Troy University Athletics
Tuesday, February 17
Starkville, Miss.
4 p.m.
Troy University
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Mississippi State
4-0
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Troy
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Mississippi State
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Troy Baseball Closes Road Swing with Loss at No. 3 Mississippi State
2/17/2026 8:54:00 PM | Baseball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Troy Baseball's four-game road swing to open the 2026 season ended with a 13-7 loss to No. 3 Mississippi State at Dudy Noble Field on Tuesday.
The Trojans recorded ten hits on the evening, but trailed 12-2 through six innings before scraping across three runs in the seventh to avoid the mercy rule.
Sean Darnell drove in both of the early Trojan runs on a triple in the fourth inning and a base knock in the sixth. Troy managed just one hit against MSU sophomore starter Duke Stone, who struck out six in four scoreless frames.Â
Troy starter Blake Dean pitched 1.1 innings, striking out two, as the Bulldogs recorded seven hits and six runs against the Kansas State transfer. Lefty Zach Crotchfelt pitched 2.2 innings of relief, punching out four, giving up just one run on a second-inning solo homer to All-American third baseman Ace Reese, who had five of State's 16 hits.
The Trojans did most of their damage against lefty William Kirk, who allowed three runs in 2.0 innings and righty Chris Billingsley, who allowed a run and did not record an out in the seventh, as Aaron Piasecki drove in two on a single into center with Jimmy Janicki knocking in a run on an infield hit.
The Bulldogs countered with five runs - four earned - against Brock Tapper in the fifth and sixth innings, highlighted by a two-run homer by catcher Chone James.
Hard throwing lefty Jack Bauer struck out the side for Mississippi State in the eighth, but the Trojans put a pair of runs across against the freshman in the ninth on a pitch-clock walk by Darnell and an infield hit by Dillon Kuehl.
NotablesÂ
"While baseball is the only sport without a clock, if you put yourself in a hole at the wrong time, you get burned. If you play good baseball, and you've got to overcome some sort of mistake late, you can do that. When you put yourself in a pinch early you're going to be kicking yourself, and that's honestly what we did."
Next Up
The Trojans return to Troy for their first home series against Campbell, Friday through Sunday.
The Trojans recorded ten hits on the evening, but trailed 12-2 through six innings before scraping across three runs in the seventh to avoid the mercy rule.
Sean Darnell drove in both of the early Trojan runs on a triple in the fourth inning and a base knock in the sixth. Troy managed just one hit against MSU sophomore starter Duke Stone, who struck out six in four scoreless frames.Â
Troy starter Blake Dean pitched 1.1 innings, striking out two, as the Bulldogs recorded seven hits and six runs against the Kansas State transfer. Lefty Zach Crotchfelt pitched 2.2 innings of relief, punching out four, giving up just one run on a second-inning solo homer to All-American third baseman Ace Reese, who had five of State's 16 hits.
The Trojans did most of their damage against lefty William Kirk, who allowed three runs in 2.0 innings and righty Chris Billingsley, who allowed a run and did not record an out in the seventh, as Aaron Piasecki drove in two on a single into center with Jimmy Janicki knocking in a run on an infield hit.
The Bulldogs countered with five runs - four earned - against Brock Tapper in the fifth and sixth innings, highlighted by a two-run homer by catcher Chone James.
Hard throwing lefty Jack Bauer struck out the side for Mississippi State in the eighth, but the Trojans put a pair of runs across against the freshman in the ninth on a pitch-clock walk by Darnell and an infield hit by Dillon Kuehl.
NotablesÂ
- Zach Crotchfelt's four strikeouts were one shy of his career high.
- Freshmen pitchers Jackson Lucas and Brady Richardson  made their Troy debuts, each pitching 0.2 innings without a run.
- Sean Darnell extended his hitting streak to 12 games dating back to last season, and four games in 2026.Â
- Steven Meier was hit by a pitch in the fourth inning. His 55 HBPs since the start of the 2024 season are the most in college baseball.Â
- Aaron Piasecki and Drew Nelson recorded a hit for the fourth straight game to open the season.
- Jabe Boroff pinch-hit for Gavin Schrader in the seventh inning, recording his first hit as a Trojan in a single into centerfield.
"While baseball is the only sport without a clock, if you put yourself in a hole at the wrong time, you get burned. If you play good baseball, and you've got to overcome some sort of mistake late, you can do that. When you put yourself in a pinch early you're going to be kicking yourself, and that's honestly what we did."
Next Up
The Trojans return to Troy for their first home series against Campbell, Friday through Sunday.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: William Kirk (1-0)
L: Dean, Blake (0-1)
Batting:
3B: Darnell, Sean 1
RBI: Piasecki, Aaron 2 ; Janicki, Jimmy 1 ; Darnell, Sean 3 ; Kuehl, Dillon 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Piasecki, Aaron 2 ; Janicki, Jimmy 1 ; Markham, Houston 1 ; Nelson, Drew 1 ; Boroff, Jabe 1 ; Pyne, Josh 1
HBP: Janicki, Jimmy 1 ; Meier, Steven 1
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Batting:
2B: Ryder Woodson 1 ; Ace Reese 2 ; Aidan Teel 1 ; Vytas Valincius 1
3B: Gehrig Frei 1
HR: Ace Reese 1 ; Chone James 1
RBI: Ryder Woodson 1 ; Ace Reese 3 ; Aidan Teel 1 ; Vytas Valincius 4 ; Gehrig Frei 1 ; Jacob Parker 1 ; Chone James 2
Base Running:
RUNS: James Nunnallee 2 ; Ryder Woodson 1 ; Ace Reese 3 ; Aidan Teel 2 ; Vytas Valincius 2 ; Blake Bevis 1 ; Chone James 2
SB: Ace Reese 1 ; Blake Bevis 1 ; Jacob Parker 1 ; Chone James 1
HBP: James Nunnallee 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
3
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C/UTL
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballC
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
LHP/UTL
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
INF/RHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
LHP
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