?BREDS HOLD OFF LATE RALLY TO BEAT No. 19 MISSISSIPPI 7-6

Wednesday, March 8

Oxford, Miss.

3:00 p.m.

Murray State

Mississippi

?BREDS HOLD OFF LATE RALLY TO BEAT No. 19 MISSISSIPPI 7-6

3/8/2006 6:00:00 AM | Baseball

Strong pitching and timely hitting came together for the Murray State Thoroughbreds this afternoon, and MSU turned its first-ever triple play en route to its 7-6 win at No. 19 Mississippi.

Jon Newton (1-1) pitched four innings of shutout ball, allowing only two hits, to earn the win, while Andrew Bishop picked up the first save of the season for Murray State, striking out five of the first seven batters he faced.

“I was really proud of our team,” said MSU head coach Rob McDonald. “This is a difficult place to come in and play. They're one of the best teams in the country. I was really proud of our guys, the way they fought and battled. I was very proud of the job that (MSU pitching) Coach (Paul) Wyczawski and our pitching staff did. Jon Newton started the game and really set the tone by pitching outstanding, and then, Andrew Bishop came in late when we really needed him, and just pitched like a champion.

“We did what we needed to do. We got enough runs with what they gave us, and I was really proud of our team.

Murray State was the first team to score, plating a run in the third inning when James Akin led off with a walk, then went to second on a single by Brett Mullins. He went to third on a fielder's choice, then scored on a single by Chaz Ebert.

In the fourth inning, the runs kept coming, as Jason Payton led off with a single, followed by a bunt single by Jamie Leidolf. Payton was caught stealing, but a walk by Akin loaded the bases. A single by Mullins scored Leidolf, while a single by Seth Hudson scored Akin to put the ?Breds ahead 3-0.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Rebels (9-4) had runners on first and second with none out when Zack Cozart hit a sharp line drive to the right of shortstop Justin Yount. The runners ran on the pitch to attempt a hit-and-run, but Yount dove to his right and caught the ball, threw to Hudson at second, who threw on to Michal Perconte at first to complete Murray State's first-ever triple play.

In MSU's next bat, Yount got a one-out single, then Mullins walked. Hudson singled up the middle to score Yount, then Ebert was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Tyler Pittman walked in Mullins, then Hudson scored on a groundout to put the ?Breds ahead 6-0.

Mississippi scored a run in the bottom of the sixth, then added three runs in the seventh to narrow the gap to 6-4.

In the eighth inning, Ebert hit a two-out single, then went to third on a single by Pittman. Ebert scored on a wild pitch ? what would be an important run ? to put MSU up 7-4.

In the ninth inning, the Rebels rebounded, scoring two runs and having a runner on second with two outs and yesterday's strongarm, Justin Brashear (who hit two home runs yesterday) at the plate. Brashear sent a 2-2 pitch to deep right field, but Mullins caught the ball against the wall for the final out.

Mullins, Hudson and Ebert each had two hits for Murray State, while Hudson had two runs batted in and Akin scored twice.

Mississippi was led by C.J. Ketchum, who went 5-for-5. Jon-Jon Hancock had three hits for the Rebels.

On defense, Mullins and catcher Payton each had five putouts, while second baseman Hudson and Yount had three assists each. UM first baseman Ketchum had 10 putouts, while second baseman Justin Henry had six assists.

On the mound, Newton got the win, allowing two hits and walking four in four innings. Matt Scalfani came on in the fifth inning and allowed one run on three hits, walking one in 1-2/3 innings. West Harris entered in the sixth inning, allowing three runs on three hits in one inning. Bishop came on in the seventh, allowing two runs on four hits, striking out five and walking none in 2-1/3 innings.

For Mississippi, Nick Hetland (1-1) took the loss, allowing one run on three hits, striking out two and walking three in three innings. Craig Rodriguez came on in the fourth, allowing five runs on five hits, striking out three and walking three in 2-1/3 innings. Jesse Simpson entered in the sixth inning, striking out one and walking one in 1-2/3 innings, while Stoney Stone pitched the eighth, allowing one run on two hits. Garrett White pitched the ninth inning, striking out one.

Murray State will return home for a four-game homestand, beginning on Sunday at noon with a double-header against former Ohio Valley Conference rival Akron.