Mississippi State Baseball Drops Game One; Game Two Postponed

Mississippi State entered the Hattiesburg Regional with high hopes, but the Bulldogs already find themselves in the loser’s bracket after the first game.

Well, things did not go as planned last night. At all.

The first pitch of the game — when South Alabama’s Dylan Hardy hit the very first pitch thrown — symbolized the way things would go from that point forward.

Andy Cannizaro has made bold decisions all season long and many have made him look smart. Cannizaro decided to go against the grain and start Cole Gordon last night, a decision that fans have questioned after the Bulldogs dropped their first game of tournament play.

Personally, I agree with Cannizaro’s decision. Cole Gordon pitched very well against Florida in Hoover and saving Pilkington for a potential match up with Southern Miss seemed to be the way to go. Cannizaro is playing to win the whole thing, not just game one.

Unfortunately, the Diamond Dawgs fell in a whole early and could not get out of it. However, scoring three runs and stranding numerous base runners throughout the night won’t win many games regardless of who is on the mound.

Related Story: Looking at the UIC Flames

As for what occurred earlier in the regional, Southern Miss used a three-run fifth inning to spark a comeback from a 6-1 deficit to the UIC Flames. The Golden Eagles found their offense late and grabbed an 8-7 victory in front of their home crowd to get things started in Hattiesburg.

Southern Miss is set to play South Alabama in the second game today, in which the victor moves on to the regional final on Sunday.

Mississippi State is set to take on the UIC Flames in an elimination game; however, the weather in the area has postponed the game:

Weather permitting, the Bulldogs and Flames will battle it out on the diamond this afternoon for a chance to keep playing postseason baseball. Maroon and White Nation will provide coverage on the Bulldogs’s run.