Chris Lemonis and his Mississippi State baseball team have found themselves in an uphill battle to make it to a Super Regional. After winning the first game of the Charlottesville Regional, beating St. John’s in extra innings, MSU fell short against the Virginia Cavaliers in their second game of the regional.
The road to a Super Regional got a lot tougher for the Bulldogs, but it really hasn’t been that long since the Mississippi State baseball team has been in this sort of territory. It’s a little too early to count the Bulldogs out just yet.
After that disappointing loss to regional host Virginia, Mississippi State faced elimination against St. John's. But, the Bulldogs rose to the occasion, responding with a dominant 13-5 victory to keep their season alive and send St. John’s home.
After entering into the elimination bracket, MSU was faced with the task of winning three games in two days. If the Bulldogs suffered a single loss in the process, then MSU heads home. That win over St. John’s in the elimination bracket? Well, it was the first of three wins that Lemonis needs to keep this season moving along into a Super Regional.
But now the Bulldogs have a long way to go. They’ve got to get two wins over a team that has already beaten them. And they can’t lose in the process.
That said, if you’ve kept up with Miss. State baseball for a few years, you’re likely remembering how the 2017 and 2018 MSU baseball teams were in similar situations.
Mississippi State baseball needs to showcase some resiliency like the Bulldogs did in 2017 and 2018
In 2017, the Andy Cannizaro-led Bulldogs dropped their first game of the Hattiesburg Regional, losing to the South Alabama Jaguars. Facing elimination in every game they had after that, MSU reeled off four straight wins, including two over the host Southern Miss Golden Eagles to advance on to the Baton Rouge Super Regional.
The following year, Mississippi State lost its opener in the Tallahassee Regional to the Oklahoma Sooners. The 2018 season was a mess for a number of reasons (most of which centered around the abrupt departure of Andy Cannizaro and the temporary replacement with Gary Henderson as the head coach). But, as the Bulldogs demonstrated all throughout the season, MSU proved to be resilient once again. After that opening loss to OU, the Bulldogs fought back, winning four consecutive games, capped by two straight victories over the Sooners to keep their season alive.
The odds aren’t exactly in MSU’s favor, but we’ve seen this sort of story before. There’s no guarantee that the Bulldogs will make it to a Super Regional, but it is theoretically possible. And here’s to hoping that this team happens to be as resilient (and as lucky) as the 2017 and 2018 Miss. State baseball teams.