Healthy in SEC tournament, Mississippi State baseball shows why it should host NCAA regional

HOOVER, Ala. — Coach Chris Lemonis wanted to ensure the selection committee for the NCAA Tournament is aware of Mississippi State baseball’s resume. Through the noise of the grounds crew at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium on Wednesday, Lemonis made sure his pitch was heard.

Fresh off a 5-3 win against No. 4 seed Texas A&M in the second round of the SEC tournament, Lemonis listed the reasons he thinks there should be no debate about Mississippi State (38-19) hosting an NCAA regional at Dudy Noble Field.

“You’ve got to do your work, and it lays out for them," Lemonis said. "Our kids have earned it. We deserve to have one in Starkville.”

The Bulldogs won 17 conference games in the regular season – which doesn’t include a neutral site midweek win against rival Ole Miss. As the No. 5 seed in the SEC tournament, MSU has added two more victories against conference foes with a win over No. 12 seed Ole Miss on Tuesday before defeating Texas A&M.

Mississippi State has a top 20 RPI – a metric the committee uses to help form the field of 64. To get to No. 19 in those rankings, the Bulldogs defeated the Aggies (44-12) who own the nation’s top rating in the metric. Add the fact that the SEC could send most of its teams to the NCAA tournament, Lemonis feels the argument for State to host is solid.

"If you have 11 teams in and you finish fifth in the league, how are you not hosting?” Lemonis said. “That's a pretty easy statement.”

Mississippi State stars are struggling, but Connor Hujsak is back

Lemonis felt Mississippi State’s case was cemented even before its arrival in Hoover. However, aware that they don’t want to give the committee a choice, his players have aimed to prove their case.

Behind consecutive nights of ninth-inning heroics from outfielder Connor Hujsak, the Bulldogs have advanced to the winner’s bracket where they’ll face No. 8 seed Vanderbilt (37-20) on Thursday (8 p.m., SEC Network).

Hujsak delivered a two-run, walk-off home run against the Rebels before providing a two-run single to break a tie in the ninth inning Wednesday.

"It's like the Connor Hujsak Invitational hosted by the SEC,” Lemonis joked.

Mississippi State was without Hujsak in its final seven regular season games. In his absence, MSU lost two of three games at Arkansas before winning a series against Missouri but failing to sweep.

With him back, there’s potential for damage even amid slumps from first baseman Hunter Hines and outfielder Dakota Jordan.

HOT CORNER: Inside Logan Kohler's rise with Mississippi State baseball from Bobby Witt Jr to power surge

Nate Dohm adds depth to Mississippi State pitching

Right-handed pitcher Nate Dohm has shown his absence due to an arm injury should also be taken into account by the committee.

He opened the season as Mississippi State’s top starter, allowing only four runs across 24 innings in his first four starts. However, he only pitched a third of an inning between March 8 and May 14.

The depth of Lemonis’ rotation was tested, and the Bulldogs went through most of conference play without their presumed ace. He returned for a May 14 start against North Alabama in which he threw two scoreless innings. He came out of the bullpen in his return to conference play with one shutout inning against Missouri on May 18.

On Wednesday, after Texas A&M rallied for two runs in the sixth to tie the game, Dohm delivered two shutout innings to tame one of the country’s most potent lineups.

“We were missing a piece or two here and there,” Tyler Davis said after throwing a scoreless ninth inning Wednesday. “He’s coming in, filling that void and really giving us a chance to go deep in this thing.”

Stefan Krajisnik is the Mississippi State beat writer for the Clarion Ledger. Contact him at skrajisnik@gannett.com or follow him on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, @skrajisnik3.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: At SEC tournament, Mississippi State baseball is improving hosting hopes