MSU Jumps Into Polls, Hosts FIU For Pair Of Midweeks

STARKVILLE, Miss. – Playing their best baseball of the season, Mississippi State has returned home for a six-game homestand that will open with a pair of 6:30 p.m. CT midweek matchups with FIU at Dudy Noble Field on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Riding a seven-game win streak and coming off a 4-0 week, the nation has taken notice to the recent success of the Diamond Dawgs as MSU went from unranked to ranked in three top 25 polls (No.19 in Collegiate Baseball, No. 22 in Baseball America and No. 25 in USA Today Coaches).

State was thriving in all facets of the game over the last week, which is evident in a team ERA of 2.50 and an opposing batting average of .177. At the plate, MSU averaged 10.25 hits per game on the week with Preseason All-American Brent Rooker having collected Southeastern Conference Player of the Week Honors.

This week's games will serve as the first ever meetings between the Bulldogs and Golden Panthers.

For all midweek games this season, general admission tickets will be sold for $2. Hot dogs will also be available for $2 at concessions. Fans can also visit HailState.com/memories for unique fan experiences.

Tuesday's game will be Harry Potter Night with promotions related to the book and movie series, while a free crawfish boil will be held on Wednesday for MSU students.

Game Notes | Live Stats | Tickets

NEED TO KNOW

12 of MSU's 19 wins this season have come in comeback fashion.
State is 13-4 this season when hitting a home run, 10-1 when scoring in the first inning and 17-3 when out-hitting its opponent.
State's current seven-game win streak is the longest of the season and four of those have been come-from-behind wins.
MSU has not allowed more than four runs in a game during its current win streak, which has let the pitching staff to a 2.86 ERA with five saves and a .224 opposing batting average over that span.
That Diamond Dawgs are 15-2 this season when leading after six innings, 17-1 when leading after eight and 12-2 when scoring six or more runs.
MSU leads the SEC in steals (49), while ranking second in batting average (.298), slugging percentage (.453) and triples (10).
State notched 13 hits on Saturday as five Diamond Dawgs had multi-hit performances and a total of eight recorded a hit.
With four hits on Sunday, Mangum joined Rooker as Bulldogs currently hitting over .400.
Brent Rooker leads the SEC in batting average (.422), slugging percentage (.890), on-base percentage (.511), RBIs (43), doubles (18), total bases (97) and stolen bases (14). Rooker ranks second in hits (46) and home runs (9).
After recording a save in all three wins at No. 19 Ole Miss, sophomore closer Spencer Price now has nine on the season, which ranks first in the SEC and fourth in the nation.
Josh Lovelady got off to a 4-for-25 (.160) start to the season at the plate through his first nine games played of the season and in the last eight games he is .458 (11-for-24) at the plate with two doubles, a career-first triple, nine RBIs and four muli-hit games.
Brent Rooker is in the midst of a career-best 14-game hit streak and a 16-game reached base streak.
On the year, Rooker leads MSU in two-out RBIs (16) and two-out hitting (.487, 19-for-39)
During the four-game stretch that was the last week, Rooker went 7-for-17 (.412) at the plate with five doubles, one triple, one home run and five RBIs for a 1.000 slugging percentage.
Also riding career-high streaks is Cody Brown with an eight-game hit streak and 14-game reached base streak.
Brown led State in hitting over the course of the last week with a .571 (8-for-14) batting average, along with two doubles and one home run for a .929 slugging percentage and team-best .600 on-base percentage.
On Sunday, Brown went 3-for-4 at the plate after going 2-for-4 on Saturday with two RBIs and a home run.
Sophomore LHP Konnor Pilkington has thrown 5+ strikeouts in all seven of his appearances this season. Pilkington ranks second in the SEC in strikeouts (58) and third in batters struck out looking (20).

STARTING PITCHERS
Tuesday – MSU Fr. RHP Graham Ashcraft (2-0, 5.57 ERA) vs. FIU Sr. RHP Robert Garcia (1-4, 4.02 ERA)
Wednesday – MSU TBA vs. FIU TBA

WEATHER
Tuesday – High 83, Low 59 – AM Clouds/PM Sun – 10% Chance of Rain
Wednesday – High 75, Low 45 – Isolated Thunderstorms – 30% Chance of Rain

LIVE VIDEO & TELEVISION
Tuesday and Wednesday's games will be streamed live on SEC Network + via the WatchESPN app and WatchESPN.com.

Watch Tuesday's Game | Watch Wednesday's Game

LIVE AUDIO & RADIO
Both midweek contests will air live on the Mississippi State Baseball Radio Network. The game can also be audio streamed live online at HailState.com/Plus (requires subscription), as well as on TuneIn Radio.

TICKETS
Tickets are still available and can be purchased at HailState.com/tickets or at the MSU ticket office behind home plate, which opens two hours prior to first pitch of every game.

GAME MANAGEMENT POLICY CHANGES
Ice Chest / Cooler check at all DNF gates
In adherence to Southeastern Conference and MSU Game Management Policy, all ice chests and ice coolers, regardless of size, will be checked at all gates prior to entry into Dudy Noble Field-Polk Dement Stadium this season. Individuals with prohibited items will be denied entry. Stadium gates will open two hours prior to first pitch, with servicing of suites and outfield rigs permitted on game day until 30 minutes prior to the gate opening time. All individuals must exit the stadium 30 minutes prior to gate opening and may reenter at gate opening after their tickets have been scanned.

Rightfield deck no standing / Safety lane
To provide for the safe management of the newly created deck space in right field, a 4' wide "No Standing / Safety Lane" has been marked on the right field deck. This visible, safe walkway will provide an unobstructed, free moving means for individuals and emergency personnel full access to travel along the right field deck length. At no time is it permissible to block, restrict or prevent individual movement or pedestrian traffic within and along the marked lane. Pedestrians are not permitted to stop or stand at any time within the marked lane.

FOLLOW THE DIAMOND DAWGS
For more information on the Diamond Dawg program, follow the program on Twitter, like them on Facebook and join them on Instagram by searching for "HailStateBB." You can also find all-access coverage of the program on SnapChat by searching for "HailStateSnap."

Mississippi State University Athletics

MSU Jumps Into Polls, Hosts FIU For Pair Of Midweeks

Players Mentioned

Graham Ashcraft

Cody Brown

Josh Lovelady

Konnor Pilkington

Spencer Price

Brent Rooker

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