Mississippi State (37-22) entered its Southeastern Conference Tournament fourth-round tilt against No. 1 seed Florida (39-20) with a .981 fielding average, good for seventh in all of Division 1. In the 5-1 loss, the Bulldogs looked anything but stout defensively team behind its pitchers.
In the second inning, the Gators opened scoring thanks to a fielding error by Bulldogs shortstop Seth Heck — just his fourth error of the season. Peter Alonso reached base on the gaffe, and right fielder Braden Mattson and catcher Taylor Gushue both scored on the play. Mississippi State would again commit an error in the next inning, marking the 13th time in 59 games that the Bulldogs committed multiple errors in a game this season.
Florida would add to its lead in the next frame on an Alonso RBI single that scored Mattson. In the sixth, third baseman Josh Tobias singled for his second hit of the tournament. In the next inning, Gushue grounded out but was able to plate shortstop Richie Martin in the process for Florida’s fifth run.
On the mound, pitchers Danny Young and Justin Shafer combined to throw for Florida’s 10th victory earned after holding an opponent to just one run. Young went 4.1 innings, allowing four hits and striking out two batters. He handed the ball to right-hander Shafer, who went the rest of the way allowing two hits and striking out three.
The Bulldogs could only hope for such consistency — their starter only lasted 3.1 — and the revolving door that was the Mississippi State bullpen sent five arms to the mound in total.
Florida now turns its attention to Kentucky in a semifinal matchup against the opponent it lost to in its tournament opener.
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Florida celebrates after an inning during it’s 4-0 win against Maryland on Feb. 14 at McKethan Stadium.
