HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Southern Miss right-hander Walker Powell pitched eight strong innings Saturday to lead the Eagles to a 5-0 win over Missouri State at Pete Taylor Park.

The game was a pitcher's duel through four innings before USM (11-6) broke through against Jared Viertel in the fifth, loading the bases with a bunt single and two walks.

Viertel (0-3) allowed three hits in 4.1 innings before leaving the bases loaded for Ben Cruikshank, who walked home the first two Southern Miss runs before Logan Thomazin got the final two outs of the fifth.

Southern Miss made it 4-0 with a two-run double from Charlie Fischer in the sixth and tacked on an unearned run in the seventh for its final tally.

The Bears (6-7) did not get multiple runners on base in any inning, and Drake Baldwin was the only MSU batter to reach second base, doing so with a seventh-inning double.

Cole Schroeder pitched a scoreless eighth for MSU in his first career appearance, while Jaden Rolffs and Cam Cratic accounted for the Bears' base hits in addition to Baldwin's double.

The series concludes at noon on Sunday.