PEARL — Mississippi State’s struggles this season have been well documented, from getting swept in its opening series against Southern Miss to head coach Andy Cannizaro resigning a week into the campaign, but now it seems like the Bulldogs are on the brink of a turnaround.

Luke Alexander’s two-run, walk-off double Tuesday night gave Mississippi State a 7-6 win over Ole Miss in the annual Governor’s Cup game at Trustmark Park. It was the Bulldogs’ fifth consecutive win, and seventh in 10 games.

The Bulldogs (23-19, 8-10 Southeastern Conference) have also won two of their last three SEC series — both over top-10 teams in Ole Miss and Arkansas — to climb back into the mix for one of the top four seeds in the conference tournament and a first-round bye. They’re one of 12 teams within three games of second place heading into this weekend’s series against Texas A&M (30-11, 9-9) in Starkville.

“I think it gives us a lot of confidence, but we had confidence this past weekend, and the previous two weekends as well, so we’re at a different spot,” Mississippi State coach Gary Henderson said. “That doesn’t guarantee anything moving forward, but we are clearly at a different spot than we were in early March or even late March.”

For now, Henderson wants the Bulldogs to sustain their current level of play.

“We have to keep playing well, no question, but we put ourselves in a position to play well, and reap the benefits if we continue to play well,” Henderson said.

Jake Mangum, who hit a two-run double in the third inning Tuesday, said he definitely thought Mississippi State was on a hot streak.

“Guys are fighting, guys are sticking to their approach. It’s going to be a lot of fun to see what we can do,” Mangum said.

With the hype surrounding the Bulldogs, it would easy to get carried away, but it seems like they’re handling it very well. Mangum said the key was staying focused.

“Don’t look behind and just keep looking forward. We have more ballgames to win,” Mangum said.

After their slow start, it seemed like postseason play might’ve been nothing more than a pipe dream for Mississippi State, but that dream has been inching closer and closer to reality as the season has progressed.

“Dogs are hot, anything can happen,” Mangum said. “We’ll see how it goes.”

Tuesday’s win, which did not count in the SEC standings, was Mississippi State’s eighth in nine meetings with Ole Miss.

The game was played in front of 8,515 fans at Trustmark Park, and went back and forth all night. Chase Cockrell and Michael Fitzsimmons each smacked an RBI double in the top of the ninth inning to give Ole Miss a 6-4 lead, but Mississippi State wasn’t fazed.

Marshall Gilbert led off the bottom of the ninth with a single and Mangum was intentionally walked with one out. Alexander then drove his double to the gap in right center field, and Mangum scored from first for the 7-6 vicroy.

Henderson was fond of the resiliency his team showed.

“Giving up two in the top there and getting them back was outstanding, really proud of our kids,” Henderson said.

TEXAS A&M AT MISSISSIPPI STATE
• Friday, 6:30 p.m. (Radio: 105.5 FM)
• Saturday, 6:30 p.m. (Radio: 105.5 FM)
• Sunday, 3:30 p.m. (Radio: 105.5 FM; TV: SEC Network)