No. 15 MSU Softball Hits Road For Non-Conference Showdown With USM
March 17, 2008 | Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. ? The 15th-ranked Mississippi State softball team steps out of conference Tuesday, traveling to Hattiesburg, Miss., to take on Southern Mississippi in a 6 p.m. meeting at the Southern Miss Softball Complex.
MSU enters the mid-week match-up between the two in-state schools with a 22-9 overall record, while the Golden Eagles sit at 14-14 on the campaign.
Tuesday's meeting will be the 37th for the Bulldogs and USM, with State holding a 26-10 advantage in the series. MState has won three straight against the Golden Eagles, including 9-2 and 10-6 victories last season.
MSU sophomore Chelsea Bramlett leads the team at the plate. The Cordova, Tenn., native enters the week hitting at a .430 clip with a team-best 26 runs and 17 RBI, which are third best on the squad.
Bramlett has two doubles, a home run and three triples, which ties for the team lead, and she is 26-for-26 on stolen bases. Bramlett's 26 consecutive steals rate as the fourth-most in school history.
Senior Courtney Bures has been swinging a hot bat lately. Bures, who was drafted recently by National Pro Fastpitch's Washington Glory, bumped her season batting average to .348 after a .400 week. Bures leads the team with six doubles and is second on the squad with three home runs. The Haymarket, Va., native has driven in the second most runs on the team (18) while scoring 19 times.
The Bulldogs have utilized a trio of stellar pitchers this season. Junior Kelsey Nurnberg has put together a 12-win campaign so far, striking out 61 while compiling a 1.72 ERA. Freshman Misty Flesher sits at 7-5 on the season with a 2.23 earned-run average. The Lone Grove, Okla., native has struck out 51 while walking 10 on the year. Fellow rookie Elizabeth Woolven has notched a team-best three saves while compiling a 3-0 mark and 1.27 ERA.
USM has relied on the bat of Jennifer Fox to carry the offense this season. Fox is hitting a team-best .367 on the year, and she is tied for the team lead with two home runs and third with 14 RBI. Megan Hill, a .310 batter, has driven in a team-high 18 runs in support of Golden Eagle pitchers, who are led by six-game winner Samantha Davis.
