Things got weird in the SEC over the weekend. Chris Lemonis and the Mississippi State Bulldogs fell apart in Oxford after winning Game 1 in convincing fashion. And while the Miss. State baseball team was crumbling in a rivalry matchup, the Texas A&M Aggies demolished the Vanderbilt Commodores in College Station, Texas.
Oh, and Nick Mingione and the Kentucky Wildcats baseball team managed to grab a lead in the SEC standings.
Let’s go over everything that happened in the SEC this past weekend.
Table of Contents
All things considered, it was a pretty intense weekend of SEC baseball action as teams jockeyed for position in the divisional races.
In the SEC East, the Kentucky baseball team managed to assert its dominance by sweeping Butch Thompson and the Auburn Tigers, including a decisive 9-1 win on Saturday. Elsewhere in the SEC East standings, the Georgia Bulldogs bounced back from losing last weekend to score 15 runs in the series opener with the Missouri Tigers and then claimed the series on Saturday with a 10-7 win, moving into a tie for fourth place with Florida.
The South Carolina Gamecocks put themselves squarely in the mix with an impressive series win over the Florida Gators, taking the first two games 10-3 and 9-8 before dropping the finale by a score of 11-9, earning a tie with the Vanderbilt Commodores, who didn’t have any fun in College Station, Texas. The Tennessee Vols did well when facing the LSU Tigers as they swept the SEC West team to win the series with relative ease.
Over in the SEC West, the Arkansas Razorbacks stumbled a bit. They managed to win game one, but the Alabama Crimson Tide won the series by taking games two and three. In Oxford, the Mississippi State Bulldogs had a miserable time. Mississippi State won on Friday in blowout fashion, and then suffered a horrible loss on Saturday as they blew a massive lead. Then the Rebels routed the Bulldogs 14-2 to win the series over MSU for the first time since 2015. There’s no way MSU baseball fans are happy right now.
Out west in College Station, Texas, the Texas A&M Aggies displayed impressive firepower as they dismantled the Vanderbilt Commodores, outscoring them 33-6 over the three games. The Aggies took the first two contests 15-0 and 9-0 before Vandy got on the scoreboard in the finale, all while losing 6-12.
SEC baseball weekend recap:
Missouri Tigers vs. Georgia Bulldogs:
- Game 1: Missouri 10, Georgia 15
- Game 2: Missouri 6, Georgia 5
- Game 3: Missouri 7, Georgia 10
In a pretty closely contested series, the Georgia Bulldogs claimed victory in two out of three games against Missouri Tigers. The Bulldogs secured wins in Games 1 and 3 with scores of 15-10 and 10-7 respectively. But, it’s worth pointing out how the Tigers managed to grab a win in the second game. Avoiding a sweep or embarrassing loss is important.
Kentucky Wildcats vs. Auburn Tigers:
- Game 1: Kentucky 6, Auburn 5
- Game 2: Kentucky 9, Auburn 1
- Game 3: Kentucky 13, Auburn 8
I keep saying it, but people try to dismiss it. Nick Mingione is a good baseball coach. The Kentucky Wildcats faced off against the Auburn Tigers, clinching a decisive sweep in the series. Wildcats triumphed with a score of 6-5 in the first game, claimed the series with a strong 9-1 win in game two, and sealed their dominance with a convincing 13-8 win in the third game. Kentucky is good. Nick Mingione is good. He deserves a lot of recognition for what he’s done with that program (that has been to a grand total of EIGHT regionals in program history).
South Carolina Gamecocks vs. Florida Gators:
- Game 1: South Carolina 10, Florida 3
- Game 2: South Carolina 9, Florida 8
- Game 3: South Carolina 9, Florida 11
It wasn’t that long ago that it seemed like the Florida Gators would be a team to beat in Omaha. But, well, I have no clue what to make of that team. The South Carolina Gamecocks and Florida Gators in a pretty close series, but the Gamecocks emerged victorious in the first two games with scores of 10-3 and 9-8. All Florida could do was avoid a sweep. But, UF does have some time left to get moving in the right direction once more.
LSU Tigers vs. Tennessee Volunteers:
- Game 1: LSU 3, Tennessee 6
- Game 2: LSU 1, Tennessee 3
- Game 3: LSU 4, Tennessee 8
Tony Vitello and his Tennessee Volunteers are a dominant force and they looked strong in their sweep over the LSUTigers. The Vols claimed victory in all three games and they did so without too much drama.
Arkansas Razorbacks vs. Alabama Crimson Tide:
- Game 1: Arkansas 5, Alabama 3
- Game 2: Arkansas 3, Alabama 4
- Game 3: Arkansas 0, Alabama 5
The Arkansas Razorbacks faced some really tough competition in the Alabama Crimson Tide. And Arkansas flat out lost a series that it probably shouldn’t have lost. The Razorbacks secured a narrow victory in the first game with a score of 5-3. However, the Crimson Tide fought back, winning the next two games by scores of 4-3 and 5-0. Alabama looked really good this weekend.
Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Ole Miss Rebels:
- Game 1: Mississippi State 8, Ole Miss 0
- Game 2: Mississippi State 9, Ole Miss 10
- Game 3: Mississippi State 2, Ole Miss 14
Ole Miss baseball fans should be thrilled. Miss. State baseball fans should be furious. After game 1 went to the Bulldogs by 8 runs, there was absolutely no reason for MSU to lose this series. Especially considering that State had a lead late in game 2, choked that game away, and then didn’t look remotely competitive in game 3. Chris Lemonis is going to hear from a lot of folks about the first series loss to the Rebels in the better part of a decade.
Vanderbilt Commodores vs. Texas A&M Aggies:
- Game 1: Vanderbilt 0, Texas A&M 15
- Game 2: Vanderbilt 0, Texas A&M 9
- Game 3: Vanderbilt 6, Texas A&M 12
The Texas A&M Aggies look like national title contenders. I don’t know that you can say anything else right now. They look legit. Just flat out very good and scary. I would not want to meet up with this team right now and if they can ride this momentum into the postseason, they’ll be terrifying to face.
SEC baseball standings after Mississippi State baseball fell flat vs. Ole Miss Rebels
With these results, here’s a look at where teams currently stand in the conference:
| Team | SEC | % | All | % | Streak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | 14-1 | 0.933 | 30-5 | 0.857 | W3 |
| Arkansas | 12-3 | 0.800 | 30-5 | 0.857 | L2 |
| Texas A&M | 11-4 | 0.733 | 32-4 | 0.889 | W4 |
| Tennessee | 10-5 | 0.667 | 30-4 | 0.833 | W6 |
| Vanderbilt | 8-7 | 0.533 | 26-10 | 0.722 | L3 |
| South Carolina | 8-7 | 0.533 | 25-11 | 0.694 | L1 |
| Georgia | 7-8 | 0.467 | 27-9 | 0.750 | W1 |
| Florida | 7-8 | 0.467 | 18-17 | 0.514 | W1 |
| Mississippi State | 7-8 | 0.467 | 22-14 | 0.611 | L2 |
| Alabama | 6-9 | 0.400 | 24-12 | 0.667 | W2 |
| Missouri | 5-10 | 0.333 | 16-21 | 0.432 | L1 |
| Ole Miss | 5-10 | 0.333 | 20-16 | 0.556 | W2 |
| LSU | 3-12 | 0.200 | 22-15 | 0.595 | L3 |
| Auburn | 2-13 | 0.133 | 18-17 | 0.514 | L6 |
SEC East baseball standings
In the SEC East standings, Kentucky’s series sweep over Auburn allowed the Wildcats to tighten their grip on first place with a 13-1 SEC record. Tennessee stays close behind at 10-5 after taking two of three from LSU. Vanderbilt (8-7) and South Carolina (8-7) are locked in a tie for third following the Gamecocks’ series victory against Florida (7-8). Georgia moved up to 7-8 all while Missouri is struggling at 5-10 in SEC play.
| Team | SEC | % | All | % | Streak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kentucky | 14-1 | 0.933 | 30-5 | 0.857 | W3 |
| Tennessee | 10-5 | 0.667 | 30-4 | 0.833 | W6 |
| Vanderbilt | 8-7 | 0.533 | 26-10 | 0.722 | L3 |
| South Carolina | 8-7 | 0.533 | 25-11 | 0.694 | L1 |
| Georgia | 7-8 | 0.467 | 27-9 | 0.750 | W1 |
| Florida | 7-8 | 0.467 | 18-17 | 0.514 | W1 |
| Missouri | 5-10 | 0.333 | 16-21 | 0.432 | L1 |
SEC West baseball standings
The West remains incredibly tight at the top. Right now, Arkansas holds a slim one-game lead over Texas A&M as the Razorbacks improved to 12-3 while the Aggies are 11-4. Even though this past weekend was disappointing for Chris Lemonis and his Bulldogs, Mississippi State sits in third in the West. Not too bad, but there’s not a big gap between them and Alabama, who has a 6-9 record after taking the series from the Razorbacks. Ole Miss (5-10) bounced back nicely this weekend while LSU (3-12) and Auburn (2-13) sit at the bottom of the conference.
| Team | SEC | % | All | % | Streak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | 12-3 | 0.800 | 30-5 | 0.857 | L2 |
| Texas A&M | 11-4 | 0.733 | 32-4 | 0.889 | W4 |
| Mississippi State | 7-8 | 0.467 | 22-14 | 0.611 | L2 |
| Alabama | 6-9 | 0.400 | 24-12 | 0.667 | W2 |
| Ole Miss | 5-10 | 0.333 | 20-16 | 0.556 | W2 |
| LSU | 3-12 | 0.200 | 22-15 | 0.595 | L3 |
| Auburn | 2-13 | 0.133 | 18-17 | 0.514 | L6 |
The Underdog Tribune 
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