No.12 Southern Mississippi welcomes Troy to Hattiesburg for Conference Clash

The Golden Eagles return home to Hattiesburg, MS after a midweek victory over Nicholls State to cap off a four game road trip. Southern Mississippi will play host to Troy for what will be the 40th matchup all-time, the Golden Eagles hold a commanding 29-11 advantage over the Trojans in a series that extends all the way back to 2006.

𝐎𝐍 𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐊 ⚾️

Check out our Parrothead Day and other promotions for this weekends series! #OTR | #ETM | #SMTTT pic.twitter.com/v9V5jq5BK7

— Southern Miss Baseball (@SouthernMissBSB) March 19, 2026

Troy is rolling into Mississippi sitting tied for fifth in the Sun Belt following the first week of conference play, winning two out of three against Old Dominion last weekend. The Trojans will have their work cut out for them, despite their strong offensive showing last weekend, platting 30 runs over three games against Old Dominion, Troy is currently on a six game losing streak against the Golden Eagles and have only beaten them twice since Southern Mississippi joined the Sun Belt.

Southern Mississippi has been spearheaded offensively by the one-two punch that is Senior, Kyle Morrison and Senior, Joey Urban. Morrison currently leads the Golden Eagles in batting average with .347 and is fifth in the Sun Belt for OPS at 1.189. Urban leads the team in runs with 23 so far this season and is tied for team lead in RBI with 21.

The Golden Eagles were able to avenge their loss to Nicholls State University from earlier in the year, winning on Tuesday in a 4-0 shutout of the Colonels.

The first third came was quiet, each team only netting two hits a piece through three innings. The game remained scoreless up until the fourth inning.

Nicholls State was stagnant in their half of the fourth inning, getting zero hits and striking out once. In the bottom of the fourth, Redshirt Senior Ben Higdon would finally get the scoring going, hitting a sacrifice fly to allow fellow senior Matthew Russo to score from third on a tag-up. The Golden Eagles were up 1-0 to end the fourth.

In the fifth, the Golden Eagles would extend their lead on a Morrison double, allowing Freshman Grey Eubanks to score from first. Southern Miss led 2-0 after five.

Southern Miss would score again in their half of the sixth, once again taking advantage of mistakes made by Nicholls State. After a single by Sophomore Drey Barrett, the Colonels walked the next batter and errored again on a pickoff attempt that would allow both runners to advance a base. The Golden Eagles lead would increase by two off of a fielders choice from Junior Seth Smith and followed by a sacrifice fly by Eubanks.

Nicholls State was quiet all game on offense and despite Southern Mississippi using eight pitchers total, came away with a 4-0 win to avenge their loss earlier in the season to the Colonels.

The Trojans offense has been led mainly by Sophomore Jimmy Janicki, who leads the team in batting average (.363), OPS (1.160), runs (20), home runs(7), and RBI (24). Despite sitting at 9-11 overall, Troy is shaping up to be a strong contender in the Sun Belt.

This upcoming series will be huge for both the Golden Eagles and Trojans. Southern Mississippi is seeking to gain a foothold in the Sun Belt after their 1-2 performance against Arkansas State and Troy is hoping to maintain their momentum from their 2-1 start in conference play and stay competitive in the Sun Belt.

Southern Mississippi vs. Troy

First pitch: Friday, March 20th at 6:00 p.m. EST

TV: ESPN+

Click here for information on tickets for this and future contests. Golden Eagles fans can also contact the ticket office via phone at (800) 844-8425 or via email at ticket.office@usm.edu.