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Speaker Nancy Pelosi will meet this morning with a group of House committee chairs, including Homeland Security Committee Chair and Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, to discuss House Democrats’ next move on investigating the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

House Democrats passed a bill last month with support from 35 Republicans, including Mississippi Rep. Michael Guest, calling for creation of a bipartisan commission to investigate the deadliest attack on the Capitol since the War of 1812. However, the bill was blocked by Senate Republicans, including Mississippi Sens. Roger Wicker and Cindy Hyde-Smith. The final 54 to 35 Senate vote fell six votes shy of the 60 votes needed to prevent a procedural filibuster.

The unsuccessful bill, modeled after the commission that studied the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, was the result of bipartisan negotiations between Thompson and the Homeland Security Committee’s Republican ranking member, Rep. John Katko of New York.

The commission would have been composed of 10 members, with both parties appointing half of them. Proponents of the commission said it was necessary for Congress to acquire a full understanding of the riot. 

As reported by Punchbowl News, Pelosi will meet with Thompson and other House chairs on Tuesday to decide how to proceed. House Democrats have several options: They could amend the original commission bill to include changes sought by Senate Republicans and send it back to the Senate for another vote; create a select committee; let the standing committees do their own investigations; or appoint one committee chair to take the lead.

Thompson has suggested to Pelosi that his panel should take the lead in the probe, although he’s happy to serve in whatever role the Speaker chooses. 

“If I’m offered it (running the investigation), I will. If I’m offered to be on the select committee, I’ll serve,” Thompson said in an interview with Punchbowl on Monday night. “My preference is to get the commission done… It’s her call. I have indicated my interest in participation in whatever it is.”

READ MORE: Mississippi’s GOP congressmen voted to overturn Biden win in Arizona, Pennsylvania.

READ MORE: Congressmen Kelly, Guest met with Mississippi ‘patriot’ group before Capitol riot

READ MORE: Meet the ‘patriot’ group that scored a meeting with U.S. Reps. Kelly, Guest

The post Bennie Thompson to meet with Nancy Pelosi as Dems eye next step on Jan. 6 investigation appeared first on Mississippi Today.

STARKVILLE — There’s nothing quite like college baseball in Mississippi. Mississippi State’s Diamond Dogs and their passionate following made certain the rest of the nation saw it Monday night.

The Bulldogs fought off Notre Dame’s free-swinging Fighting Irish 11-7 before still another record-setting crowd at pristine Dudy Noble Field. A rocking, thunderous standing room only crowd brought the three-day attendance total to an NCAA Super Regional record-shattering 40,140. 

Bulldog faithful came early, they stayed late. They left fulfilled — if they ever left at all.

“They’re still out there,” State coach Chris Lemonis said, a full hour after the game when he conducted his post-game video interview. “They are the best fans in the country.”

Thus the Bulldogs will make a 12th appearance in the College World Series at Omaha that begins this weekend. State will play the Texas Longhorns Sunday night in the opening round.

But here’s the deal: There’s no way — no way possible — the College World Series, college baseball’s largest stage, can match the atmosphere on display over three days of a marvelous Starkville Super Regional.

The baseball was terrific. The atmosphere — from the crowd hanging on every pitch, to the barbecue smoke wafting in from the outfield, to the raucous cheering at all the right moments — was remarkable. And don’t think the crowd didn’t play into the outcome. It most certainly did. Link Jarrett, the Notre Dame coach, called it “the most passionate fan base in the country.”

“It factors in,” Jarrett said of the constant noise. “It gives the home team an edge in energy. We haven’t played a game in a setting like this. Until you experience it in this setting, you can’t prepare for it.”

The Bulldogs were good. Rowdey Jordan and Tanner Jordan were racing and diving all over the outfield, making run-saving, SportsCenter catches. They were racing all around the bases, taking extra bases, too. Catcher Logan Turner was providing the power with a three-run home run and a double. Left-hander Houston Harding was crucial with four innings of quality starting pitching. And, of course, closer Landon Sims was matching a season-high four innings of relief, shutting the door on the Irish.

All rode a crest of cheering from State fans. Asked to describe the lift from the crowd, Harding said, “It’s what I’ve dreamed about since the first day I picked up a baseball. Unreal, indescribable, I could run out of adjectives to describe it. They brought the energy every day.”

State had won the opener 9-8 Saturday before more than 14,000. Notre Dame won 9-1 on Sunday to set up the rubber match. And then came Monday when State scored six second inning runs to take a 7-1 lead and then fought off the Irish the rest of the way. 

What made the victory all the more rewarding was, well, Notre Dame. The Irish, the run-away Atlantic Coast Conference champions, had run through the South Bend Regional, winning three games by a 50-5 count. Batter after batter, up and down the Notre Dame batting order, was a line drive waiting to happen. Those guys can play.

And then there’s Irish cleanup hitter Niko Cavadas, the muscular one we will be watching someday in the Major Leagues. State pitched him carefully all weekend, until Sims served up a three-ball, one-strike fastball in the seventh inning with a runner on first. Cavadas blasted it far, far beyond the right field fence and the light poles. “Oh man, he got on that ball,” Sims said. “No, I have never given up a home run that went that far. Ever.”

It was the first home run Sims gave up all year. However, it should be noted, with runners on first and second in the ninth inning, Sims got Cavadas to ground into a game-ending double play. “I wasn’t about to throw him another fastball,” Sims said.

And that’s when the celebration began. After the Bulldogs had dog-piled near the pitcher’s mound, the crowd stayed and cheered while State players circled Dudy Noble Field, slapping high fives with their adoring fans. It went on and on and on. From the first base dugout, Notre Dame players watched while consoling one another.

Mississippians shouldn’t take all this for granted. No other state matches this state’s passion for college baseball. Ole Miss bowed out in a three-game Super Regional at Arizona. Ole Miss ended Southern Miss’s season in a superb, well-attended Regional championship round at Oxford last weekend.

That said, Mississippi State continues to set the standard. Consider: Jordan and Allen, the two junior outfielders, will make their third College World Series appearances later this week. State has competed in five straight Super Regionals under four different head coaches. It’s crazy. And it’s nothing new. State has played in a College World Series in six consecutive decades.

The one thing they haven’t done? Win one.

Could this be the year?

“We’ve got as good a chance as anybody,” Tanner said.

Maybe so. But if they could box “the Dude effect” and take it to Omaha, there’d be little doubt.

The post Dudy Noble Field lore continues, as Bulldogs dump Irish and head for Omaha appeared first on Mississippi Today.

The parents of two Black high school students in West Point — originally named valedictorian and salutatorian before their school claimed an error showed two white students were the actual honorees — will address the school board about the issue Monday evening.

The discussion about the mixup, which has garnered national media attention in recent days, will be behind closed doors, the school board attorney for West Point Consolidated School District, told Mississippi Today. Board attorney Thomas Storey said the parents will address the board in executive session because of student privacy concerns.

Angela Washington and Lakira Temple, the mothers of the two Black students who were originally named as valedictorian and salutation for West Point High School, referred Mississippi Today’s questions to their attorney Lisa Ross.

Ross, in a Monday interview with Mississippi Today, questioned why the school board plans to meet behind closed doors.

“What does the board have to hide?” Ross said. “I think the board should be transparent.”

READ MORE: West Point valedictorian dispute sparks allegations of racism

After Ikeria Washington and Layla Temple were named valedictorian and salutatorian of their class at a senior awards ceremony on May 24, a white parent questioned school officials about whether they were following guidelines in the school handbook in determining the top students.

Less than a week later on the day before graduation, Superintendent Burnell McDonald named two other students — who are white — as co-valedictorian and co-salutatorian.

McDonald told Mississippi Today the high school guidance counselor was new to the school and was given incorrect information about how to determine the designations. The counselor selected the two students based on quality point average (QPA), which is measured on a 4.0 scale and takes into account weighted courses, instead of an unweighted numerical average of the students’ semester grades over their high school career, which the district defines as its grade point average (GPA), he said.

“When you generate the report from the system, it clearly shows the two white students would’ve been first and second based on that number,” McDonald told Mississippi Today last week.

McDonald continued: “If someone assumes I was discriminatory in my decisions, they are absolutely wrong. I don’t know if you can tell on the phone, but I’m African-American myself… This is not based on who the parents are, the race of the kids — it’s based on doing what’s right for all students.”

He then made the decision to name all four students valedictorian and salutatorian and allow all of them to speak at graduation.

Ross told Mississippi Today on Monday that she and the parents of Washington and Temple don’t buy McDonald’s reasoning.

“Are (West Point school board members) hiding page 14 of the (school) handbook…” Ross asked ahead of the school board meeting.

Ross was referring to the section of the school handbook that Washington and Temple say proves their daughters are the rightful valedictorian and salutatorian. Meanwhile, Melissa Borgioli and Shaun Berry — the parents of the two white students who were named co-valedictorian and salutatorian — point to another page in the handbook that states class rank is “based on the average of semester averages.”

Page 14 of the handbook, however, says that GPA is “calculated by averaging the grade point weights assigned to semester averages. Some classes may be weighted double see counselors for this information (sic).”

Last week, McDonald acknowledged to Mississippi Today that the school’s policy was unclear and needs to be better defined.

All four students are eligible for college scholarships given to incoming students who held the titles. But Layla Temple, the Black co-salutatorian, told MSNBC on Monday that according to her transcript, she’s number three in her class.

“So I don’t know if that would interfere with any of my salutatorian scholarships,” she said on national television.

McDonald has since declined to answer questions from Mississippi Today, citing possible litigation.

Ross said her clients’ goal for the school board meeting on Monday is for the district to provide specific information that backs up what the superintendent said. 

“Is the district prepared to show that every (past) valedictorian and salutatorian were named based solely on their GPA? That’s what we would like to know,” said Ross. 

She also questioned why the school district removed the school’s handbook from the website and took down its Facebook page after the news about the error spread. 

Berry, the father of white salutatorian Emma Berry, said he also “welcomes an investigation” into what happened and wishes the discussion would be accessible to the public. He said he plans to attend the meeting.

He also said his daughter has monitored her class rank since eighth grade, and every year she has been at the top of the class based on her unweighted grade point average, or the average of her grades without additional credit given for Advanced Placement and dual credit courses. That’s why the news the week before graduation that she had not been named valedictorian or salutatorian came as such a shock.

The meeting will be held as Temple and Washington, along with their daughters, continue to make appearances on national television. MSNBC, according to the West Point parents, is preparing to host a segment on the issue Tuesday.

The post West Point parents to address valedictorian concerns with school board appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Mississippi has reached a $55.5 million settlement agreement with Centene, the 24th largest corporation in the United States, amid an investigation into whether the state’s largest Medicaid contractor was overcharging for pharmacy benefits.

Centene also has reached a separate $88.3 million settlement with the state of Ohio. The company has not admitted fault in either settlement. The company will set aside $1.1 billion for settlements with other states investigating the company.

Attorney General Lynn Fitch and State Auditor Shad White released a joint statement, celebrating the development as a major win for Mississippi taxpayers.

“I do not care how large or powerful the company is, Mississippi taxpayers deserve to get what they paid for when the state spends money on prescription drugs, and we will stand up for the taxpayers if they do not get a square deal,” White said in the statement.

Centene’s subsidiary and contractors in Mississippi control health insurance benefits for about 480,000 Medicaid patients in the state. 

The investigation was centered on pharmacy benefit managers, subcontractors who act as middlemen between insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies and pharmacies. The lawsuit alleged three areas of wrongdoing by PBMs: trying to double dip on reimbursements already paid by the state, artificially inflating drug dispensing fees and failing to disclose the true cost of pharmacy services.

Centene’s Mississippi subsidiary, Magnolia Health, paid its PBMs more than $1.1 billion from 2016 to 2020, according to the Division of Medicaid. 

The Mississippi investigation into Centene has been going on for over two years after White hired the law firm Liston & Deas to look into potential wrongdoing in the corporation’s pharmacy benefit system under the state’s Division of Medicaid. Fitch’s office later began probing the company over the same billing issue. 

Based on a contract with outside counsel posted on the Attorney General’s web page, the Ridgeland-based law firm of Liston & Deas will receive about $2.8 million of the $55.5 million settlement with Centene. The law firm entered into a contract with the Attorney General’s office to pursue the case against Centene.

Colby Jordan, a spokesperson for Fitch, confirmed the firm’s participation in the case. The contract with Liston & Deas is posted on the attorney general’s website, as mandated by state law. Based on that contract, the law firm would receive 5% of any settlement exceeding $25 million. Jordan confirmed that was the amount of the settlement the law firm received.

In a statement, Brent Layton, Centene President of Health Plans, Markets and Products said: “Putting these issues behind us allows us to continue our relentless focus on delivering high-quality outcomes to our members.”

READ MORE: State Auditor, AG investigating Centene on allegations it pocketed millions in taxpayer dollars

The post Mississippi reaches $55.5M settlement with state’s largest Medicaid contractor Centene over pharmacy benefits appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Former state Rep. Ashley Henley of DeSoto County was shot and killed while mowing the grass outside the home where her sister-in-law’s body had been found late last year, authorities said.

Henley’s body was found by Yalobusha County deputies on Patricia Drive in the Water Valley Boat Landing community on Sunday night around 10 p.m., Assistant District Attorney Steven Jubera said. He said she had been shot, but did not disclose many details because “we are in the earliest stages of an investigation” and that the gunshot was “non-accidental.”

The case, first reported by the North Mississippi Herald, is being investigated as a homicide by the Yalobusha Sheriff’s Department, Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, District 17 District Attorney’s office and other agencies.

Jubera said Henley, 40, had been mowing the grass outside the burned out trailer where her sister-in-law Kristina Michelle Jones’ body was found on Dec. 27.

Jubera said Jones’ death is also being investigated.

“We are going back to square one (on Jones’ case) after receiving an initial Fire Marshal’s report and lab reports,” Jubera said. “… We are looking at that with fresh eyes.

“(Henley) was a nice lady — I met with her previously,” Jubera said. “That family has gone through a lot in the last six months … We will investigate this as thoroughly as possible — do everything possible to get it right.”

Henley had recently on social media expressed frustration with the investigation of her sister-in-law’s death and vowed to continue to push for justice in the case.

Henley is survived by her husband, Brandon Henley, and a son.

Rep. Dan Eubanks, R-Walls, a friend and colleague of Henley’s, has created a GoFundMe account to raise money to help the family.

Jubera said there has been nothing found to date to indicate Henley’s death was related to her service in the Legislature.

Henley served as representative of District 40 in DeSoto County from 2016-2020 and was vice chair of the House Military Affairs Committee and a member of the Education, Tourism, Workforce Development and Youth and Family Affairs committees.

Henley had been a public school teacher for 13 years, and had taught as an adjunct American history instructor at Northwest Mississippi Community College.

After losing her re-election bid in 2019 by 14 votes, Henley unsuccessfully challenged the results.

House Speaker Philip Gunn’s office on Monday released a statement saying, “We are all shocked and saddened by this news. Our thoughts and prayers are with Ashley’s family and friends.”

The post Former Rep. Ashley Henley shot, killed outside home where sister-in-law’s body had been found appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Angie Calhoun of Puckett became an advocate for medical marijuana after her teenage son suffered a debilitating illness and standard pharmaceutical treatments didn’t work — and brought horrible side effects. Calhoun is now chairwoman of the Mississippi Medical Marijuana Association.

Like many others, she is waiting to see whether state lawmakers will re-enact a medical marijuana program after the state Supreme Court shot down the one voters overwhelmingly passed in November. Calhoun said she hopes Mississippi’s politicians will observe the will of the people.

Stream the episode here.

The post Podcast: Mother of patient discusses what’s next for medical marijuana in Mississippi appeared first on Mississippi Today.

STARKVILLE — Nobody said this was going to be easy. When you get to the Super Regional level, it’s not supposed to be. Indeed, Notre Dame players and coach had promised on Saturday that it would not be. And then, on a coolish Sunday evening, the Fighting Irish delivered on that vow, drubbing Mississippi State Bulldogs 9-1.

And that sets up a rubber match Monday at 6 p.m. for the right to go to the College World Series at Omaha. Call it the Rudys vs. the Dudys, or call it the Cowbells vs. the Catholics. Whatever you call it, round three of the Starkville Super Regional will decide it all.

“We gotta flush it, man,” State senior Tanner Allen said. “That’s all there is to it. They can swing the bat and they showed it.”

Sunday’s round two had none of the drama, none of the suspense, of the Bulldogs’ 9-8 victory on Saturday. Game One was a back and forth struggle, not decided until the final out. 

Sunday was all Irish, after State’s first two batters produced the Bulldogs’ only run. The announced crowd of 13,917 thundered their appreciation when Rowdey Jordan slammed a triple off the right center field wall and then scored on Tanner Allen’s sacrifice fly to center.

Notre Dame apparently was not overly impressed, especially left-handed pitcher Aidan Tyrell, who would say afterward, “That was just one run. I knew we were going to score runs.”

The Irish wasted no time, plating two runs in the bottom of the first to take a lead they never relinquished. And after his rocky start, Tyrell was dominant. His “out” pitch was a biting slider that broke sharply downward. But he mixed the slider well with well-placed, if not overpowering fastballs, and an occasional changeup. A 90 mph fastball looks a whole lot faster if you are looking for something else.

“We couldn’t stay off the ball down,” State coach Chris Lemonis said. “We chased the ball down. He had good stuff and his velocity was a little better than we had seen on tape, as well.”

Notre Dame kept the accelerator down, scoring four more in the fourth, two in the sixth and another in the seventh. The Fighting Irish are a quality team, playing its best baseball at the right time. The Irish have now won nine of their last 11 and swept through last week’s South Bend Regional, winning three straight games by a combined total of 50-5.

The Irish thought they should have won on Saturday when they committed four errors that led to two unearned runs in a one-run defeat.

Said catcher David Lamanna, who batted in the nine-hole and slammed a three-run home run in the fourth inning — the biggest blow of the night: “To be honest, we were mad after yesterday’s loss. We felt like we should have won the game and we let them off the hook. We were confident we could come back and win the series.”

Link Jarrett, the Notre Dame coach, had pointed out Saturday that his Irish had not lost two straight games over the last two seasons. He told his team Saturday night that they should be angry and use that anger to bounce back. They did.

After committing the four miscues Saturday, the Irish sparkled in the field Sunday. The fielding gem of the night belonged to Irish second baseman Jared Miller, who made a spectacular, diving-to-his-right stab of Kellum Clark’s smashed line drive in the fifth inning. Brad Combest had opened the inning with a single and the Bulldogs could have had runners at first and third with nobody out, trailing 6-1.

“It was just a phenomenal play, and it came at a time when it seemed their crowd was really getting into it,” Jarrett said. “It was a huge play in the game. Just huge.”

Tyrell got the next two hitters on a strikeout and a fly ball to center field.

Lemonis had high praise for Tyrell — and his teammates.

“We got out-played tonight,” Lemonis said. “We had some really good at bats, hit some balls hard, but they made plays. It’s baseball. You just scratch it and get ready to play tomorrow. Our guys have always responded.

“We’ve been playing well lately; it will be fun tomorrow,” Lemonis continued. “They’re good. They’re well-coached and they are hot. They are hot at the right time. We gotta pitch a little better, make some more plays and match them.”

Lemonis would not give his pitching plan for Monday other than to say, “We should pretty much have our full bullpen available.”

Jarrett said he plans to go with junior left-hander Will Mercer (4-2, 4.53 ERA) who gave up two runs over seven innings to UConn in a 27-3 Notre Dame regional victory in his last start.

Both coaches have plenty arms available and figure to have short leashes on anyone who runs into trouble. It may sound trite, but for one team there will be no tomorrow after tomorrow.

The post Notre Dame shows pluck of the Irish in ripping State 9-1 to set up Game 3 appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Gov. Tate Reeves is adamant that he will not call a special session to enact medical marijuana and to fix the ballot initiative process until legislative leadership reaches a consensus on how to deal with the separate but related issues.

In May, the Mississippi Supreme Court struck down medical marijuana, a ballot initiative approved by voters this past November, and the entire initiative process. The court ruled the ballot initiative process invalid because language in the Constitution requires signatures to place an issue on the ballot be gathered equally from five congressional districts. The state has had only four U.S. House districts since the 2000 Census.

Both House Speaker Philip Gunn and Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, who presides over the Senate, seem to support the governor’s position and are apparently trying to reach that consensus so the oft-discussed special session can be called.

Even Sen. Hob Bryan, the Democrat from Amory who often disagrees with the governor and who chairs the Public Health Committee where a medical marijuana bill would originate, concurs that a special session should not be called until consensus is reached.

“If I was governor, I would not call one before then,” Bryan said earlier this month. Bryan’s Senate Public Health Committee held a hearing recently to try to determine what should be entailed in legislation to legalize medical marijuana.

Not holding a special session until there is consensus, no doubt, is good fiscal policy to prevent legislators from being in prolonged session costing taxpayers more money.

But if reaching consensus had always been required to call a special session, some important special sessions never would have occurred. Accomplishments in those special sessions called without a consensus include:

• Enacting public kindergartens and other education reforms in 1982.
• Changing the laws in both 2002 and 2004 to make it more difficult to file lawsuits against businesses.
• Providing a deficit appropriation to the Division of Medicaid in 2005 to prevent the shutdown of the program.

The list goes on and on. Whether those special sessions resulted in positive results for the state is in the eye of the beholder, but they did create significant change. Often the pressure of being in a special session compels legislators to reach a consensus.

The special session always cited as what can happen when legislators meet with no consensus is the 83-day special session in 2002 on changes to the civil justice system to limit the ability to file lawsuits against businesses. Trial attorneys and business group waged a bitter war in the special session called by Gov. Ronnie Musgrove. That battle established unique circumstances that led to what seemed like a never-ending special session. It is unlikely that many issues would result in similar circumstances and a similar special session.

The biggest drawback to special sessions, of course, is the cost. Legislators receive $75 per day while in special session plus a daily per diem for expenses, based on the federal rate, which is around $150 per day. Adding in retirement, the total comes out to more than $35,000 a day.

In reality, it would be cheaper to just remain in regular session year-round as legislators are allowed to do constitutionally by a two-thirds vote of both chambers. Legislators remained in session most of 2020 as they gave themselves the option to return to Jackson to deal with COVID-19 and other issues. House leaders wanted to remain in session again in 2021. The Senate balked at the idea.

It is important to note than being in session — special or regular session — but not actually convened at the state Capitol does not cost the state extra.

From a legislative standpoint, there are two advantages of staying in regular session: It takes power away from the governor to call a special session and to set the agenda, and it is less expensive to return to Jackson in regular session than in special session.

One of the most significant accomplishments to occur in a special session where there was no consensus happened in 1969 when Gov. John Bell Williams called a special session to try to convince legislators to opt into the federal Medicaid program. As a U.S. congressman, Williams had voted against the program and railed against the overreach of the federal government. But as governor, Williams saw Medicaid as a program that could help improve health care access.

The Legislature eventually bought into Williams’ argument and opted into the federal-state health care program. But it was not easy. The Legislature was in session from July 22 to Oct. 10.

Many would argue the results of that special session — a Medicaid program — was worth the effort and expense. The question for Reeves and legislators this year might be whether a special session to enact medical marijuana and fix the initiative process is worth it if there is no consensus.

READ MORE: Is history repeating itself on Medicaid expansion in Mississippi?

The post Successful special sessions often began without consensus Reeves wants on medical marijuana appeared first on Mississippi Today.

STARKVILLE — Seemingly unfazed by the largest Super Regional crowd in NCAA history and the intense Mississippi heat, Notre Dame came off the bus swinging hot bats. The Fighting Irish Saturday pounded out 12 hits, six for extra bases, and led 7-3 early and for much of the back-and-forth game.

And then came Landon Sims.

The fire-balling Mississippi Sate closer slammed the door on the Irish, retiring all six batters he face — three on strikeouts — to put the Bulldogs one victory away from the College World Series. The final: State 9, Notre Dame 8 before 14,385 surely sweat-drenched fans who endured a heat index of 101 degrees.

They will play again Sunday at 5 p.m. If State wins, it’s on to Omaha. If the Irish win, they’ll play the rubber match Monday at 6 p.m.

Many of us wondered throughout the game when State coach Chris Lemonis would call on Sims, the All American. You knew he was coming, you just didn’t know when.

State catcher Logan Turner made the decision for Lemonis. With two out in the bottom of the seventh, Tanner blasted a home run over the right center field fence to give State the 9-8 lead.

“I was debating, but as soon as that ball went out of the park, Landon was coming in,” Lemonis said. “We were going to play the last six outs with the best closer in the country.”

Sims did not disappoint. Mixing a 96-97 mph fast ball, which seemed to rise, with a biting slider that broke sharply down, he dominated — just as he usually does.

And you should have heard that record crowd when Sims took the field from the bullpen down the left field line. It got louder and louder and louder. Even Sims, who has heard those cheers many times in the past, was taken aback by the volume. 

“When I passed Kamren (third baseman, Kamren James) I looked at him and said, ‘This is just unreal,’” Sims said. “These are the best fans in college baseball.”

Sims retired the first two batters in the eighth, which brought up Niko Kavadas, the Irish clean-up hitter, he of Popeye arms, broad shoulders, barrel chest and 21 home runs — five in last week’s Sound Bend Regional. It was a classic matchup: one team’s best slugger against the other team’s best pitcher. It lasted 10 pitches, every one dripping with drama, before Sims finally caught Kavadas looking at a 96 mph fastball when he appeared to be looking for the slider.

Said Sims, “Those first two outs were really big so the bases were empty when Kavadas came up. That battle was fun — really, really fun. I knew if I teed one up for him, he’d hit it 450 feet.”

Sims, who earned his 10th save, was perfect in the ninth, as well. But there were many Bulldog heroes this sweaty day. Rowdey Jordan had three hits including a double and a two-run home run. Tanner Allen also home run. And Preston Johnson provided State’s pitching bridge to Sims with 2.2 innings of high-quality relief pitching against Notre Dame’s powerful bats,

Not to be underestimated was the assist from the huge crowd, which jammed into every nook, cranny and standing room area of Dudy Noble Field. Here, they call it the “Dude effect.” It is real.

“When we need it most, the crowd gets loud,” Jordan said. “Then we get a hit and they get louder, then we get another hit and they get louder and then we get on a roll. You’ve got 14,000 people having a good time, so you have a good time as a player.”

Difficult to say how much the crowd affects the opposition, but Jordan definitely thought it did.

“This atmosphere makes it difficult (for visitors), especially because the crowd is right on top of you,” he said. “I think it made a difference in some of the errors they made.”

Notre Dame, one of the nation’s top fielding teams, committed four errors, which led to two unearned runs in a one-run game. That’s not hard math. Said Lemonis, “Our crowd makes it tougher to pitch, tougher to make plays, tougher to stay off pitches. Sometimes it’s hard to talk.”

Notre Dame coach Link Jarrett called the one-run game: “national championship caliber,” saying, “I love the atmosphere.”

Jarrett also said he liked his team’s chances of fighting back and taking the series. “Our guys are resilient, they will respond,” he said. “We have not lost back-to-back games over the last two seasons.”

They will likely face Sims again at crunch time. He used only 29 pitches to complete the two inning save. Said Jarrett, “Sims’ fastball seems to climb on you. We studied him, but until you’ve seen some pitches in the batter’s box, it’s hard to prepare for that climbing fastball.”

And, even then, it’s hard to hit it.

The post Sims turns out the lights on Irish, puts State one victory from Omaha appeared first on Mississippi Today.