Mississippi State Defeats Vanderbilt in a Wild Game to Clinch the Series

The Mississippi State Bulldogs clinch their first road series win of the year with an 8-7 victory over Vanderbilt in a wild series finale. The MSU offense started out hot in the game by having scoring opportunities in the first two innings. 

However, they did not score even in the second inning after a Connor Hujsak single, and Amani Larry double set them up with runners on second and third with no outs. 

After the two lead-off hits, the next three batters struck out to end the MSU threat, but they did not let this carry over into the next inning. In the top of the third, the offense exploded, and, as usual, shortstop David Mershon started the rally with a one-out single.

Dakota Jordan walked, and Hunter Hines grounded into a fielder's choice, and the Bulldogs were in trouble of wasting another golden opportunity. However, Connor Hujsak ripped a two-out double into left-center field to give MSU a 2-0 lead. 

Amani Larry was hit by the pitch, and it sent Logan Kohler to the plate with a couple of runners on base. The Memphis transfer has struggled this season, but Kohler drove a three-run home run over the right field wall to break the game open. 

Mershon added to the lead in the top of the fourth with his second home run of the year to give the Bulldogs a 6-0 lead. Jurrangelo Cijntje drew the start for the Bulldogs and was dominant early. 

The sophomore pitcher is undoubtedly the most talented arm on the MSU staff, and it was evident in the first four innings. Cijntje was perfect through the first four innings and had seven strikeouts. 

He ran into trouble in the bottom of the fifth as the first two Commodore batters reached. However, Cijntje would strike out the next three batters to avoid damage. 

The Florida native again got into trouble in the sixth but could not escape the jam and gave up three runs before handing the ball to freshman Nolan Stevens. Cijntje pitched 5.1 innings, allowed four runs, and had 11 strikeouts. 

Stevens inherited a runner on first with one out, and the freshman crumbled. The California native walked his first batter and fell behind Troy LaNeve, who hit a three-run home run to tie the game. 

Once again, Stevens got into trouble in the bottom of the seventh after a pair of hits, and Hines hit the runner with the ball trying to get an out at second base. Vandy would take the lead with an RBI groundout. 

Karson Ligon took over for Stevens with the bases loaded and two outs. The Miami transfer got a pop-up to Kohler to end the inning. 

The problem is when the pitching for MSU faltered, the offense went quiet, and the bottom of the lineup all struck out in the top of the eighth, so Vanderbilt had all the momentum. The Commodores got a runner to third base with one out, but Kohler made an excellent play and threw to home to get the runner out and keep the deficit at one. 

The Bulldogs trailed 7-6 going into the top of the ninth with the top of their order up. MSU took advantage of this opportunity as Mershon singled, and the hero of game two, Hunter Hines, hit a two-run bomb to right field to give his team the lead again. 

Tyson Hardin came in looking to close it out in the bottom of the ninth and did his job by getting three groundouts to end it. 

This was a significant weekend for Mississippi State in terms of post-season implications, and now, with a series win over eleventh-ranked Vanderbilt, they are in the hosting discussions. The Bulldogs RPI is their biggest concern, but they play Ole Miss in the Governor's Cup this week, and a win would help their cause.