Mississippi State takes aim on a third consecutive Governor’s Cup win tonight at Trustmark Park when the Bulldogs (19-17), take on the 17th-ranked Ole Miss Rebels (25-10) in the third renewal of the neutral site baseball contest in Pearl, Miss.
State topped Ole Miss 14-9 in the inaugural Governor’s Cup game in 2007 and nipped UM 6-5 last year at Trustmark Park, the home of the Class AA Southern League Mississippi Braves. It’s the second visit to Trustmark Park this season for MSU, which dropped a 10-7 decision to Southern Miss on March 17. The loss snapped a run of five consecutive wins for the Bulldogs in Pearl.
Junior right-hander Ricky Bowen (1-1, 6.75) is expected to open on the mound State State while Ole Miss’ projected starter is Brett Bukvich (4-1, 3.86).
Both teams are coming off 1-2 weekend showings in league play. State dropped closely-contested 6-1 and 4-2 games at Tennessee before concluding the weekend series Sunday with a 10-9 win. UM bowed to South Carolina 12-10 and 8-1 on the home field in Oxford before wrapping up the weekend with a 6-1 win.
The game matches two of the SEC’s top base-stealing threats. UM’s Jordan Henry, with 21 stolen bases in 26 attempts, ranks second in the SEC while State senior outfielder Grant Hogue is just behind with 20 pilfers in 23 attempts.
Bulldog sophomore shortstop Ryan Powers carries a team season-best 13-game hitting streak into Tuesday’s game. Junior third baseman Russ Sneed leads the Bulldogs at the plate with a .371 batting average and 43 hits. Junior first baseman Connor Powers (.310), with home runs in six of his last eight games, leads State with 11 roundtrippers and 40 RBI.
Mississippi State launches the second half of its 30-game SEC schedule this weekend in Starkville hosting the Kentucky Wildcats in a three-game Super Bulldog Weekend series at Dudy Noble Field. Friday’s series-opener is set for 6:30 p.m. (CDT).
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