No. 8 Southern Miss Grand Slams Georgia Southern, Eyes Sun Belt Regular-Season Title

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – There was a buzz of excitement ringing throughout Pete Taylor Park on Thursday night, and it wasn't just because of the Right Field Roost train horn getting put to good use during No. 8 Southern Miss' 14-3 run-rule win over Georgia Southern to start its final regular season series of the year.

Eags Breathing Down Chants' Necks for Sun Belt Title

As the Golden Eagles were hammering GASO, taking any sort of potential Thursday-night drama out of play, patrons of The Pete kept a close eye on what was going on in Lafayette, LA, tonight, as the Ragin' Cajuns knocked off No. 20 Coastal Carolina in the first game of their massive weekend series. With the Southern Miss (38-14, 20-8) win and the Coastal Carolina (35-18, 20-8), the two programs are tied at the top of the Sun Belt standings.

What once seemed like an insurmountable conference record lead for Coastal has all of a sudden vanished into thin air, and the Golden Eagles now have a real chance of securing the Sun Belt regular-season title over these last two games. Southern Miss will win that title with either 1) two more wins + one more Coastal Carolina loss -OR- 2) one more win and two more Coastal Carolina losses.

Southern Miss Grand Slams Georgia Southern

Southern Miss' offense was as hot as it could be last weekend in Harrisonburg, VA, against James Madison, and that momentum carried over to Thursday's series opener against GASO. The Golden Eagles essentially wrapped Game 1 up in the second inning, where they put up a whopping 10 runs in the frame.

Senior right fielder Ben Higdon and sophomore third baseman Ty Long got the scoring party started in the second inning with an RBI double and a two-RBI single, respectively. Then, senior center fielder Joey Urban and senior second baseman Kyle Morrison tacked on two more runs with singles to make it 5-0, Golden Eagles.

After junior left fielder Davis Gillespie added one more run with an RBI double to make it 6-0, the Golden Eagles were able to load the bases for sophomore designated hitter Drey Barrett, who put the cherry on top of a massive second inning by notching the first grand slam of his young career. USM took a 10-0 lead through two innings and never looked back.

Drey said clear ’em out#OTR | #ETM | #SMTTT https://t.co/2RG6L0dl0G pic.twitter.com/s0qPReCekF
— Southern Miss Baseball (@SouthernMissBSB) May 15, 2026

For good measure, Higdon, Urban and Morrison all tacked on homers of their own as the Golden Eagles scored all 14 of their runs on 14 hits through five innings. Barrett was a perfect 3-of-3 at the plate on Thursday.

Grayden Harris Bounces Back

In our series preview, we wrote about how we expected a big bounce-back game from Southern Miss sophomore LHP Grayden Harris after he had a bumpy ride in last weekend's series opener against JMU, and he didn't disappoint.

Through five innings of work, Harris registered eight strikeouts while giving up just two hits and one run. With just 75 pitches thrown, Harris could've stayed out there longer if it had been necessary, but the Golden Eagles' massive lead allowed their ace to take off a little early in this one and start getting some extra rest for the Sun Belt Conference tournament.

Next Up: Keeping the Foot on the Gas

The Golden Eagles will now shift their focus to Friday, which will be more emotional than most days, as it is Senior Day. If you want to catch the pregame ceremony for the USM seniors, be sure you're at The Pete by 5:20 p.m.

Although it will be a day filled with many emotions for the seniors, Southern Miss still has to focus on the task at hand: defeating Georgia Southern again and securing a series win. Stay tuned to Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI for more coverage throughout the weekend, and check back here later, as this article will be updated with player quotes on Friday.

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