Mississippi State baseball beats St. John's, advances to NCAA regional final vs Virginia
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Mississippi State baseball's time in the NCAA Tournament was extended for at least a few more hours Sunday.
With a 13-5 win against No. 3 seed St. John's in an elimination game, No. 2 seed MSU advanced to the finals of the Charlottesville Regional. The Bulldogs (40-22) will face host and No. 1 seed Virginia (43-15) on Sunday (5 p.m., ACC Network) needing a victory to force a decisive game Monday.
Thanks to Cam Schuelke, Mississippi State's pitching is in a relatively strong position against the Cavaliers.
The Bulldogs only got 4⅓ innings from starter Brooks Auger against the Red Storm (38-18-1). However, Schuelke gave coach Chris Lemonis 4⅔ innings to avoid use of high-leverage arms in the first game of a doubleheader.
Right-handed pitcher Nate Dohm and left-handed arms Pico Kohn and Tyler Davis are likely available against the Cavaliers.
Mississippi State offense builds early lead
When shortstop David Mershon drew a walk in the fourth inning, it marked an early accomplishment for Mississippi State. Every starter reached base before the halfway point of the contest.
Mississippi State jumped on St. John’s starter Evan Chaffee in the third inning. The Bulldogs scored four runs on six hits, including run-scoring singles from Amani Larry, Connor Hujsak and Bryce Chance.
MSU forced the Red Storm to go to its bullpen in the fourth after a pair of hitters reached base before the second out was recorded. Against relief pitcher Tim Cunningham, Mississippi State got run-scoring singles from Dakota Jordan and Hunter Hines to build a 6-0 lead.
A May 17 win against Missouri marked the last time MSU scored at least six runs in a game.
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David Mershon halts middle-inning momentum for St. John’s
St. John’s made matters interesting in the middle innings by scoring a pair of runs in both the fourth and fifth innings. With the six-run lead down to two, Mississippi State was losing momentum.
Mershon, whose defense was strong Sunday, helped the Bulldogs regain control. With Larry at first, Mershon launched at two-run home run to left field – giving Mississippi State an 8-4 lead in the sixth.
The blast was his sixth of the season.
Stefan Krajisnik is the Mississippi State beat writer for the Clarion Ledger. Contact him at skrajisnik@gannett.com or follow him on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, @skrajisnik3.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi State baseball beats St. John's, faces Virginia in regional final
