No. 15 MSU Softball Travels To Birmingham For Tuesday Clash With UAB
February 25, 2008 | Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. ? The No. 15 Mississippi State softball team returns to the field Tuesday, traveling to Birmingham, Ala., for a mid-week showdown with the UAB Blazers. First pitch is set for 6 p.m.
State enters the Tuesday night's first of two meetings with the Blazers holding a commanding 8-1 advantage in the series. The Bulldogs (13-2) have won six straight against UAB dating back to the 2004 season. MSU knocked off the Blazers 5-0 in Birmingham and 4-1 in Starkville a year ago.
MState finished last week's action with a 2-2 mark at the Mercer Wingate Inn Classic. The Bulldogs dropped their first two decisions on the year, 4-2 and 2-1 to Western Kentucky, but knocked off Austin Peay 12-4 and Mercer 5-3.
Senior Hayle Guess and freshman Ali Bainbridge earned all-tournament honors along with junior Sammie Jo Bailey. Guess hit .333 but added three big home runs while driving in five runs and scoring five times.
Guess hit three home runs in three consecutive games, becoming the first Bulldog to accomplish the feat since teammate Courtney Bures in 2005. The Moss Point, Miss., native and Bainbridge hit back-to-back round-trippers against Mercer, the first time for MSU players since Bures and Tanelda McDonald did so against South Carolina during the 2005 campaign.
Redshirt junior Gina McCloud also had a break-out weekend at the plate, hitting a team-best .571 with three doubles and three RBI. McCloud's final double of the weekend completed State's rally and gave the Bulldogs a 4-3 lead in the top of the seventh inning.
Cordova, Tenn., native Chelsea Bramlett continues to pace MSU at the plate on the year. Bramlett enters this week's action hitting at a .510 clip with a home run, two triples, 12 RBI, 12 runs scored and a perfect 12-for-12 on stolen bases.
Junior Kelsey Nurnberg suffered her first defeat in the circle after winning seven straight decisions to start the year, but she allowed just a single hit over three and a third innings to give the MSU offense an opportunity to tie the game against the host Bears.
Freshman Misty Flesher dropped her first decision of the year in the team's opener with Western Kentucky, but she came back strong the remainder of the weekend, allowing just two hits and a pair of walks over her final two innings.
UAB enters the weekend with a 9-8 overall mark. The Blazers, who are hitting .242 as a unit, have been paced by .400 hitter Andrea Rogers. Rogers has eight RBI and 12 runs to go along with a trio of doubles. Kayla Harris has put up a 4-3 record and 2.33 ERA in the circle so far this season, while Jennifer Nelson sits at 5-4 with a 3.16 earned-run average.
Following the trip to Birmingham, State returns to the road Friday for the 2008 NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga.
