At this point last season, Khal Stephen was finished with his sophomore season at Purdue and preparing to find a new home.
Stephen had some up and down moments during the year with a 5.21 ERA 14 starts, but he found new life with Justin Parker and Mississippi State. On Friday evening at the Charlottesville Regional, Stephen will toe the rubber and start State’s postseason run against St. John’s in the NCAA Tournament.
“It’s everything you could ask for. Just get the opportunity to set the tone early and go from there. I’m super pumped,” Stephen said. “It’s a big deal and we have pretty much everyone healthy so it was up in the air on who was going to get it. We had a short conversation and I’m very proud and excited to get out there (Friday).”
After earning Third-Team All-Big Ten honors with the Boilermakers a season ago, Stephen has been a revelation for the Bulldogs. He stepped in after designated Friday starter Nate Dohm went down the week before SEC play and went to work.
Stephen had a tough first start against LSU as he lasted just 2.0 innings, gave up five hits, five runs and a walk as the Bulldogs lost 9-8, but the Indiana native has been money ever since. By the end of the regular season, he was a First-Team All-SEC pitcher.
“Obviously that first week was tough, but that’s how it goes,” Stephen said. “I’ve come back every week and been putting in the work. I envisioned success when I came here. I didn’t come here thinking I was going to be a loser. I’m grateful for how everything has gone.”
Stephen is 8-3 this junior season with 15 starts and 88.0 innings pitched. He’s given up 33 earned runs and 21 walks and he’s closing in on the century mark in strikeouts with 97. In 11 of his starts this year, Stephen has allowed three runs or fewer and he’s lasted 6.0 innings or more in the same amount of outings.
He gives a lot of the credit to the relationship he’s built with coach Justin Parker.
“I can’t say enough about coach Parker,” Stephen said. “The way that he respects the players, he expects us to do things and we expect him to follow up with us. It’s a very open relationship. We talk back and forth and it’s very professional.”
Stephen and the Diamond Dawgs meet the Red Storm of St. John’s on Friday evening at 6 p.m. CT. The game can be watched on ESPN+.
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