Ninth-ranked Mississippi State posted a 9-3 win over fourth-ranked Georgia Saturday to clinch an SEC series in front of 9,572 at Dudy-Noble Field.
MSU improved to 35-9 overall and 12-8 in the SEC while Georgia (33-11, 13-7 SEC) has dropped three straight for the first time this season. MSU freshman starter JT Ginn ran his record to 8-2, going five innings and allowing one run on five hits with two walks and seven strikeouts.
Bulldog junior starter Tony Locey took the mound with a cut on his right index finger and provided five innings but lost his first decision of the season, falling to 7-1. He surrendered five runs on seven hits in five innings with three walks and three strikeouts. It was Georgia’s first loss of the year when Locey started. The Bulldog lineup was missing junior third baseman Aaron Schunk due to a sore Achilles, marking the first game he missed since his freshman year, a streak of 140 starts.
With two on and two outs in the bottom of the first, State sophomore second baseman Justin Foscue connected on his 12th home run of the year and a 3-0 lead. A sacrifice fly from shortstop Jordan Westburg made it 4-0 State after two innings. In the third, left fielder Rowdey Jordan hit his fifth home run, a solo shot for a 5-0 advantage.
With two outs in the fourth, Georgia pushed across a run on three straight hits coming from Chaney Rogers, Patrick Sullivan and Mason Meadows to cut the deficit to 5-1. Then, Cole Tate worked a walk to load the bases for Tucker Maxwell. However, he grounded out to first on a close play that was reviewed. Overall, Georgia left 13 men on base Saturday.
In the top of the seventh, Riley King reached when he was hit by a pitch to start the inning. LJ Talley drew a four-pitch walk. With a 2-0 count on John Cable, MSU lifted reliever Trysten Barlow in favor of right-hander Jared Liebelt. He got Cable to bounce into a double play and then retired Cam Shepherd to extinguish the threat. In the bottom of the inning, MSU loaded the bases with one out when Georgia lifted reliever Justin Glover for Darryn Pasqua who made his SEC debut. State managed two more runs on infield hits to push its lead to 9-1. Georgia got a pair of runs in the eighth off Jared Liebelt with Tate and LJ Talley notching RBI to cut it to 9-3. Bulldog freshman right-hander Jack Gowen took care of the eighth inning.
Dawg Tracks
- Junior third baseman Aaron Schunk, the team’s leading hitter in SEC action at .355, missed his first game of the year due to a sore Achilles. He had started 140 consecutive games dating back to his freshman year in 2017 when he went down with a season-ending thumb injury in game 37 at Clemson.
- Coming in today, Georgia was 10-0 this year in games started by Tony Locey.
- Senior LJ Talley extended his hitting streak to five games with a single in the fifth.
- Sophomore Cole Tate made his first career start at third base. His only previous start came as a designated hitter versus Kennesaw State on Feb. 27.
Coach’s Corner
Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach Scott Stricklin
On the game…
“The three-run home run hurt us in the first inning. Tony (Locey) left a breaking ball up, and it kind of put us behind the eight ball. I thought he settled in and pitched really well especially considering he was pitching with a really bad cut on his finger. He toughed it out and gave us a chance. We had opportunities. We had guys on base. We had some chances to put some runs on the board, and we didn’t just didn’t’ get the hit when we needed it.”
Up Next
Georgia will conclude an SEC series against No. 9 MSU Sunday at 2 p.m. ET (SEC Network+).