Valincius Brothers Lead State To Run-Rule Victory At SEC Tourney
May 20, 2026 | Baseball
HOOVER, Ala. - Vytas Valincius made Mississippi State history and Tomas Valincius gave the Diamond Dawgs the kind of start built for tournament baseball.
Vytas Valincius homered twice in the sixth inning and drove in four runs, while Tomas Valincius struck out eight over six strong innings to lead No. 16 and eighth-seeded Mississippi State past No. 16 seed Missouri 12-2 in seven innings Wednesday in the second round of the SEC Tournament at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium.
Vytas Valincius became the first player in conference history to homer twice in the same inning at the SEC Tournament. He was also the first Bulldog to homer twice in the same inning since Hunter Hines did it May 15, 2025, at Missouri.
State (40-16) broke open a two-run game with an eight-run sixth inning, sending 12 batters to the plate and turning a tight tournament matchup into a run-rule win. Vytas Valincius started the inning with a solo homer to left field, then capped the outburst later in the frame with a three-run shot to left-center.
Tomas Valincius did the rest on the mound, improving to 10-2 after allowing two runs — one earned — on five hits with no walks. Ben Davis worked a scoreless seventh to finish it off.
Missouri (24-31) struck first when Kam Durnin homered to center field in the opening inning, but the Bulldogs answered in the second. Jacob Parker singled, stole second after an MSU challenge overturned the call, and Bryce Chance reached on an error. Ryder Woodson then launched a three-run homer to left, giving the Diamond Dawgs a 3-1 lead.
The Tigers trimmed it to 3-2 in the fifth after Kaden Peer singled, advanced on a throwing error and scored on Chris Patterson's sacrifice fly. Mississippi State responded in the bottom half when Chance walked, Woodson followed with another free pass and Gehrig Frei singled up the middle to score Chance.
Then came the sixth.
Vytas Valincius' first homer led off the frame . Chance singled, Woodson reached on an error and Chone James loaded the bases with a single. Frei was hit by a pitch to bring in a run, Ace Reese walked in another and Noah Sullivan singled home James. Parker drove in Frei with a groundout before Vytas Valincius delivered the swing that ended any doubt.
Woodson finished with three RBIs, while Frei drove in two runs and Chance scored three times. The Bulldogs scored 12 runs on eight hits and took advantage of two Missouri errors.
Brady Kehlenbrink took the loss for Missouri, allowing four runs — one earned — over 4 1/3 innings. Durnin led the Tigers with two hits, including his first-inning homer.
The Bulldogs now take on top-seeded and SEC regular season champion Georgia on Thursday at 3 p.m. on SEC Network. Mississippi State will start sophomore right-hander Duke Stone (6-2, 5.43 ERA) while UGA goes with junior righty Joey Volchko (8-2, 4.22 ERA).Â
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