STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Georgia Southern baseball team takes to the road for its first away series of the year, squaring off with the Mississippi State Bulldogs of the Southeastern Conference beginning on Friday, February 23.
The Eagles carry a 1-3 record into the contest after a late loss to the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on Tuesday night. In that game, the Eagles held onto a 4-3 lead late in the game, but an four-run top of the eighth inning by Georgia Tech would put the Jackets on top for good, defeating the Eagles 7-4. Mississippi State brings a 2-3 record into the contest after winning two games in a three-game tilt against Air Force on Opening Weekend, but was swept in a two-game midweek series by Austin Peay in Starkville, Miss.
This is only the second time in each of the program's histories that the teams have met on the field. The first time was during the 1990 College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, where the Bulldogs defeated the Eagles in an elimination game, 5-1.
The legendary baseball coach Ron Polk was at Georgia Southern from 1972-1975, guiding the Eagles to its first College World Series appearance during the 1973 season. After his stint at Georgia Southern, Polk was hired by Mississippi State, where he coached from 1976-1997, and again from 2002-2008. Currently, Polk serves as a Special Assistant to the AD at Mississippi State.
Southern will carry the same opening rotation from Opening Weekend into the series, with
Thomas Higgins getting the nod on Friday night,
Mitchell Gross leading the charge on Saturday, and
Ty Fisher taking the lead on Sunday. Mississippi State will send out RHP Nate Dohm on Friday night, RHP Khal Stephen on Saturday, and BHP Jurrangelo Cijntje.
