Vry Dominates As Bulldogs Hold Off Lipscomb, 3-1

Friday, February 10

Mobile, Ala.

12:30 PM

Mississippi State

2-0

Lipscomb

1-1

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

Vry Dominates As Bulldogs Hold Off Lipscomb, 3-1

February 11, 2012 | Softball

Box Score

By: hailstate.com

MOBILE, Ala. - Dominant pitching by junior left-hander Kylie Vry and a clutch two-run home run by junior right fielder Jessica Cooley gave the Mississippi State softball team (2-0) a 3-1 victory over Lipscomb (1-1) Friday afternoon on the second day of the 2012 Mardi Gras Invitational at Jaguar Field.

"Kylie Vry sent a statement early in the game and had us in and out of the dugout real fast today," head coach Vann Stuedeman said. "Kylie shut the door from there and had a great outing. We had stellar defense with 10 groundball outs in the infield. I was proud of how we came back today after an emotional victory Thursday."

Much like her fellow junior left-handed teammate Stephanie Becker Thursday, Vry (1-0) went the distance to record her first win of the 2012 campaign. The seven-inning outing by Vry marked the first time since 2006 that the Bulldogs have opened the season with back-to-back complete games. The Iowa native retired 20 of the 23 batters she faced (.130 Opp. BA), giving up one run and striking out six (all swinging) on just 89 pitches. Vry failed to yield a hit with runners on base (0-for-6), and now owns a 1.83 ERA over her last five appearances dating back to last season.

At the dish, the dynamic duo of senior Brittany Bell and junior Jessica Cooley continued their scorching start to the season. Bell went 2-for-2 with a double and a run scored, while Cooley ended her day 1-for-2 with a two-run home run and a walk. Sophomore catcher Sam Lenahan hit her first home run of the season to finish 1-for-2 with an RBI, while junior left fielder Shelby Fisher finished 1-for-3 for the second-consecutive game.

In the bottom of the first inning, the Maroon and White picked up right where they left off Thursday, with Lenahan connecting on a 2-0 pitch down the middle for a home run to right-center field. The two teams remained scoreless until the fifth inning, when Bell started off the bottom half of the frame with a sharp double down the line in left. Following the double, Lipscomb's starting pitcher Ashley Anderson (0-1) was replaced by 2010 All-American and Mississippi native Whitney Kiihnl. The new pitcher's first at bat ended with junior shortstop Erin Nesbit advancing Bell to third after a groundout back to Kiihnl. Up next was Cooley, who sent a 3-2 offering just over the left-field fence for her second two-run homer in as many days.

Lipscomb's lone run came off a one-out Bree Thurman solo home run in the top of the sixth inning.

State returns to Jaguar Field Saturday for a 10 a.m. first pitch against Jacksonville State. In a rematch of MSU's thrilling 3-2 fall exhibition victory over the Gamecocks, Stuedeman will look to become the first coach in school history to win their first three contests. Fans can visit HailState.com for live stats and follow along at Twitter.com/MStateSB for live in-game updates.