STARKVILLE – A Super Regional-record crowd of 12,620 watched Mississippi State defeat Clemson 8-6 on Friday.

The record might not hold for long.

Athletic officials are expecting in excess of 14,000 today for the second game of the best-of-three Super Regional, and the overall NCAA on-campus mark of 14,991 set in 1989 at Mississippi State is in jeopardy.

&#8220It was a great crowd today, the seventh best in school history,” Mississippi State skipper Ron Polk said. &#8220I’m sure a lot of people are wondering who in the world we played for the sixth, fifth and fourth largest.”

About 1,200 standing room only tickets will go on sale this morning at 9 a.m. with game time set for 11 on ESPN2. Mississippi State’s Humphrey Coliseum will also be open for fans to watch on video screens there.

&#8220We knew the atmosphere was going to be tough and they would have more than 10,000 people here,” Clemson shortstop Taylor Harbin said. &#8220We have played in front of big crowds before, been to Omaha. We just have to bounce back from today and play hard.”

Clemson, which beat Mississippi State in the NCAA Regionals a season ago, had leads of 2-0 and 5-2 disappear and saw the fourth-overall pick in Friday’s amateur draft chased in the sixth inning. Clemson (41-22) scored two runs in the fourth inning and held the lead until the fifth when State freshman Connor Powers belted a home run to right-center field to tie the game at 2.

Powers, who had been in a late-season slump, was a game-time decision. Polk said he chose between Powers and Jeff Flagg.

&#8220We made a couple adjustments with his swing,” Polk said of Powers, the team’s designated hitter.

Clemson quickly regained the lead in the top of the sixth. MSU starter Chad Crosswhite walked Wilson Boyd to start the inning, then gave up a monstrous home run to Andy D’Alessio. Crosswhite cramped up on the first pitch after the home run, forcing him out of the game.

Jesse Carver gave up a home run to Harbin for a 5-2 lead and was chased in favor of junior John Lalor.

Mississippi State (37-20) took the lead for good in the bottom of the sixth. Joseph McCaskill doubled and scored on an Edward Easley single.

Mitch Moreland then planted a pitch over the wall to tie the game at 5. Moreland was selected by the Texas Rangers moments before his home run.

&#8220I didn’t know it,” Moreland said. &#8220After the inning, one of the grounds crew told me, I guess he was talking to my dad in the stands.”

Freshman Brandon Turner followed Moreland’s blast with a double and he scored on a groundout for a 6-5 lead. &#8220They started getting the ball up,” Moskos said. &#8220That two-run home run was a big blow. Then, just a couple of ground balls got through and we did not make plays on. That was a huge change in momentum.”

The Bulldogs added a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the seventh and the MSU bullpen held Clemson to one run, a solo home run by catcher Doug Hogan. Lalor pitched three innings of relief, scattering two hits and striking out three. Aaron Weatherford pitched a scoreless ninth.

Turner, Moreland and Powers each had two hits to pace MSU’s 12-hit attack. D’Alessio and Hogan had two hits apiece for Clemson.

&#8220That was a tough ballgame to lose, but we have two more to go,” Clemson coach Jack Leggett said. &#8220We have to come out tomorrow and be ready to put this one behind us. We just lost control of the ballgame midway through.”

The Tigers will turn to junior David Kopp to start today’s game. Kopp is 6-2 with a 3.67 ERA this season. Mississippi State will counter with junior Justin Pigott, who is 6-6 with a 4.31 ERA.

&#8220Clemson is a great ballclub and they are going to come out tomorrow and battle,” Polk said. &#8220Our boys know that we haven’t done anything yet. We still have two games to play.”