Box Score STARKVILLE, Miss.—The Samford baseball team dropped its final contest in the Diamond Classic, hosted by Mississippi State, falling, 8-1 to the fifth-ranked Bulldogs Sunday afternoon at Dudy Noble Field.
 
With the loss, Samford falls to 5-4 on the young season. Mississippi State improves to 9-0 with the win.
 
Samford managed just three hits in the loss. Phillip Ervin hit a solo home run to account for Samford's only run of the contest. Zeth Stone and Will Davis added one hit each for Samford.
 
Patrick McGavin (0-2) took the loss on the mound for Samford. He pitched 3.1 innings, giving up three runs on five hits. Sean Handlan, Cole Limbaugh, Charles Terry and Ervin also saw time on the mound for Samford.
 
Mississippi State was led at the plate by Alex Detz, going 3-for-4 with three RBI. Derrick Armstrong drove in two runs, going 1-for-1 at the plate. Adam Frazier went 2-for-3 with an RBI for MSU. Will Cox earned the win on the mound, pitching 7.0 innings, giving up one run on two hits and striking out seven batters.
 
The game was scoreless for the first three and a half innings until Mississippi State plated three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. Detz singled up the middle to drive in DeMarcus Henderson for the first run of the game. Nick Ammirati later doubled to left field to drive in Armstrong for a 2-0 MSU lead. Frazier then tripled to drive in Ammirati to make the score 3-0.
 
Mississippi State added four runs in the fifth inning to push its lead to 7-0. Detz drove in the first two runs in the inning with a double. Armstrong then singled to drive in two more runs to give MSU a seven-run lead.
 
MSU pushed its lead to 8-0 with a run in the sixth inning. Daryl Norris singled up the middle to drive in C.T. Bradford for the sixth-inning run.
 
Samford got on the scoreboard with a run in the seventh inning. With one out in the inning, Ervin homered to left field to make the score 8-1. The home run was Ervin's fourth of the season.
 
Samford will return to action on Tuesday, Feb. 26, when the Bulldogs travel to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to take on the Alabama Crimson Tide. The game is scheduled for a 6:05 p.m. start from Sewell-Thomas Stadium.