Bulldogs To Meet No. 3/5 Alabama In Three-Game Road Series
April 14, 2011 | Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State returns to the road this weekend, traveling to Tuscaloosa for a three-game Southeastern Conference softball series against No. 3/5 Alabama that gets underway Friday at 6:30 p.m.
Saturday's second game of the SEC Western Division showdown is slated for a 4:30 p.m. first pitch, while Sunday's finale is set for 1:30 p.m. A free, live audio stream for each game will be available at www.mstateathletics.com/m2mlive.
Coach Jay Miller's squad enters the weekend 21-21 overall following a 5-1 win at Mississippi Valley State on Tuesday. The Dawgs are also .500 in SEC play at 8-8 after coming up short in a pair of hard-fought games against then-No. 22 Auburn last weekend as part of Super Bulldog Weekend.
Alabama rallied to defeat Troy on Tuesday after being swept by LSU in Baton Rouge last weekend. The Crimson Tide are 38-5 overall and 12-4 in the SEC.
Senior Ali Bainbridge will be playing her final games in her home state this weekend. The native of nearby Vestavia Hills has enjoyed her finest season in the Maroon and White, hitting a team-best .381 with 11 doubles, four triples and four home runs. She has also scored 40 times while driving in 14 runs.
Against Auburn last Saturday, Bainbridge drove in a run to become the 11th player in school history to reach the 100-career RBI milestone. She was the second Bulldog to reach the milestone this season as junior Ka'ili Smith did it with a three-RBI outing against Arkansas on March 18.
Smith has enjoyed another stellar year at the plate, hitting .339 with three doubles, a triple, two home runs and 21 RBI. She also ranks second on the squad with 26 runs scored.
The Kapolei, Hawaii, native hopes to continue the success she has already enjoyed in Tuscaloosa this season. During the March 11-13 SEC/ACC Challenge, Smith went 5-for-10 at the plate in leading the Bulldogs to a 2-2 weekend that included two wins against Florida State.
Senior Courtney Nesbit also had a solid weekend during the SEC/ACC Challenge, hitting .429 with a pair of home runs and a team-best six RBI.
The Acworth, Ga., native has continued a banner year at the plate, going 4-for-8 with two doubles and two RBI in her last two games. Nesbit, a .325 hitter, leads Mississippi State with eight home runs and 37 RBI. Her eight round-trippers, the third-most by a Bulldog senior, are tied for eighth-most in single-season history.
Sophomores Kylie Vry and Stephanie Becker have seen the most starts in league play. Vry leads MSU with eight wins this season. She also owns a team-low 3.85 ERA while pacing the squad in strikeouts with a career-best 81.
Becker owns a 6-3 record and 4.38 ERA, but the Aurora, Ill., native has made her mark in league play with a 2.43 ERA and 28 strikeouts against SEC hitters.
Junior Misty Flesher recorded the final out in last Friday's 4-3 win, Miller's 1,000th-career victory, against Auburn to notch her team-leading fourth save of the year. The Lone Grove, Okla., native owns a 6-5 record and has struck out 58 over 77.1 innings this season.
State's hurlers face a Crimson Tide squad that enters the weekend hitting .321 as a unit. Kayla Braud tops Alabama with a .460 batting average, 10 doubles and 44 stolen bases.
Freshman Jackie Traina has been a threat at the plate and in the circle this season. A .366 hitter, she leads UA with 13 home runs while tying Whitney Larsen for the RBI lead with 42. In the circle, she owns a 15-3 record and 1.26 ERA.
Kelsi Dunne leads the Alabama pitching staff with an 18-2 record and 1.08 ERA. She has struck out a team-high 209 over 136.1 innings.
