No. 23 Bulldogs Drop Pair Of SEC Softball Games To Third-Ranked Florida

Saturday, April 5

Starkville

1:00 p.m.

Mississippi State

32-12, 0

#3 Florida (DH-1)

41-2, 0

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Florida	1	0	2	0	0	0	2	5	7	0
Mississippi State	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Florida	0	0	0	1	0	2	4	7	12	2
Mississippi State	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	2	7	0

Bulldog Softball's Chelsea Bramlett Named Top 25 Finalist For USA Softball Player Of Year

No. 23 Bulldogs Drop Pair Of SEC Softball Games To Third-Ranked Florida

April 05, 2008 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: hailstate.com

? Official Statistics (Game 1)
? Official Statistics (Game 1) (PDF)
? Official Statistics (Game 2)
? Official Statistics (Game 2) (PDF)

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Chelsea Bramlett put together a 5-for-7 afternoon at the plate as No. 23 Mississippi State dropped a pair of hard-fought games to third-ranked Florida, 5-0 and 7-2, Saturday afternoon at the MSU Softball Field.

The Bulldogs fall to 32-13 overall and 6-9 in Southeastern Conference play, while the Gators improve to 41-2 and 13-1 in league play.

Bramlett extended her hit streak to eight games, and her two stolen bases on the afternoon put her at 38 on the year, which rates as the third-most in a season in school history.

State took an early 2-0 lead with a pair of runs in the third inning. Courtney Bures walked, and with one out in the inning, Hayle Guess, who matched her career-long hit streak with 12, beat out a bunt. Bures and Guess scored when Jessie Spain's ground ball in front of the plate was thrown down the first-base line by UF pitcher Stephanie Brombacher.

The Gators cut the lead to a single run as Ali Gardiner hit an RBI single up the middle off State starter Kelsey Nurnberg, and the Bulldogs held onto the one-run lead until the sixth when Mary Ratliff delivered a two-out single that gave the Gators the 3-2 lead and chased Nurnberg from the game.

"We were right where we wanted to be for five innings in the second game, but, unfortunately, it's a seven-inning game," MSU head coach Jay Miller said. "It looked like we ran out of gas towards the end, and we missed out on some opportunities in both games.

"When you have runners in scoring position, you have to step up and get the big hit against good teams like Florida," Miller added. "Florida did a nice job of getting key hits to drive in runs. Hopefully we can get the big hits tomorrow."

Nurnberg fell to 15-6 on the year as she surrendered the three runs on six hits with two strikeouts over five and two-thirds innings.

Florida broke the game open with a four-run seventh off relievers Elizabeth Woolven and Misty Flesher. The pair each tossed two-thirds of an inning, with both giving up two runs apiece.

Stacey Nelson picked up her second straight decision of the day as she pitched the final four innings and limited the Bulldogs to a hit while striking out four. In the series opener, she tossed a five-hit shutout as Florida downed the Bulldogs 5-0.

The Gators scored a lone run in the first inning on a Gardiner RBI double. UF capped the scoring with two runs in both the third and seventh innings.

Bramlett had three of MSU's five hits, while Guess and Ali Bainbridge each contributed singles. For MSU, four of its five hits came with two outs.

Flesher fell to 13-7 on the season as she allowed three runs on five hits with three strikeouts and a pair of walks over four innings. Woolven tossed the final three innings, surrendering two runs on two hits with a pair of strikeouts.

The Bulldogs and Gators finish the three-game series Sunday in a game set for a 1 p.m. first pitch on the MSU campus. The series finale will be broadcast live on WMSV 91.1 and online at http://www.wmsv.msstate.edu.