CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Mississippi State baseball returned to the postseason this year for the first time since 2021, but the Bulldogs' stay in the NCAA Tournament was short-lived.

MSU, as the No. 2 seed in the Charlottesville Regional, was eliminated Sunday after a 9-2 loss against host and No. 1 seed Virginia (44-15). The game was within one run for most of the contest, but Virginia rallied for six runs in the top of the ninth inning to pull away.

The Bulldogs (40-23) started the regional by taking down No. 3 seed St. John's on Friday to go into the winner's bracket. However, Mississippi State lost against UVA on Saturday to fall into the loser's bracket.

MSU kept its season alive with a 13-5 win in an elimination game against St. John's earlier Sunday. However, the Bulldogs couldn't force a decisive finale Monday against the Cavaliers.

Pico Kohn gives Mississippi State quality start

Pico Kohn was Mississippi State’s fourth starter in Virginia, as was the case in the SEC tournament. Typically, coach Chris Lemonis hopes to get four innings from Kohn before turning to the bullpen.

He got more than that against the Cavaliers.

Kohn – who missed last season due to an arm injury − delivered a quality start, allowing three runs (two earned) across a career-high seven innings. He struck out eight hitters while only walking one.

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Jay Woolfolk rolls through Mississippi State lineup

Kohn’s outing was outdone by Virginia right-handed pitcher Jay Woolfolk.

In his first start since March 17, Woolfolk allowed two runs while pitching into the ninth inning. His lone blemish was a two-run home run allowed against MSU’s Dakota Jordan in the first.

Woolfolk worked around trouble after Virginia gave him a 3-2 lead in the third. In the fourth inning, he stranded MSU’s Hunter Hines after a leadoff double. In the sixth, Mississippi State had David Mershon at second after a leadoff single and a stolen base. But Mershon was picked off en route to another scoreless frame.

In the eighth, Jordan was on first with two outs and Hines at the plate. On a 2-0 pitch, Jordan appeared to successfully steal second. However, he was tagged out after sliding past the base.

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 eliminated by Virginia in NCAA regional