Stuedeman's Squad Set For Highway 82 Showdown Against Alabama
March 30, 2012 | Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Eighty-three miles separate the Mississippi State and Alabama softball programs, but mere feet will stand between the two Friday night as the two Southeastern Conference squads square off in a three-game series at the MSU Softball Stadium. First pitch is set for 7 p.m. Friday, with Saturday and Sunday's games beginning at 1 p.m.
Admission is free for those that can attend, but for those that cannot, live video and audio streaming of the series will be available online to HailStateTV subscribers (www.HailState.com/hstvlive).
"We are going to focus on Mississippi State softball this weekend and what it takes for us to be successful," head coach Vann Stuedeman said. "It does not matter what name or color is on the jerseys across from us. This series is about the game, the players that play it and their opportunity to play in the best softball conference in America."
In the first RPI rankings of 2012 released by the NCAA March 26, Starkville's team came in at 39th. Thirty-four games into the season, the Bulldogs' 19 wins are just five shy from tying last year's overall win total of 24 in 56 games played. The Maroon and White (19-15, 3-10 SEC) will be looking to capture its first-ever win at home against a top-five team, while the Crimson Tide aim to improve upon its SEC-leading 32-1 record (9-1 SEC).
On offense, MSU is tied for third in the SEC with 260 hits on the 2012 campaign. Of the 260 base knocks, nine are triples, which ties Florida for the league lead. The Bulldogs are led at the dish by redshirt senior Brittany Bell, who leads the SEC with a .814 slugging percentage and is ninth nationally with a .575 on-base percentage (2nd in SEC). Bell also ranks in the top 10 of the SEC in eight other categories, including: hit by pitch, total bases, triples, batting average, doubles, walks, runs and hits.
Having lowered last year's school-record high 4.90 ERA in 56 total games to a much more manageable 2.90 clip, the MSU pitching staff is anchored by junior left-hander Stephanie Becker. In addition to having already recorded three more wins than last year (10), the Chicago native has also surpassed last year's strikeout total (87) with 106 fanned batters this season. The southpaw leads all SEC pitchers in innings pitched in conference games only (51.0), while ranking third with 48 strikeouts in league games.
Facebook Friday will start with a Catch-A-Dream representative throwing out the first pitch and Laura Lee Lewis singing the national anthem. Fans that post on MSU softball's Facebook wall during the game will have a chance to win autographed softballs, sit in the softball suite for the rest of the game and take home many more prizes. Along with writing on our wall, fans can earn prizes all weekend with the popular Bulldog Bingo and Movie Trivia events. As always, softball aficionados will also have the chance to win a Vanntastic t-shirt with every extra-base hit.
Also on Friday, the first 150 in attendance will receive a free MSU Rally Rag. The first 250 rabid Bulldog fans at Saturday's 1 p.m. game receive free "HailState" sunglasses. The "White OUT the TIDE" promotion concludes Sunday with the series finale at 1 p.m. For more information regarding MSU softball, follow the team on Twitter at @MStateSB and like the team at Facebook.com/MStateSB.
Highway 82 Connections...
- Before becoming head coach at Mississippi State on June 23, 2011, Vann Stuedeman spent the previous 11 seasons as an assistant at Alabama. Serving as the pitching coach, Stuedeman guided six different pitchers to 11 All-American honors en route to three Southeastern Conference championships and six appearances in the Women's College World Series.
- Bulldog assistant coach Alan Reach was a student manager under Stuedeman and Alabama head coach Patrick Murphy at Alabama from 2000-02, graduating in '02 with a degree in secondary education and language arts.
- Reach returned to Tuscaloosa from 2005-11, where he coached Tuscaloosa County High School and current Alabama senior outfielder Jazlyn Lunceford. With Lunceford, Reach led the Wildcats to Region 5 titles in 2006, 2007 and 2008.
- Not only did Reach graduate from Alabama, but his sister Jennifer was a four-year starter for the Crimson Tide from 2000-03. Jennifer currently ranks fourth in school history with 267 games started, and owns the distinction of recording the first-ever Alabama hit in the Women's College World Series (May 25, 2000 vs. UCLA).
- State volunteer assistant coach Kelsi Dunne was a four-time All-American and two-time SEC pitcher of the year at Alabama from 2007-11. The Crimson Tide's all-time strikeout leader with 1,219, Dunne is coaching against her alma mater this weekend as part of an internship to finish her master's degree in sport management from Alabama (Expected graduation: May 2012).
- MSU redshirt sophomore shortstop Erin Nesbit and freshman infielder Megan Nesbit (sister) are first cousins with Alabama starting outfielder Jennifer Fenton. In addition to the family ties, Fenton also played against current MSU sophomores Heidi Shape and Sam Lenahan in high school.
- Both Nesbit sisters were travel-ball teammates with current Alabama sophomore infielder Kaila Hunt on the Atlanta Vipers Gold team. Likewise, both Shape and Lenahan played against Hunt in Georgia growing up.
- As a member of the Tampa Mustangs' travel-ball squad, Bulldog sophomore outfielder Briana Bell defeated Alabama sophomores Jackie Traina and Ryan Iamurri by a score of 1-0, when the Crimson Tide duo played for Team North Florida. Briana and her sister, senior designated player Brittany Bell, also played against Alabama senior catcher Kendall Dawson during their high-school careers.
- Alabama senior catcher Olivia Gibson's cousin is Eric Dubose, who was a three-time All-American pitcher for the Mississippi State baseball team (1995-97). To this day, DuBose still holds the school record for career strikeouts (428) and strikeouts in a season (174, 1996).
