With little margin for error as they enter the home stretch of the Southeastern Conference schedule, the Mississippi State Bulldogs (30-15, 9-11) escaped South Carolina (32-12, 13-8) with a much-needed road victory. They could not, however, capture the series.
Friday: MSU 5, USC 11
The decision by head coach Ron Polk to start freshman Aaron Weatherford in the Friday night opener has to be one Polk now regrets.
Weatherford gave up eight hits and six runs in only 2.2 innings, spurring the 12th-ranked Gamecocks to a 17-hit, 11-5 victory over the visiting Bulldogs.
South Carolina plated runs in each of the first three innings, including a two-run Reese Havens home run in the third.
Mississippi State would score a run in the first frame on a Brian LaNinfa sacrifice and another in the second frame on a Mitch Moreland home run but could not keep up with the Gamecocks’ scoring pace, as those would be the Bulldogs only two runs off of USC starter Wynn Pelzer.
A three-run ninth-inning rally against reliever Dan Luczak fell short of the victory mark, putting the Diamond Dawgs off to an inauspicious start in the series.
Weatherford (4-1) gathered the loss. Leadoff man Jeffrey Rea was the only Bulldog with two hits in the contest.
Saturday: MSU 7, USC 2
The Bulldogs did not let Friday’s embarrassment quell their competitive fire, as they returned to Sarge Frye Field on Saturday to belt out 11 hits and seven runs en route to a 7-2 series-tying victory.
Brooks Dunn pitched a career-first complete game in the winning effort, striking out six and allowing only two runs, one earned.
Dunn, the normal Friday starter, was pushed back to the Saturday game in an effort to break him out of his three-decision losing streak.
Dunn responded, and the Bulldogs were able to take a crucial win.
“We needed that big-time,” Polk said. “Brooks gave us an outstanding pitching performance today, and we finally got some key hits and didn’t leave that many runners on base.”
Three Bulldogs notched multiple hits in the contest, while senior co-captain Thomas Berkery paced the team with a game-high three runs batted in, two from a home run in the first inning.
With Berkery’s knock in the first and an RBI single from Jeff Butts in the second, the Diamond Dawgs held a three-run lead after only two frames of play.
“Getting that early lead was big for us. We’ve been playing from behind early in a lot of games lately. It’s been a tough stretch, but I’m really proud of our kids for finding a way to battle through it.”
Sunday: MSU 7, USC 9
Even a three-run top of the 11th inning could not bring a series win to the struggling Bulldogs. South Carolina scored five runs in the bottom of the 11th to take the 9-7 victory and the series.
The two schools were knotted at four after nine innings and exchanged scoreless tenth frames.
In the top of the eleventh, Edward Easley roped an RBI double into right field to score Rea, followed by a two-run home run by Berkery in the next at-bat.
Bulldog reliever Chad Crosswhite, who came on in the seventh for starter Justin Pigott, struck out Neil Giesler to start off the inning but allowed the next two Gamecocks to reach.
After striking out Phil Disher, Crosswhite cold only muster a 1-0 count on pinch hitter Jon Willard before he launched a home run over the right field fence, tying the game.
After Crosswhite hit the next batter, Polk pulled the freshman in favor of junior Josh Johnson, but the move would not pay off.
On Johnson’s second pitch, Michael Campbell cranked a two-run walk-off home run to secure the win for South Carolina.
Crosswhite absorbed the loss for the Diamond Dawgs, allowing five runs in 4.1 innings.
Pigott went 6.1 innings in his first start of the season, striking out two and allowing three runs on 13 hits.
Edward Easley paced the Bulldogs at the plate, going four for six with one RBI.
Easley was one of six Bulldogs to record multiple hits in the game.
The team had 16 hits against South Carolina’s 19.
Berkery led the squad in RBI with three, placing him into a three-way tie with Butts and Hunter for the team lead.
Berkery went two-for-four on the day, improving his SEC-leading batting average to .399.
The two weekend losses drop the Bulldogs to 5.5 games back of division-leading Alabama, placing them in sole possession of fourth place in the SEC Western Division.
The team hosts Mississippi Valley State tonight in its only midweek matchup.
It will host the Florida Gators for a three-game series over the weekend.