AUBURN | Will Bednar was too much for Auburn Saturday.

The right-hander struck out seven and held the Tigers to a run on four hits in 7.0 innings to lead No. 4 Mississippi State to a 7-2 win Saturday at Plainsman Park.

With Friday night’s 6-5 win, the Bulldogs take the series and will go for the sweep Sunday. Auburn falls to 12-15 overall and 1-10 in the SEC.

“I thought Will Bednar was the difference in the ballgame,” Auburn coach Butch Thompson said. “I thought both days here we threw a couple of cripple pitches, bad pitches, by our starters and they hit 'em and lost 'em. That happened again today for Jack.”

Bednar retired 12 straight batters from the third to the seventh as MSU built a 7-1 lead with a run in the first, two in the third, three in the fourth and one in the sixth.

Auburn starter Jack Owen (0-2) took the loss allowing six runs on nine hits and one walk in 3.2 innings. Trace Bright had his best outing in a month holding MSU to a run on one hit in 3.1 innings. Seb Thomas held MSU to one hit in 1.2 innings and Will Morrison struck out the final batter in the ninth.

Auburn scored a run in the second on a solo home run by Cam Hill, the freshman’s fourth of the season, and a run in the eighth on an RBI single by Ryan Bliss.

Bliss and Kason Howell had two hits apiece for the Tigers.

The series concludes Sunday at 2 p.m. CT on SEC Network.