What Southern Miss baseball said of Dalton McIntyre’s injury after walk-off win vs Nicholls

HATTIESBURG — Southern Miss center fielder Dalton McIntyre exited Tuesday night’s game against Nicholls at Pete Taylor Park with an injury.

Golden Eagles coach Christian Ostrander said afterward that it's a dislocated shoulder. He did not know how much time, if at all, McIntyre could miss. McIntyre was on the field with a sling on his right arm after Southern Miss' 9-6 win via Matthew Russo's walk-off three-run home run.

"Just say prayers for him and hope it's nothing too serious," Ostrander said. "I hate it for Dalton and so forth, but it is what it is. We'll just say prayers for him and hope for the best."

McIntyre is one of Southern Miss’ (23-14, 9-6 Sun Belt Conference) best players at the plate and in the field. He leads the team in batting average (.404), on-base percentage (.453) and stolen bases (10). The junior from Meridian Community College entered Tuesday as one of only four Golden Eagles in history to have a batting average above .400 through 36 games.

The injury occurred in the sixth inning when McIntyre was at first base after drawing a walk. Nicholls (24-14, 7-5 Southland) pitcher Jacob Mayers threw a pick-off attempt and McIntyre slid back into first base but came up in obvious pain. 

He was removed from the game with Eli Collins pinch running for him. In the next half inning, Nolan Tucker replaced Collins and took second base while Nick Monistere moved to center field. 

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"We're all going to be behind him," Russo said. "I know some guys are going to step up if he takes some time off."

Matthew Russo walks it off for Southern Miss

The Golden Eagles trailed Nicholls 6-2 in the fifth inning, but found a spark when Monistere hit a three-run home run.

Then trailing 6-5 in the ninth, Monistere, who batted 3-for-3 with two walks, four runs and four RBIs, tied the game on a single to score pinch-runner Brady Faust.

Russo, the next batter, saw a slider on the first pitch, swung and hit it 402 feet over the left field wall. He hadn't hit a home run all season until Friday at Georgia State, and then hit his second of the season on Saturday before Tuesday's game-winner.

"I'm glad it happened," Russo, a sophomore, said. "I think it's at the right time as well when we get blown out two games and have a good game Sunday. We just need to catch that momentum and I hope it sparks some momentum for the rest of the year."

The Golden Eagles host ULM (17-18, 5-10) for a weekend series beginning on Friday (6 p.m., ESPN+).

Sam Sklar is the Southern Miss beat reporter for the Hattiesburg American. Email him at ssklar@hattiesb.gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.