Baseball Game Preview: Tupelo Golden Wave vs. Starkville Yellowjackets

For the second straight game, Tupelo will face off against Starkville. The Golden Wave will be playing in front of their home fans against the Yellowjackets at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.

Tupelo fought the good fight in their extra-innings match against Starkville on Tuesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Yellowjackets by a score of 7-6.

For Starkville's part, Lucian Walker made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over 3.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. That's the most strikeouts Walker has posted since back in February of 2024. He was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in four of his six plate appearances with two RBI.

In other pitching news, Starkville got a great performance from Brody Wright as he pitched five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. The dominant performance also gave Wright a new career-high in strikeouts (four).

Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Will Moody, who scored a run and stole three bases while getting on base in three of his six plate appearances. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in February of 2024. Jonas Coleman was another key player, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 2-for-5.

Starkville kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 13 hits. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their hit total in three consecutive games.

Tupelo has traveled a rocky road recently, having lost four of their last five contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 11-9 record this season. Those losses can't be blamed on the team's hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.6 runs over those games. As for Starkville, their victory bumped their record up to 13-8.