series-evening 5-3 win over the ninth-ranked LSU Tigers (37-18, 17-12 SEC). The teams conclude the series Sunday at 1:30 p.m., with LSU battling for an SEC Western Division title and MSU in the hunt for an SEC Tournament berth.
Jeff Butts, Thomas Berkery and Brad Jones delivered RBI singles in the inning while starter Todd Doolittle and relief men Justin Pigott and Mike Valentine combined to blank the Tigers over the final seven innings of the game.
"We started hitting the ball well and getting some clutch hits after the fourth inning, and out pitchers did a great job of keeping LSU off the scoreboard over the last seven innings," said Coach Ron Polk. "It was a big win for our kids. It gives us a chance to win our sixth conference series and helps our postseason chances."
LSU struck for three runs in the first two frames. Tiger center fielder Bruce Sprowl opened the game with his second home run of the campaign, and Derek Hebert and Blake Gill drove in runs when seven LSU batters came to the plate in the second.
The Bulldogs found the going tough against LSU starter Clay Harris, who was backed by sterling defensive plays while limiting State to a second inning double by Brad Corley. Harris retired 12 of the first 13 batters he faced.
But MSU started its comeback against Dirks and the Tigers in the fifth. Corley opened the frame with his second double of the game and Joseph Hunter was struck by a pitch for the second time in the game. Dirks struck out Joseph McCaskill, but Brian LaNinfa laced a 3-2 pitch into center field to score Corley. Two batters later Jeffrey Rea ripped a first pitch single to right, scoring Hunter.
The Bulldogs threatened in the sixth, chasing Dirks from the game when Berkery and Jones opened the frame with singles. Relief pitcher Edgar Ramirez replaced Dirks and, with the help of a double play grounder, left the inning with the 3-2 intact.
State sent eight batters to the plate in the deciding eighth inning. LaNinfa opened the inning with a pinch-hit double and raced home with the tying run on Jeff Butts' pinch-hit single up the middle. The rally was extended and Ramirez' pitching stint ended when Jeffrey Rea's hot grounder to was misplayed at second by Clay Harris. LSU brought Jordan Faircloth in from the bullpen, and the first batter he faced, Ed Easley, advanced the runners with a sacrifice bunt. Berkery and Jones followed with their second hits of the game and MSU climbed into the lead 5-3.
Freshman Justin Pigott (2-1), who entered the game in the seventh, worked around a two-out double by Ryan Patterson in the seventh and a one-out single by Jordan in the eighth to earn the win, his second in league play. Pigott left the game in the ninth after Michael Hollander singled to right. Mike Valentine, who earned his fourth and fifth wins of the year in relief against Alabama and Florida the past two weekends, gave up a single and worked around a pair of Bulldog errors to close the game and pick up his third save.
The win, State's 11th against a top 25 opponent this season, keeps alive MSU's postseason possibilities. The Bulldogs, now in seventh place in the SEC's overall standings, can with a win in Sunday's series finale clinch their 25th SEC Tournament next week in Hoover, Ala. Without a win, MSU would need Sunday losses by two of three teams currently tied with 13-16 SEC records: Arkansas, Auburn and Vanderbilt.
MISSISSIPPI STATE 5, LSU 3
LSU 120 000 000 -- 3-10-1MSU 000 020 30x -- 5-10-2WP -- Justin Pigott (2-1). LP -- Edgar Ramirez (0-1). SV -- Mike Valentine (3). HR -- Bruce Sprowl (2). T -- 2:57. ATT -- 3,973 (6,975 paid).
