Mississippi State opened the Starkville Regional with a 10-1 win over Lipscomb on Friday afternoon at Dudy Noble Field, and Duke Stone set the tone for a team trying to move through the NCAA bracket without a stumble. The No. 17 Bulldogs took control early and never gave it back, turning the regional opener into a clear first step toward Saturday night’s meeting with Cincinnati.

Stone was the difference. The right-hander struck out 10 of the 21 batters he faced over six shutout innings, allowed three hits and did not issue a walk, lowering his record to 7-3. He gave Mississippi State the kind of start that can settle a regional game before the middle innings even matter, and Jacob Parker backed it with a home run and three RBIs as the Bulldogs improved to 41-17. The game drew 10,470 fans and lasted 2 hours, 41 minutes, another sign of the level of attention that comes with postseason baseball in Starkville.

Mississippi State built the margin in chunks, scoring three runs in the fourth inning, one in the sixth and five in the seventh. The Bulldogs finished with 10 hits and five walks, while Lipscomb managed six hits and fell to 29-25. Tyler Pitzer finished the job with two scoreless innings in relief, preserving the kind of comfortable lead that let Mississippi State control the final stretch.

Lipscomb did break through in the ninth inning after Mississippi State had already built a 10-0 lead, a late run that changed nothing about the outcome but kept the Bulldogs from leaving with a shutout. That small crack in an otherwise airtight afternoon mattered only because it was the one thing that did not fit the rest of the game: Stone’s command, Mississippi State’s timely power and a regional opener that had long since been decided.

Now the bracket tightens. Mississippi State moves into the winner’s side of the Starkville Regional and is scheduled to play Cincinnati, the No. 2 seed and 24th-ranked team, on Saturday at 8 p.m. on SEC Network. Sophomore left-hander Tomas Valincius is slated to start for Mississippi State against senior right-hander Logan Knight, while No. 3 seed Louisiana and Lipscomb meet in an elimination game at 3 p.m. on +.