The Bulldog Box Score: Stats and MVPs for MSU's win over Texas

You can't win them all if you don't win the first one and Mississippi State has done just that. The No. 7 Bulldogs defeated No. 9 Texas 8-3 on Saturday at the State Farm College Showdown. Below is the full boxscore from Saturday's game, followed by Cowbell Corner's MVPs for the day and the moment of the game:

Offensive MVP: DH Luke Hancock

Luke Hancock looked like a hitting machine for the Bulldogs on Saturday. He reached in each of his first four plate appearances before flying out to center in the eighth. He ended the day 3-for-4 with a homer, a couple of singles, a walk, two RBI and two runs scored. Yes, it's only one game. But Hancock sure looked like a guy that's going to be a critical piece of MSU's lineup all season long whether it's at designated hitter or giving fellow catcher Logan Tanner a break behind the dish.

"He's going to be in the lineup a lot and he's going to catch a good bit," MSU head coach Chris Lemonis said of Hancock. "He's been one of our better guys through spring training. He's just been on...He just continued that on today. It's nice to have that in the mid-to-late part of your lineup and have a guy give you such great at-bats."

Pitching MVP: RP Landon Sims

When you face 12 batters, get them all out and strike out 10 of them, that certainly gives you a good chance to be the pitching MVP for the day. So Sims gets the nod on Saturday with his four perfect innings, not to mention the first three outs (and first three strikeouts) he recorded came with the bases loaded and no one out. And speaking of that...

Moment of the game: Sims escapes bases-loaded jam

MSU entered the fifth inning up 5-0 but it appeared it was all about to get away from the Bulldogs. Christian MacLeod finally showed some chinks in his armor after starting the game for State and hurling four shutout innings. MacLeod surrendered a leadoff homer in the fifth, then three straight Longhorns reached to load the bases with nobody out. The potential tying run was coming up for Texas. Lemonis brought in Sims and all he did was strike out three Longhorns to end the frame. From that point on, Mississippi State was in complete control.

MORE POSTGAME COVERAGE HERE: