Baseball Travels to Pearl to Face In-State Foe Mississippi State

Date             Time (CT)     Probable Pitchers
Tue., 5        6 p.m.             RH Karson Ligon, Jr. (0-0, 9.00 ERA) vs. RH Cole Boswell, Sr. (0-0, 6.75 ERA)
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HATTIESBURG, Miss. – A pair of 8-4 squads do battle at Trustmark Park in Pearl, Tuesday, when Southern Miss meets Mississippi State for the only regular-season meeting between the two schools. Game time is set at 6 p.m.

The game can be steamed via ESPN+, while also be able to be heard on an affiliate of the Southern Miss Sports Network as well as online at SouthernMiss.com.

The Golden Eagles took two of three over 2023 NCAA Super Regional club Indiana State at home last weekend while the Bulldogs defeated Mount St. Mary's three times in Starkville.

This will be the 37th time Southern Miss will play at Trustmark Park since they first played Ole Miss during the 2006 campaign, a game they won 13-6 over the Rebels. Southern Miss is 19-17 all-time at the facility that also houses the Mississippi Braves, an AA affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. Christian Ostrander's club is 5-7 against Bulldogs all time in Pearl.

The Golden Eagles will go with senior right-hander Cole Boswell, a transfer from Meridian Community College, against the Bulldogs. In three seasons at Meridian, he posted a 21-4 record for the Eagles with 205 strikeouts, 99 walks, a 3.39 ERA over 186 innings. In his first appearance for the Golden Eagles, Boswell gave up three runs on three hits and a walk with three strikeouts over 1 1/3 innings at New Orleans (2/21). His first start came last Tuesday versus Nicholls (2/27) in Biloxi as he gave up no runs on a hit and a walk with two strikeouts. He did not figure in that decision.

Through the first 12 games, Golden Eagle pitching has produced solid numbers as the squad has fanned 133 and walked just 38 in 109 innings with a 3.96 ERA. In eight of the contests, the pitching staff accumulated at least 10 strikeouts and at least 13 five times, including a season-high 17 against Missouri State (2/25).

Freshman Seth Smith has been a pleasant surprise for the Golden Eagles this spring. The Mobile, Ala., native (Mobile Christian HS) leads the team with four doubles. In the finale against Indiana State (3/3) he collected a pair of doubles and was 3-for-8 in the series with four runs scored, playing at both second and third base. He registered a pair of go-ahead doubles against Missouri State the previous weekend.

Two other newcomers have played well for the Golden Eagles including outfielder Billy Butler, who has a .353 batting average with a double and a home run, while junior Dalton McIntyre has a .310 average and five RBI.

Following the Mississippi State game, the Golden Eagles stay on the road for a three-game weekend set at Louisiana Tech. The series starts Friday in Ruston at 6 p.m.

Baseball Travels to Pearl to Face In-State Foe Mississippi State

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Players Mentioned

Cole Boswell

Billy Butler

Dalton McIntyre

Seth Smith

University of Southern Mississippi Athletics