Mississippi State baseball drops another heartbreaker in series opener at No. 10 Texas A&M – The Dispatch

Mississippi State happened as near retaking the lead within the ninth inning of Friday’s sequence opener at No. 10 Texas A&M as a baseball workforce can come.

However the Bulldogs finally fell 8-7 to the Aggies in School Station in a contest that made their lengthy postseason odds even longer with the season winding down abruptly.

MSU (25-25, 9-16 Southeastern Convention) fell again to .500 on the season after shedding a 7-4 result in A&M (31-16, 15-10 SEC) within the backside of the seventh inning at Blue Bell Park.

The Bulldogs loaded the bases with two away within the prime of the ninth inning, however Hunter Hines grounded to first base for the sport’s last out.

Hines’ infield bouncer ended a two-out rally that gained momentum however by no means produced a run. RJ Yeager singled into heart discipline, Luke Hancock was hit by a pitch, and Logan Tanner walked earlier than Hines’ at-bat ended the sport.

MSU was executed in by a go-ahead, three-run double by Texas A&M’s Troy Claunch with two out and a 2-2 depend towards KC Hunt within the seventh. Claunch’s profitable hit adopted 4 walks within the inning — two by Hunt and one by starter Brandon Smith. Hunt walked Austin Bost earlier within the body to drive in a run.

Smith allowed six runs on six hits and 4 walks. 4 runs got here within the first two innings because the Aggies put up a three-spot within the first and added on with a solo homer within the second.

Mississippi State scored all seven runs over the subsequent 4 innings to return again and construct a lead. Yeager despatched a two-run shot out to left within the third inning, and Brad Cumbest doubled house one other run within the fourth.

However after Kellum Clark walked to load the bases with no one out, two floor balls and a strikeout from the underside of the order killed the rally.

Cumbest put that previously, although, with a three-run homer on a 2-2 pitch with two out within the fifth. His shot to left discipline adopted singles by Hancock and Hines, the second of which chased A&M starter Nathan Dettmer from the sport.

Kamren James hit a leadoff house run within the sixth inning to place MSU up 7-4.

However A&M got here again towards Smith and Hunt within the seventh due to the free go. The Aggies labored full counts on three of their 4 walks, and Claunch’s double to proper heart discipline was their first hit of the inning.

Mississippi State went down so as within the eighth earlier than its too-little, too-late rally within the ninth.

The Bulldogs and Aggies will play the center recreation of the sequence at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Theo DeRosa experiences on Mississippi State sports activities for The Dispatch. Observe him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.