Diamond Dawgs Open the 2024 Season Against Air Force

STARKVILLE - The Mississippi State Bulldogs return to Dudy Noble Field for the 2024 season on Friday to host Air Force in a three-game series in Starkville. First pitch on Friday is set for 4 p.m., with Saturday set for a 4 p.m. start and the series wraps on Sunday with a 1 p.m. start.

All three contests will be broadcast on SEC Network+. The series will also be carried on the Mississippi State Sports Network powered by Learfield along with a live audio stream via hailst.at/audio.

Gameday Info
Friday, Feb. 16 (4 p.m.)
Probable Starters
MSU: Nate Dohm, (0-0), RHP, Jr.
Air Force: Seungmin Shim, (0-0), LHP, Sr.

Live Video: hailst.at/4bHp1ZK
Live Audio: hailst.at/audio
Live Stats: hailst.at/StatBroadcast

Saturday, Feb. 17 (4 p.m.)
Probable Starters
MSU: Khal Stephen, (0-0), RHP, Jr.
Air Force: Jack Bello, (0-0), LHP, So.

Live Video: hailst.at/4bEtkVF
Live Audio: hailst.at/audio
Live Stats: hailst.at/StatBroadcast

Sunday, Feb. 18 (1 p.m.)
Probable Starters
MSU: Jurrangelo Cijntje, (0-0), BHP, So.
Air Force: Ben Weber, (0-0), RHP, So.

Live Video: hailst.at/3I4kyTz
Live Audio: hailst.at/audio
Live Stats: hailst.at/StatBroadcast

Opening Weekend Promotions/Giveaways
All three games will feature pregame military flyovers.
Friday, Feb. 16 – Will feature an opening weekend/military appreciation rally towel giveaway while supplies last.
Saturday, Feb. 17 – Will feature a pregame jump performance from the Wings of Blue Jump Team from the United States Air Force Academy. Along with seeing the Wings of Blue Jump Team, replica military hats will be given away while supplies last.
Sunday, Feb. 18 – Fans will have the chance to get a military coin while supplies last.

Quick Hitters

The 2024 baseball season kicks off on Friday at Dudy Noble Field in Starkville. This marks the 134th season of Mississippi State baseball. The 2024 season marks the third straight season that the Diamond Dawgs will open up the season at The Dude. Last season on Opening Day, the best fans in college baseball camp out to the Dude. The crowd of 10,652 set an Opening Day record for MSU.
Mississippi State starts the season at home for the third straight season. The Dawgs will host the first 12 games of the season at Dudy Noble Field before heading to Trustmark Park to face Southern Miss in a midweek matchup.
The Dude Effect is alive and well. Reserved seating has once again sold out for the season. Mississippi State has sold out reserved seating since 1987.
Hunter Hines returns for his junior year. Hines led the team in homes runs (22) and RBIs (61). He hit .297 and is the first player at MSU to hit 20 or more home runs in a single season since Brent Rooker hit 23 during the 2017 season. His 22 home runs ranked 22nd in the nation and tied for sixth-most in school history.
Following a freshman season that saw Dakota Jordan show off his power by hitting tape measure homers, the sophomore is ready for his second season in the Maroon and White. On Feb. 9, Jordan was one of 55 players in the nation that were named to the Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List. The Golden Spikes award to the best amateur baseball player in the nation. Last week, Jordan was named Third Team Preseason All-American by Baseball America. He finished the 2023 season with the second-best batting average (.307) and had 10 home runs.
Senior transfer Logan Kohler looks to add to the Dawgs offensive attack. Last season, Kohler was a Second Team All-AAC Third baseman at Memphis. He finished the year on an eight-game hitting streak, which was started at East Carolina. He had four multi-hit games during the final eight games. He led the Tigers last season with a .330 batting average, 65 hits, 113 total bases and a .574 slugging percentage.
During the 2023 season, the Diamond Dawgs hit 104 doubles. They have hit over 100 doubles three times under Coach Lemonis. The 2019 team set the school record with 166. Entering the 2024 season, the Diamond Dawgs Connor Hujsak and Amani Larry look to add to the Dawgs doubles. Hujsak has 35 career doubles, the tenth most by an active player in the SEC. Larry is six doubles behind Hujsak and just missing out of the top ten active players for doubles.
Junior Cam Schuelke has been named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watch List. He is one of 73 relievers on the list. Before joining the Diamond Dawgs, Schuelke had an outstanding sophomore year at College of Central Florida. He posted a 2.09 ERA and a 9-1 record in 32 appearances out of the pen.
Mississippi State is great at turning out major league talent, with 68 Diamond Dawgs reaching the highest level of the sport, but it is also great at keeping student-athletes on campus.

Scouting the Opponent – Air Force

Last season the Falcons finished the season with a 28-31 record overall.
The Falcons had a team batting average of .299 with 57 home runs. Air Force had a .390 on base percentage last season.
Air Force's Sam Kulasingam returns to the Falcons for his final season. The senior was named to 2024 Perfect Game Preseason Third Team All-American this season. Kulasingam, the reigning two-time Tony Gwynn Mountain West Player of the Year, was selected in the 17th round (514th overall) of the 2023 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft in July after slashing a staggering .426/.537/.655 in 59 games. Kulasingam reached the 100-hit mark for the second-consecutive season in 2023, compiling a program record-tying 28 doubles, while producing more than twice as many walks (50) than strikeouts (24).
On Feb. 8th, the Mountain West announced its Preseason All-Conference roster and Kulasingam and Jay Thomason were on the squad.
In 2023, Thomason led all players in the Mountain West with 21 home runs. The 21 homers were tied for the most home runs in a single season in program history. He also became the first Air Force player to record 20+ home runs and 20+ doubles in a single season.

Series Notes

MSU and Air Force meet for the fourth time on Friday when Air Force travels to Dudy Noble Field.
Mississippi State last met Air Force in Starkville in 2008 where the Diamond Dawgs took the series 2-1.
Mississippi State leads the all-time series 2-1.

Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the baseball program. Fans can also follow the program on social media by searching 'HailStateBB' on X, Facebook and Instagram.

Diamond Dawgs Open the 2024 Season Against Air Force

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jurrangelo Cijntje

Nate Dohm

Hunter Hines

Connor Hujsak

Dakota Jordan

Logan Kohler

Amani Larry

Cam Schuelke

Khal Stephen

Mississippi State University Athletics

Diamond Dawgs Open the 2024 Season Against Air Force

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jurrangelo Cijntje

Nate Dohm

Hunter Hines

Connor Hujsak

Dakota Jordan

Logan Kohler

Amani Larry

Cam Schuelke

Khal Stephen

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