Mississippi State Baseball Blows Huge Lead, Drops Game 2 to Tulane

Heading into the bottom of the fourth inning, Mississippi State held a comfortable 10-2 run lead over Tulane. That was all gone by the end of the ninth, and the Green Wave walked the game off in the tenth inning with a home run to claim the 11-10 victory and even the series.

Starting pitcher Preston Johnson pitched six complete innings and allowed three runs on six hits with nine strikeouts. Logan Tanner led the charge offensively with three hits, two runs scored and six RBIs thanks to an early grand slam. Kamren James, Hunter Hines and Kellum Clark each scored two runs for the Bulldogs. Clark also had a home run.

MSU got off to a hot start and an early lead. Tanner hit a single up the middle to give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Tulane took the lead on a home run that scored two, but that was the only lead they could muster until the very end of the game.

In the second, Yeager and James each drove in a run, then Tanner hit his first grand slam of the season to push the score up to 7-2. Clark followed that up with a home run in the top of the third inning. Tanner and Brad Cumbest each had doubles that drove in one run in the fourth inning. With the Diamond Dawgs clutching a 10-2 lead, the game seemed out of reach for Tulane. What fans didn't know was that the Bulldogs wouldn't score another run for the rest of the game.

Johnson gave up his third run of the day in the bottom of the fourth inning, but it didn't rattle him. He pitched a few more innings before being replaced by true freshman Jack Walker in the seventh inning. Walker had a rough outing, to say the least-- he didn't get a single out. He gave up one score, then loaded the bases for a grand slam. With the score suddenly 10-8, the game was no longer out of reach for the Green Wave.

Walker was pulled quickly and replaced by Brooks Auger. He pitched a complete inning to control Walker's big mistakes, and Stone Simmons followed it up with a dominant inning of his own. With only one inning to go, Mississippi State still held on to a 10-8 lead... and then one of the most questionable coaching decisions of the season was made.

The Bulldogs weren't able to score in the top of the ninth, but it seemed obvious that Simmons would return to the game to seal a victory. Instead, Parker Stinnett was sent to the mound to try to close things out. Stinnett hasn't had a very good season, and it showed. He quickly walked two batters with only one out, and his replacement was Mikey Tepper. Tepper gave up a sacrifice fly to the outfield, but in a remarkable play, Tulane was able to score two and tie the game.

As the two teams prepared to go to extra innings, the momentum certainly seemed to be on Tulane's side. Hancock got things going with a double before James and Hines each picked up outs. Tanner was intentionally walked, and pinch hitter Aaron Downs was unintentionally walked to load the bases with two outs for Cumbest. In the heat of the moment, he struck out swinging.

The game ended quickly from there. A home run off of Tepper by Tulane's Ethan Groff in the bottom of the tenth inning sealed the 11-10 comeback victory for the Green Wave. It was disappointing for the Bulldogs, but decisions regarding the bullpen are what ultimately caused the team's downfall.

Mississippi State will play in the rubber match tomorrow in hopes of sealing a series victory over a solid Tulane team. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. CT in New Orleans.