The bats of the Troy Trojans were kept nearly as cold as the temperatures Friday night against the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles.

Troy mustered only six hits, most coming after the game was well in hand, in a 12-4 loss to the No. 24 ranked Golden Eagles.

Southern Miss scored three runs in the first, three in the second and six in the fifth to open up a lead the Trojans could never close.

USM starting pitcher Andrew Pierce shut down Troy for the majority of the night. Pierce went seven and a third innings, striking out 11, scattering six hits and walking just one.

“You look at his numbers, and what he has done for them in that role, and you know he is going to pitch well,” said Troy head coach Bobby Pierce. “He pitches well every time out, and you have to keep that game in check, and we couldn’t do that.”

The top four spots in the Trojans’ lineup did all the damage on Friday night, as the last five spots combined to go 0-19 in the game.

Troy’s Logan Pierce and Tyler Vaughn did extend their personal hitting streaks to 13 and 12 games respectively. First baseman Trae Santos hit a towering home run to right field in the sixth inning to put the Trojans on the board.

“Our backs are against the wall now,” said Pierce. “Saturday’s game becomes a key game if we want to win the series.”

Game two of Troy’s series versus Southern Miss is set for a 1 p.m. first pitch at Riddle-Pace Field in Troy.