No. 4 State Takes Opening Game Against Lipscomb

Thursday, March 5

Starkville

6 p.m.

Mississippi State

12-2

Lipscomb

6-6

Lipscomb

Mississippi State

Photo by: Mike Mattina/MSU Athletics

No. 4 State Takes Opening Game Against Lipscomb

March 05, 2026 | Baseball

Box Score

STARKVILLE - No. 4 Mississippi State broke open a scoreless game with a five-run sixth inning and rode a pair of home runs from Drew Wyers to an 8–3 victory over Lipscomb on Thursday night at Dudy Noble Field.

The Diamond Dawgs (12-2) pounded out 12 hits and used strong pitching from Ryan McPherson and the bullpen to secure the midweek win in front of 10,057 fans.

For five innings, MSU and Lipscomb traded zeros as McPherson and Bisons starter Alexander Llinas matched each other on the mound. Mississippi State scattered a few early hits but left runners on base, while McPherson kept Lipscomb in check with eight strikeouts through six innings.

Lipscomb finally cracked the scoreboard in the top of the sixth when Blake Carter doubled down the left-field line to bring home Aaron Stelogeannis for a 1–0 lead.

The Bulldogs immediately answered with a decisive rally in the bottom half of the inning. Wyers ignited the surge with a solo home run to left field to tie the game. After Ace Reese doubled and Noah Sullivan singled, Gehrig Frei delivered an RBI single to right that pushed State ahead. A throwing error on a sacrifice bunt by Chone James allowed two more runs to score before Vytas Valincius capped the inning with an RBI single to center, giving MSU a 5–1 advantage.

State continued to build its lead in the seventh when Wyers struck again, blasting his second leadoff homer of the night to left-center field.

Lipscomb attempted to claw back in the eighth with a two-run double from Damion Kenealy Jr., but Mississippi State responded once more. Ryder Woodson opened the bottom of the inning with a solo home run to left-center, and Bryce Chance later added an RBI single after a stolen base by Gatlin Sanders to stretch the lead to 8–3.

McPherson (3-0) earned the win for the Bulldogs, allowing one run on five hits while striking out eight over six innings. Maddox Webb and Ben Davis handled the late innings, with Davis recording the final five outs to secure his second save of the season.

Offensively, the Diamond Dawgs were led by Reese, who went 3-for-4 with a double, while Wyers finished 2-for-5 with two home runs and two RBIs. Woodson added two hits and a homer, and Chance contributed two hits and an RBI as State matched Lipscomb with 12 hits on the night.

Stelogeannis paced Lipscomb (6-6) with three hits, while Kenealy Jr. drove in two runs for the Bisons.

Game 2 of the series is scheduled for Friday at 6 p.m. on SEC Network+. Lipscomb is slated to start graduate right-hander Collin Bosley-Smith (0-0, 9.00 ERA, 6 K, 3 BB) on the mound while the Bulldogs are still finalizing their pitching plans.

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