Double Trouble! Massey No-Nob(TM)s St. Francis (PA), Hits First Career Homer
May 25, 2016 | Softball
Mississippi State Rallies For Five Runs In Third, Win 7-0
MARIETTA, Ga. - Melissa Massey delivered her second career no-hitter and helped her own cause with her first career home run in the sixth as Mississippi State finished off a perfect day at the Georgia Tech-hosted Buzz Classic with a 7-0 rout of St. Francis (PA) Friday evening at the Al Bishop Complex.
The no-no marked the seventh no-hitter in the history of the MSU (14-6) program and the second of the season for Mississippi State who got the same feat from sophomore Kelli Miller earlier this season against Louisiana Tech. The feat was just the second seven-inning no-hitter in program lore and the first since former Bulldog Jennifer Pursell held UMass hitless on March 4, 2000. Massey (5-2) turned in her first no-hitter as a freshman in 2002 on an 8-0 thumping of Nicholls State in five innings.
The Fayetteville, Tenn., native struck out nine over her fifth complete game of the campaign, walking one and hitting one batter in the decision. Ashley Harlan took the loss for the Red Flash (0-9), allowing six earned runs on five hits and a trio of walks in just two innings of work.
A trio of Bulldogs turned in multi-hit nights at the plate, led by Callye Williams who walked and scored on a perfect 2-for-2 outing. Katie Johnson drove in a run on a 2-for-4 hitting line and sophomore Michelle Kinney turned in a RBI of her own on a 2-for-3 plate tally. Freshman Courtney Bures slammed her ninth home run of the season - a two-run shot - on a 1-for-4 hitting line. Jennifer Jessup walked and doubled in two plate appearances.
That was a good game for Melissa, said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. She had the big blow as well, coming in off the bench and hitting the ball out of the ballpark. That has got to be good for her and, hopefully, that will give her a little spark and get her back on track. She pitched a really good ballgame for us.
After going down in order in its half of the first, State lit up the right field scoreboard in the second, getting a leadoff double from Jessup and a one-out RBI single from Johnson to take a 1-0 lead into the third. Keri McFarling led off the third on a bunt single and scored moments later after a Lindsay Hunley single was mishandled by St. Francis centerfielder Christine MacDonald. Bures' four-bagger with the next at-bat pushed the MSU cushion out to 4-0, but State would get two more scores on run-scoring singles from Gina McCloud and Kinney, to take a 6-0 lead into the fourth.
The Maroon and White threatened to put the mercy rule into effect in the fifth but stranded a pair of runners in scoring position. However, the Bulldogs plated an insurance run in the sixth when Massey took Red Flash reliever Jeanine Gargiulo's first offering over the fence in center field.
Mississippi State will continue its portion of round-robin play Saturday morning when the Maroon and White suits up to face Virginia Tech in the red-eye game at 9 a.m. EST. The Bulldogs will close out round-robin play in the Buzz Classic against Troy at 6 p.m. Championship bracket play is set to begin immediately following at approximately 8 p.m.
