Mississippi

Mississippi State Slugs Their Way to a Game One Win Over Alabama

Published

2 years ago

May 4, 2024

Mississippi State Slugs Their Way to a Game One Win Over Alabama

STARKVILLE, Miss. — Mississippi State pounded out 13 hits tonight en route to a 13-3 win over Alabama. The offense started hot for MSU, as leadoff hitter Bryce Chance dropped a single into right field.

Dakota Jordan worked a walk after falling behind 0-2, and once again, the red-hot Hunter Hines had a chance to do damage. The junior first baseman continued his hot streak with a three-run home run to center field just out of the reach of the leaping Crimson Tide defender.

They were not done. The bottom of the order started the rally in the second as freshman second baseman Ethan Pulliam worked a walk, and Johnny Long hit a soft groundball to move Pulliam up to second with two outs.

The first pitch hit Chance in his at-bat, and David Mershon ripped an RBI single into right field to extend the State lead to 4-0. Hines was not done inflicting damage as he destroyed a ball to left field for a solo home run in the third.

“We are really hard to beat when Hunter Hines plays like that,” Lemonis said.

Johnny Long drove home Pulliam on an infield single to extend the lead to 6-0. Once again, State used the long ball to add to their lead as Bryce Chance hit a solo home run in the fourth.

After a pair of walks, it brought up a slumping Larry with the bases loaded with no outs. The Lousiana native has struggled this season and was moved out of the lead-off spot, but he took advantage of this opportunity by blasting a grand slam into the left field lounge to give State a 12-0 lead.

“Big night, great kid (Larry), he never put his head down,” Lemonis said.

“I am proud of him,” Hines said.

The Bulldog offense reaches a new level when Hines is hitting well, and tonight was one of the best offensive days for this team in SEC play this year. Five MSU hitters had two hits tonight, and everyone in the lineup reached base, with Hines and Larry each having four RBIs.

“It feels great…. it is more about the team and keep supporting no matter what,” Larry said.

The potential of this lineup has been evident all year long, but they have struggled to put all their pieces together. This team is playing their best baseball at the perfect time, especially offensively, as for the first time all season, every guy in the lineup is being productive at the plate.

“A lot of guys had really good at-bats,” Lemonis said. “The guys at the front were really pulling.”

The expectations of this team have changed from making postseason play to potentially being a host site. The past two seasons have been a struggle, and most of these players are experiencing a postseason push for the first time.

“It is fun,” Hines said. “This is what I came here to do.”

The Bulldogs have another opportunity tomorrow to enhance their resume as they go for the series at 2 p.m. CT.

Source link

Click to comment

Mississippi

Mississippi turkey season bag limit, structure proposed for nonresident hunters

Published

1 hour ago

May 11, 2026

Press Room

Mississippi turkey season bag limit, structure proposed for nonresident hunters

‘We’re doing this to decrease the pressure we get early in the season. We’re trying to move that pressure on into later in the season.’

If a proposal made in the April meeting of the Mississippi Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks is finalized, nonresident turkey hunters will see big changes in the 2027 spring turkey season.

“We’re doing this in a way to impact how hunting pressure occurs and how the harvest happens in the early season,” said Caleb Hinton, Wild Turkey Program coordinator for the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. “We’re doing this to decrease the pressure we get early in the season. We’re trying to move that pressure on into later in the season.”

Turkey hunters enjoy a three-bird bag limit and a little more than six weeks of hunting in spring, which is similar to some other states. What is at issue is when it opens. March 15 is the typical opening date for the regular season, making it one of the earliest in the nation.

That early opening date combined with a growing trend among turkey hunters is where the problem lies.

Mississippi is a destination for early season, nonresident hunters

Possibly more than any other group of hunters, turkey hunters like to travel. For some, it may be a matter of seeing a different landscape and hunting birds under condions they don’t encounter in their home state. For others it may be a quest to harvest each of the subspecies in North America.

For yet another group, it’s the challenge of harvesting a gobbler in each of the 49 states that have turkeys.

“It seems to be getting more and more popular every year,” Hinton said.

Regardless of why a turkey hunter chooses to travel, it puts a target on Mississippi’s back because for the first few weeks of the season, it’s almost the only game in town, so hunters flock to the state.

In an effort to curb the amount of hunting pressure in those first weeks of turkey season, MDWFP proposed limiting nonresident hunters to two legal gobblers per season and only one of those can be harvested before April 1.

“Hopefully, it will help curb the massive influx of pressure we get the first week or two of the season,” Hinton said.

When will turkey season changes for nonresidents be voted on?

The proposed changes aren’t the first that have been geared toward alleviating pressure on turkeys in the early part of the season by nonresidents. In 2022, the commission passed a rule requiring nonresident hunters to enter a drawing for a hunt on public land during the first two weeks of turkey season. Currently, the number of hunters drawn is limited to 800.

Like that change, the current proposal will pass or fail by a vote of the wildlife commission. In the April commission meeting, the proposal passed an initial vote. It is now in a 30-day public comment period and a final vote will be taken in the May meeting.

Public comments may be submitted at https://www.mdwfp.com/proposed-rules-regulations.

A lifelong outdoorsman and wildlife enthusiast, Brian Broom has been writing about hunting, fishing and Mississippi’s outdoors for the Clarion Ledger for more than 14 years. He can be reached at 601-961-7225 or bbroom@gannett.com.

Source link

Mississippi

Mississippi high school addresses social media post, says it won’t tolerate racism or harassment

Published

13 hours ago

May 10, 2026

Press Room

Mississippi high school addresses social media post, says it won’t tolerate racism or harassment

LAUDERDALE COUNTY, Miss. (WLBT) – A Mississippi high school has made a statement after a social media post involving a student surfaced.

Northeast Lauderdale High School officials say they’re reviewing a social media post involving a student.

In a statement, the school said administrators are aware of the post and are “reviewing the situation.”

The school said it is committed to maintaining a safe, orderly and respectful environment for students and staff.

“Neither our district nor our school accept or condone racism, discrimination, harassment, or behavior that is inconsistent with the expectations of our school community,” the statement said.

Officials said they are working with the appropriate parties and will address the matter in accordance with district policies and procedures.

The school added that it cannot share additional details because of student privacy laws.

Want more WLBT news in your inbox? Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please click here to report it and include the headline of the story in your email.

Source link

Mississippi

Ryan McPherson injury update, Mississippi State star hurts ankle, exits Auburn game

Published

1 day ago

May 10, 2026

Press Room

Ryan McPherson injury update, Mississippi State star hurts ankle, exits Auburn game

(This story was updated to add new information.)

STARKVILLE — Mississippi State baseball starting pitcher Ryan McPherson exited his May 9 return against Auburn with an ankle injury, according to coach Brian O’Connor.

McPherson tripped behind home plate while backing up a potential throw in the second inning and limped back to the mound. The MSU coaches and trainer examined McPherson before pulling him.

McPherson was making his first start since March 20 after suffering a forearm strain.

The No. 11 Bulldogs (38-14, 15-12 SEC) trailed the No. 6 Tigers (35-15, 16-11) by one run with one out in the inning before getting run-ruled 13-2 in seven innings at Dudy Noble Field.

McPherson threw 34 pitches in 1⅓ innings with one earned and one unearned run allowed, two hits, no walks and no strikeouts.

He did not throw a practice pitch while being examined, and he didn’t limp as he walked into the dugout, either.

Ryan McPherson injury update from Brian O’Connor

O’Connor revealed after the game that McPherson was on a 40-pitch limit, so he was likely going to get pulled soon anyway.

“I would hate for the young man to have a setback because he goes out there and tries to throw to another batter or two and changes this delivery because of an ankle (injury),” O’Connor said. “So that’s what went into that decision. It’s unfortunate, but it was good to get him back out there.”

McPherson, a sophomore, missed six straight starts with his forearm injury. He took Charlie Foster’s spot in the pitching rotation for the Auburn series.

One series remains at Texas A&M before the SEC Tournament.

“We’ll see how he recovers from this and then to see what his availability will be for next weekend,” O’Connor said.