Mississippi State will face Ole Miss in the annual Governor’s Cup baseball game on April 27, with both teams ranked among the top 20. The matchup will take place at Trustmark Park in Pearl and is set to begin at 6 p.m., streamed on SEC Network+.
The rivalry between Mississippi State and Ole Miss draws significant attention each year, as it brings together two of the state’s most prominent college baseball programs for a non-conference contest. This year’s game carries added interest since Mississippi State already swept Ole Miss earlier this season.
Mississippi State enters the Governor’s Cup with a record of 34-10 overall and an eight-game winning streak, including a sweep over defending national champion LSU. The Bulldogs have also won their last five games against Ole Miss, sweeping them in Oxford from March 27-29. Mississippi State leads the all-time series against Ole Miss by a margin of 271-213-5 and holds an advantage in neutral-site meetings since the introduction of the Governor’s Cup at Trustmark Park.
Senior right-hander Brendan Sweeney is scheduled to start for Mississippi State. Sweeney has made eleven appearances this season with one start, recording seventeen strikeouts over fifteen and one-third innings. For Ole Miss, junior right-hander Owen Kelly is expected to start; he has twenty-four strikeouts across twelve appearances.
Brian O’Connor’s first season as head coach for Mississippi State has seen strong offensive production from players like Ace Reese, Noah Sullivan, Bryce Chance, Gehrig Frei, Jacob Parker, Aidan Teel, Kevin Milewski, Reed Stallman, and Ryder Woodson. The Bulldogs are hitting .313 as a team with seventy-six home runs so far this year.
Ole Miss arrives with a record of 31-14 overall after losing two out of three games to Georgia last weekend. Key contributors include Tristan Bissetta and Judd Utermark; Bissetta leads his team with nineteen home runs while Utermark has scored fifty-six runs this season.
Although Tuesday’s game does not affect Southeastern Conference standings, it offers both teams an opportunity to gain momentum ahead of important upcoming matchups.
