Mississippi State and No. 19 Southern Miss closed the regular season with a clean sweep over conference opponents, while Ole Miss took two of three from the nation’s No. 6 team.
Starting off with the Bulldogs (34-20, 15-15 SEC), interim head coach Justin Parker and company traveled to Missouri and left no doubt that they belong in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. An offensive explosion late in game one found Mississippi State 25-7 victors. Senior slugger Hunter Hines hit his 68th long ball in Friday’s 13-3 run-rule win, breaking the program’s all-time homer record previously held by former MLB great Rafael Palmeiro.
6⃣8⃣#HailState🐶 https://t.co/MMZriLV1nn pic.twitter.com/QSGzxR5Qus
— Mississippi State Baseball (@HailStateBB) May 17, 2025
Game three was another one-sided, high-scoring affair, favoring the visitors. Mississippi State was able to travel home to Starkville a little early after dominating the Tigers 12-1 in a shortened contest. Now, the Bulldogs will set their sights on the upcoming SEC Tournament, where the team is featured as a No. 11 seed taking on No. 14 seed Texas A&M on Tuesday at 8 p.m. CT.
In Oxford, Ole Miss (37-18, 16-14 SEC) raised eyebrows and its stock as a potential host team in the postseason. A dominant showing on the mound from Hunter Elliott and a solid compilation of hits propelled the Rebels to a 9-2 win to open their series versus No. 6 Auburn.
Mike Bianco’s club swung the bats early and often in game two, establishing a 13-4 lead in the bottom of the sixth, but the Tigers did not go away. Auburn tacked on four runs in the next two frames to shorten the Rebels’ lead. Ole Miss first baseman Will Furniss sent a two-run jack over the center field wall to help propel his group to a 15-11 victory.
Furn mashes one to straightaway center! 💥@WillFurniss x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/QU86M6yVvh
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) May 17, 2025
With a chance to sweep and make Swayze Field look like a prime NCAA Tournament host location on the line, the Rebels jumped out early and established an 8-3 advantage. The lead was circumvented by 10 unanswered runs by Auburn, which took game three 13-8. Ole Miss will return to the diamond as a No. 7 seed in Hoover. The Rebels will face the winner of No. 10 seed Florida and No. 15 seed South Carolina on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. CT.
Southern Miss (41-13, 24-6 Sun Belt) arguably had the most impressive showing of the weekend. The Golden Eagles traveled to No. 22 Troy’s house with brooms in hand. Yet another solid performance by ace JB Middleton, paired with a heroic eighth-inning home run by Joey Urban, carried Christian Ostrander’s club to a 4-3 win on Thursday.
On Friday, a dominant effort all around found the Golden Eagles 12-1 victors in a mercy rule shortened contest. The win also marked an NCAA-best nine consecutive 40-plus win seasons for the black and gold, along with 15 straight victories on the season.
𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐃𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐎𝐅 𝐄𝐗𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 🏆
Ninth consecutive 40-win season and fifth 40-win regular season in program history!#EverythingMatters | #SMTTT pic.twitter.com/42qsbCMRFb
— Southern Miss Baseball (@SouthernMissBSB) May 17, 2025
Southern Miss jumped ahead 5-0 in Saturday’s outing over the Trojans and never looked back. Though Troy threatened with two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, the Golden Eagles countered with a three-spot in the top of the sixth to keep the home club from salvaging the series. Southern Miss will be featured in the upcoming Sun Belt Tournament as a No. 2 seed and is scheduled to take the diamond on Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. CT against an opponent yet to be determined.
The Golden Eagles, with momentum heading into the postseason, have a prime opportunity to make a run in the conference tournament, turning Pete Taylor Park into a viable landing spot for a regional.
