Eastern left for Starkville, Miss., Thursday to face Mississippi State in the second series of the season and are hoping to bounce back from a 0-3 start in Oklahoma last weekend.

The Panthers got back from their series with the Sooners early Tuesday morning and had only one day before they had to get back on the road. The three-game set that starts at 4 p.m. today will be the opening game for the No. 17 Bulldogs.

Eastern will likely send its pitching starters from last week, starting with seniors Ted Juske and Kyle Widegren, then sophomore Mike Budde. But it’s the Bulldog pitchers that Budde is excited to see, he said.

“I’m excited to see how our hitters can do against some of the top-of-the-line pitchers they have,” Budde said.

In their first game the Bulldogs are scheduled to send senior right-hander Alan Johnson, who posted a 5.65 ERA and a 3-4 record last season. Overall, Mississippi State had a 4.47 ERA last season.

Eastern head coach Jimmy Schmitz said he was pleased with his lineup in the first series, especially the middle of the lineup. Sophomore infielder Ryan Campbell and junior outfielder Keiji Szalo combined to go 9-25 in the four and five spots in the order. They drove in six runs, hit two home runs and scored five runs.

One thing the Panthers need to improve in their second series is their defense. Eastern committed 10 errors in its first three games.

“We just can’t have people out there playing defense like that,” Schmitz said. “If it keeps up we may have to make some changes.”

The Panthers will play against the Bulldogs on Saturday at 2 p.m. and finish the series Sunday at 12:30 pm.

Eastern fans can listen to the game or check live stats by going to http://mstateahletics.com.