Dawgs And Hogs Battle In Division Showdown Starting Friday
April 05, 2012 | Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Playing a Southeastern Conference road series for the first time in three weeks, the Mississippi State softball team (19-18, 3-13 SEC) will travel to Arkansas (18-16, 2-12 SEC) this weekend for a three-game battle against the Razorbacks. The Maroon and White will face the home team at Bogle Park in a 3 p.m. doubleheader on Good Friday, before wrapping up the three-game set with a noon first pitch on Saturday.
Free audio streaming of all three games will be available through HailStateTV at www.hailstate.com/hstvlive. Additionally, video streams all three contests will be available to current HSTV subscribers (made possible by stream share from Arkansas).
"We are excited about the opportunity that presents itself this weekend and the rest of the season," Head Coach Vann Stuedeman said. "All of our goals are still well within reach and we cannot wait to jump back into conference play and work toward them."
The Bulldogs begin a two-week stretch where seven of their next eight games come away from the friendly confines of the MSU Softball Stadium. The last time MSU and Arkansas met was March 18-20, 2011, when the Bulldogs swept the Razorbacks in Starkville by scores of 3-0, 2-0 and 6-5. Last year's trilogy marks the last time MSU has swept a weekend series, while also being the third-straight sweep in the series between the two schools (Arkansas in 2009 & 2010, MSU in 2011). As a result of the sweep, MSU is riding its longest winning streak against the Hogs since winning five in a row from 2005-06.
Even though the Razorbacks hold a slim 12-11 advantage in Fayetteville, MSU is 29-23 all-time against its SEC West counterpart. In the past 11 three-game series between the two schools dating back to 2001, the team that has won the first game of the weekend has gone on to capture the series. The last time the two schools met in Fayetteville was on March 28, 2010, when the Hogs pounded out an 18-13 victory. The 31 total runs scored made it the highest-scoring SEC game in MSU history. Mississippi State's last road win at Arkansas came on May 3, 2008, when the Maroon and White defeated the Hogs via the run rule in five innings (9-1).
In her career vs. Arkansas, senior catcher Ka'ili Smith is 9-for-27 (.333) with eight RBIs, six walks, five runs and two doubles. Smith's teammate, Sam Lenahan, went 6-for-9 as a freshman last year against the Razorbacks. The third baseman completed the three-game sweep with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored.
In the circle, redshirt senior Misty Flesher has found great success against Arkansas. In seven career appearances against the Razorbacks, the Lone Grove, Okla., native is 2-1 with a save and owns an impressive 1.00 ERA. Also doing well on the rubber against the Razorbacks is junior left-handed pitcher Kylie Vry. In three appearances against the Hogs a year ago, Vry went 1-0 with a save and a microscopic 0.57 ERA. The southpaw threw a complete-game four-hit shutout in the series-opening victory, earned the save in game-town shutout and gave up just one earned run in the series-ending triumph.
The Bulldogs' 19 wins are five away from tying last year's overall win total of 24 in 56 games played. State was ranked 31st in the second RPI rankings of 2012, released April 2 by the NCAA. With most teams inside the top 40 making the NCAA Tournament, it was a good sign for MSU, who has already played 18 games against teams in the RPI Top-25.
Following the game, Starkville's team returns home for an April 10 5 p.m. non-conference tilt against Jackson State, who fell to MSU by an 11-2 margin in six innings back on Feb. 29. State will try and extend its season-high eight-game winning streak against non-league foes, its longest since 2009. For more information regarding MSU softball, follow the team on Twitter at @MStateSB and like the team at Facebook.com/MStateSB.
Free audio streaming of all three games will be available through HailStateTV at www.hailstate.com/hstvlive. Additionally, video streams all three contests will be available to current HSTV subscribers (made possible by stream share from Arkansas).
"We are excited about the opportunity that presents itself this weekend and the rest of the season," Head Coach Vann Stuedeman said. "All of our goals are still well within reach and we cannot wait to jump back into conference play and work toward them."
The Bulldogs begin a two-week stretch where seven of their next eight games come away from the friendly confines of the MSU Softball Stadium. The last time MSU and Arkansas met was March 18-20, 2011, when the Bulldogs swept the Razorbacks in Starkville by scores of 3-0, 2-0 and 6-5. Last year's trilogy marks the last time MSU has swept a weekend series, while also being the third-straight sweep in the series between the two schools (Arkansas in 2009 & 2010, MSU in 2011). As a result of the sweep, MSU is riding its longest winning streak against the Hogs since winning five in a row from 2005-06.
Even though the Razorbacks hold a slim 12-11 advantage in Fayetteville, MSU is 29-23 all-time against its SEC West counterpart. In the past 11 three-game series between the two schools dating back to 2001, the team that has won the first game of the weekend has gone on to capture the series. The last time the two schools met in Fayetteville was on March 28, 2010, when the Hogs pounded out an 18-13 victory. The 31 total runs scored made it the highest-scoring SEC game in MSU history. Mississippi State's last road win at Arkansas came on May 3, 2008, when the Maroon and White defeated the Hogs via the run rule in five innings (9-1).
In her career vs. Arkansas, senior catcher Ka'ili Smith is 9-for-27 (.333) with eight RBIs, six walks, five runs and two doubles. Smith's teammate, Sam Lenahan, went 6-for-9 as a freshman last year against the Razorbacks. The third baseman completed the three-game sweep with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored.
In the circle, redshirt senior Misty Flesher has found great success against Arkansas. In seven career appearances against the Razorbacks, the Lone Grove, Okla., native is 2-1 with a save and owns an impressive 1.00 ERA. Also doing well on the rubber against the Razorbacks is junior left-handed pitcher Kylie Vry. In three appearances against the Hogs a year ago, Vry went 1-0 with a save and a microscopic 0.57 ERA. The southpaw threw a complete-game four-hit shutout in the series-opening victory, earned the save in game-town shutout and gave up just one earned run in the series-ending triumph.
The Bulldogs' 19 wins are five away from tying last year's overall win total of 24 in 56 games played. State was ranked 31st in the second RPI rankings of 2012, released April 2 by the NCAA. With most teams inside the top 40 making the NCAA Tournament, it was a good sign for MSU, who has already played 18 games against teams in the RPI Top-25.
Following the game, Starkville's team returns home for an April 10 5 p.m. non-conference tilt against Jackson State, who fell to MSU by an 11-2 margin in six innings back on Feb. 29. State will try and extend its season-high eight-game winning streak against non-league foes, its longest since 2009. For more information regarding MSU softball, follow the team on Twitter at @MStateSB and like the team at Facebook.com/MStateSB.
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