“Get Ready To Go”
May 28, 2024 | Baseball, Joel Coleman
Bulldogs set sights on finding success in Charlottesville.
STARKVILLE – Entering last Sunday, like most everyone in Maroon and White, Mississippi State head coach Chris Lemonis believed his Bulldogs had done what they needed to do to make Dudy Noble Field an NCAA Regional host site. With a fifth-place finish in the Southeastern Conference, 20 wins against SEC foes, 16 quad-one wins and a top-10 KPI, it certainly appeared postseason baseball might be headed back to Starkville.
By now, you know the rest of the story. MSU's road towards Omaha will instead begin away from home. State learned on Monday it'll be the No. 2 seed in the Charlottesville Regional hosted by the University of Virginia. The Dawgs will join a tough field that includes the top-seeded Cavaliers, as well as No. 3 seed St. John's and fourth-seeded Pennsylvania.
Is it the hand the Dawgs felt they'd be dealt after an exciting regular season and SEC Tourney run? No.
But don't for one second think State's dwelling on that now. The only thing that matters is the mission at hand.
"It is what it is," Lemonis said of not getting to host. "We're past it. I told our kids, 'We're at zero and nothing else matters.' We're all even now and we just get ready to go."
Here's the thing. Whether it's at The Dude or over in Virginia, it's the same ballgame. A regulation contest will still be nine innings and each team will have 27 outs to play with. The surroundings are what they are. It's just game on.
A look back through recent Mississippi State history shows the boys that wear that M-over-S are pretty good at finding a way to make themselves at home wherever they play in the postseason. Dating back to 2007, the Diamond Dawgs have competed in six road regionals. State has come out on top in four of those six, with two of those regional wins springboarding trips to the College World Series.
In later rounds, there's been more recent road postseason success. The Bulldogs won a Super Regional at Vanderbilt in 2018 and also dogpiled on the very field they'll play on this weekend back in 2013 when they toppled Virginia in a Super.
Can this bunch of Bulldogs do something similar? Sure they can. And if last week was any indication, maybe the Mississippi State postseason magic is already warmed up.
Down to their final out against Ole Miss in the first round of the SEC Tournament, Connor Hujsak made sure Brooks Auger's masterful mound performance didn't go to waste when he drilled a two-run walk-off homer. The next night, Hujsak struck again with a two-run single in the ninth that pushed State past Texas A&M, who then stood as country's top team in terms of RPI.
MSU ultimately fell a few wins short over in Hoover, but don't dismiss the lasting effects the week had on a team getting to have a taste of what the bright lights of the postseason are all about.
"I think that was huge for us," Lemonis said of the experience. "That was huge for us to experience it, to experience the postseason.
"Our group hadn't played in the postseason a lot because of the last two years, so [the SEC Tournament] was a good week for us."
It set the tone. It built even more confidence and belief inside the State locker room with the two big wins and nearly another against the team that ended up as the NCAA Tournament's top overall seed, Tennessee.
"I think [the SEC Tournament] proved we can play with anyone in the country," Hujsak said. "I think we're a top team. I think our resume shows that."
Hujsak and the rest will now get to prove it some more. It'll start against a talented St. John's group on Friday night at 6 p.m. CT. It's a team that already this year made waves in the SEC by claiming a win over Florida.
"I haven't done too much [research], but I've played against them," Lemonis said on Monday regarding St. John's. "It's just tough, hard-nosed, New York kids. Most of them are from the New York area and you're playing against tough kids. I've known their coach since he was in college and it's the same thing. You're going to have to go up there and beat them because they're going to give a great effort."
As for the rest of the field in Charlottesville?
"I think we've got a tough regional," Lemonis opined. "St. John's, I played against them a bunch in the Big East. Penn had a great year last year in the postseason and obviously Virigina, the host, has had a great year. Very offensive club. We have our work in front of us."
It's work that'll have to happen without the smoke from the Left Field Lounge in the background, but so what?
It's postseason time now. What's done is done. The only mission now is getting back to Omaha, adhering to the old sports cliché of taking things one game at the time.
And these Diamond Dawgs?
"We're ready," Hujsak said.
Charlottesville Regional Schedule (All times CT)
Friday, May 31, 2024
Game 1 - UVA vs Penn - 11 am (ESPN+)
Game 2 - State vs St John's - 6 pm (ESPN+)
Saturday, June 1, 2024
Game 3 - Loser of G1 vs Loser of G2 - 11 am (Broadcast TBD)
Game 4 - Winner of G1 vs Winner of G2 - 5 pm (Broadcast TBD)
Sunday, June 2, 2024
Game 5 - Winner of G3 vs Loser of G4 - 11 am (Broadcast TBD)
Game 6 - Winner of G4 vs Winner of G5 - 5 pm (Broadcast TBD)
Monday, June 3, 2024
Game 7 - If necessary (Time and broadcast TBD)
