State Back On Road To Battle SEC East Rival Kentucky
May 25, 2016 | Softball
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Cats And Dogs Clash As State Faces First Unranked SEC Opponent Of Season
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- The Mississippi State Softball team will continue an eight-game road trip this weekend as the Maroon and White head to Lexington, Ky., for a three-game set against the SEC East foe Kentucky Wildcats at the UK Softball Complex.
The two squads will renew their 18-game-old rivalry on Saturday in a 1 p.m. doubleheader and close out the series on Sunday afternoon in a single game set for 1 p.m. as well. Game updates will be available via a live statistics link at the official home for Mississippi State Athletics, www.MStateAthletics.com. Mississippi State (20-17, 2-10 SEC) leads the all-time series by an 11-7 count, but Kentucky (15-16-1, 3-12) has taken three of seven contests in Lexington.
The series will mark the first for State this season against an unranked conference opponent. Having already faced four SEC teams ranked at or above No. 14 in both national polls, the Bulldogs will also attempt to snap a four-game skid that was extended Wednesday evening at Southern Miss. Kentucky enters the set fresh off a midweek doubleheader split against Louisville, but the Cats are still purring after knocking off then-sixth-ranked Alabama in the second game of its series with the Crimson Tide on Sunday.
"Obviously, we didn't perform very well Wednesday (at Southern Miss) in, really, any part of the game," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "We didn't get off to a very good start, and we didn't generate anything offensively. The question is, how are we going to bounce back. We have got a big series with Kentucky that is probably going to determine whether or not we go to the SEC Tournament. That's the challenge. We're sort of at a crossroads now as to which direction we're going to go."
Although hitting just .225 as a team, Kentucky has surprised its opponents with early leads, then held off late rallies by its foes to secure at least a handful of victories. Sophomore Meghan Cooper leads the way for the Blue and White on a .318 batting clip with eight extra-base hits and 11 RBI, but senior Rachel Friberg has managed her share of the offense as well, hitting a cool .300 with nine extra-base hits and 13 runs scored. When getting on base, Kentucky will use its speed to add increasing danger to the basepaths as evidenced by a 39-for-47 count on stolen base attempts. The Wildcats have also managed 19 home runs as a squad this season as well.
In the circle, Kentucky is ranked 11th in the conference among the 11 SEC softball-playing institutions, but are holding opponents to just a .249 hitting clip and a .333 on-base percentage. Surprisingly, Cooper, who collected the victory against Alabama as well as a win over nationally ranked Florida earlier this season, is last on the staff with a 4.02 ERA, but tied for first in wins with fellow sophomore Amy Kendall (5-10, 3.46 ERA) who has produced a majority of Kentucky's innings this season. Gretchen Prugh looks to be the only other UK pitcher who is used more than naught, as the rookie carries a 2-3 record and a 2.27 ERA.
In 213 innings this season, the Wildcat pitchers have surrendered nearly one hit an inning, striking out 136 and walking 93 in 213 innings of work. UK hurlers have completed less than one-third of their starts this season as well.
"They are very similar to Southern Miss. On paper, they weren't dominating on the mound either," Miller said. "Hitting is about making adjustments, and that's where we have been struggling a little bit this year. We have failed to make those adjustments as the game progresses and we have struggled a little bit at times."
Following its series in Lexington this weekend, State will continue its eight-game trip away from home next weekend when the Bulldogs head to Auburn, Ala., for a set with the once-nationally ranked Auburn Tigers. State will wrap up its trip on April 6 when the squad battles Southern Miss again, this time in Ridgeland's Freedom Ridge Park as part of the second annual M&F Bank Fastpitch Classic.
