Oregon had an opportunity take the series from Mississippi State on Saturday following Friday night’s 1-0 win.  With Matt Mercer making his first start since his career best outing versus Seton Hall, the Ducks would take the early lead but fall just short of MSU by a score of 5-4.
“I was disappointed with the energy in the seventh, eighth and ninth [innings],” Oregon head coach George Horton said. “I thought [Mississippi State] did a better job and played hungrier than us.”
Mercer threw the ball well enough for the Ducks to get the win, allowing two earned runs in six innings pitched. But a costly throwing error by right fielder Matthew Dyer in the sixth set the stage for Mississippi State to tie up the game at 3-3, and the Bulldogs would not look back. “I thought in the first five innings, we could have put the game away a little bit,” said Horton. “The fifth inning we lost the momentum.”
In the top of the sixth inning, the Ducks had a 3-1 lead, and Mercer seemed to have recovered from a shaky third inning in which Mississippi State scored its first run.
With a runner on first and one out, a fly ball off the bat of MSU’s Harrison Bragg found some grass in shallow right field for a base hit. The right fielder Dyer then attempted to throw out Elijah MacNamee at second base, but his throw would sail down the left field line, setting up MSU with runners on second and third. MSU’s Josh Lovebody would then tie up the game with a two-out, two-RBI base hit.
“We let a lot of things slip through our fingers,” said Horton. “We gave them a couple of extra opportunities.”
Mississippi State would string together four hits in the eighth inning to give them a 5-3 lead. In the bottom half of the ninth, Jake Bennett would drive home Morgan McCullough to bring the Ducks within one. With two outs and runners on first and second, it was Dyer at the plate with a chance to tie or win the game for the Ducks. It wouldn’t be in the cards though, as Dyer struck out swinging to end the ballgame.
“He’s a good baseball player,” said Horton about Dyer, who had two hits, an RBI and scored a run on the night. “I like the way he’s playing the game.”
The Ducks put together four hits in the second inning on the way to grabbing an early 2-0 lead. Mercer couldn’t get the shutdown inning in the top half of the third and allowed Mississippi State to score. But the Ducks would get the run right back in the bottom frame of the inning with back-to-back two out hits from A.J. Balta and Dyer to take the 3-1 lead.
After throwing seven shutout innings versus Seton Hall in the Tony Gwynn Classic in San Diego, Mercer wasn’t as sharp tonight, but still battled his way through six hard fought innings.
“He’s a competitive bugger,” said Horton. “We believe in him when we give the ball to him.”
Oregon closer Brac Warren, who missed the beginning of the season with an injury, made his first appearance of the season during the Bulldog’s two run eighth inning. Warren would allow both of Connor Zwetsch’s runners to score. He would pitch the ninth inning as well, striking out four in 1.2 innings of work.
“It was a tough situation to enter,” said Horton. “He minimized it. Instead of a three or four run inning, he made it a two run inning.”
The Ducks will look to take the rubber match of the series on Sunday at 12 p.m.
Follow Cole Kundich on Twitter @ckundich