No. 16 MSU Falls Short To Top-Seeded Georgia

Thursday, May 21

Hoover, Ala.

12 p.m.

Mississippi State

40-17

Georgia

44-12

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Mississippi State	0	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	1	3	9	0
Georgia	0	1	0	3	0	0	1	0	X	5	8	0

Photo by: Mike Mattina/MSU Athletics

No. 16 MSU Falls Short To Top-Seeded Georgia

May 21, 2026 | Baseball

Box Score

HOOVER, Ala. - No. 16 Mississippi State kept chipping away Thursday afternoon, but one swing from No. 4 Georgia proved too much to overcome.

Brennan Hudson hit a three-run homer in the fourth, and fourth-ranked Georgia held off Mississippi State 5-3 in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament at Hoover Met.

No. 8 seed State (40-17) outhit top-seeded Georgia 9-8 and brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth, but MSU could not complete the comeback after falling behind by three runs midway through the game.

Mississippi State answered Georgia's first run in the third. Ryder Woodson doubled to right-center and Chone James followed with an RBI single through the right side to tie the game at 1.

Georgia moved back in front in the fourth. Rylan Lujo and Ryan Wynn singled before Hudson drove a three-run homer to right field, giving Georgia a 4-1 lead. Duke Stone exited one batter later, and Jack Bauer limited further damage by stranding a runner at third.

MSU cut into the deficit in the sixth. Gehrig Frei doubled to right-center and Ace Reese singled to right, bringing Frei home to make it 4-2. Georgia turned to Matt Scott, who retired the next three hitters to end the threat.

Georgia added an insurance run in the seventh after Tre Phelps was hit by a pitch and later scored on Kenny Ishikawa's bases-loaded walk. State used Maddox Webb, Dane Burns and Tyler Pitzer in the inning, with Pitzer stranding three runners to keep Mississippi State within striking distance.

Noah Sullivan gave MSU life in the ninth with a solo homer to left-center, his 12th of the season. Reed Stallman followed later with a two-out single, but pinch hitter Blake Bevis grounded into a fielder's choice to end the game.

Sullivan finished 2-for-4 with a homer and an RBI. Stallman went 2-for-3 with a walk, while Frei, Reese, Woodson and James each added a hit for State. Reese and James drove in one run apiece.

Stone took the loss, allowing four runs on six hits with four strikeouts over 3 1/3 innings. Bauer worked 2 2/3 innings and allowed one run, while Pitzer closed with 1 1/3 scoreless innings and two strikeouts.

Joey Volchko earned the win for Georgia, allowing two runs on seven hits over five innings. Scott picked up the save after giving up one run on two hits across four innings.

Georgia advanced after getting RBIs from Hudson, Ishikawa and Kolby Branch. Hudson's homer was his 17th of the season.

MSU now awaits its postseason fate. NCAA Regional sites will be announced Sunday night at 7:30 p.m. and the NCAA Tournament Selection Show starts Monday at 11 a.m. on ESPN2.

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.