Official Box Score
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Jake Overstreet doubled and tripled and Ryan Bohanan and Russell Harben each drove in a pair of runs as South Alabama took a 6-5 victory over Mississippi State Tuesday night at Dudy Noble Field. The win snapped a five-game losing streak against the Bulldogs dating back to 2002.
South Alabama jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first, generating four straight hits after two were out. David Doss and Ryne Jernigan singled before Bohanan cleared the bases with a double to left center.
The Jaguars added two more runs in the fourth. Doss reached first when the first pitch of the inning hit him. After an out, Bohanan singled up the middle, pushing Doss to second. Harben then hit a 1-2 pitch into the gap in left center to score both runners.
Chris LaGrow, still on a pitch count after recovering from injury, looked in midseason form over three innings. He allowed just two hits while striking out three to pick up his first win of the season.
Mississippi State climbed back in the game with one swing of the bat in the fourth. Miles Ethridge walked the first two batters of the frame before retiring the next two. However, Tyler Moore hit the first pitch he saw deep over the left field fence for a three-run homer.
But the Jaguars added two more in the sixth for a 6-3 lead. Davis walked and was sacrificed to second before Overstreet tripled to right center. He scored four pitches later when Ray Kruml flew out to right.
Travis Johnson and Greg Johnson followed Etheridge to the mound, allowing two runs over 4.2 innings. The duo relied on the Jag defense to turn double plays in four straight innings ? the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth. The Jags conceded a run on the double play in the sixth after runners were on the corners with no one out.
Greg Johnson threw the final 1.2 innings to earn his fifth save of the season, despite allowing a solo home run by Moore and loading the bases in the ninth. But Bulldog cleanup hitter Cody Freeman popped out to second to end the threat.
The series concludes tomorrow night with a 6:30 p.m. first pitch.
