Costly Errors Help #10 Crimson Tide Clinch Series With MSU, 4-1
May 25, 2016 | Softball
Official Game Statistics
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- A pair of untimely Mississippi State errors in the bottom of the second inning gave way to four Alabama runs as the 10th-ranked Crimson Tide completed a series-opening doubleheader sweep with a 4-1 win in the back half of the double dip Saturday afternoon at the Alabama Softball Complex.
The win gave the Crimson Tide (43-9, 15-5 SEC) its fifth-straight series victory in Tuscaloosa where the Bulldogs (25-20, 6-11) have posted just two triumphs in 14 meetings. For State, it was the second consecutive league series loss after posting series wins against Kentucky and LSU.
The Maroon and White got base hits from five different players, including Courtney Bures who stretched her hitting streak out to five games on 1-for-3 hitting line with a run scored. Jennifer Jessup drove in a run on a similar 1-for-3 outing. ?€˜Bama got two hits from both Dominique Accetturo and Jackie Wilkins to lead seven players with base hits for the hosts.
MSU starter Stephanie Comeaux (8-6) scattered four hits and allowed four unearned runs in saddling her first loss since March 20. Jennifer Wright (15-3) picked up the win for the Crimson and White, scattering five hits and striking out one in five and one-thirds innings of action from the circle, while Chrissy Owens picked up her league-best ninth save of the campaign after pitching a hitless one and two-thirds innings.
That's two games this week that, if we catch a fly ball in the outfield, we win the ball game so that's obviously frustrating, said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. But, we had some opportunities to score and we didn't do a very good job at the plate. If we put runs on the board, we're going to win some games.
We just need to regroup and put today behind us and come out and compete tomorrow. We talked after the game about doing the little things that are going to make the difference. We didn't do that today.
After going down with relative ease through one and two-thirds innings, Alabama put together a two-out rally in the bottom of the second, stringing together four hits and utilizing a pair of crucial errors by the Maroon and White to take a 4-0 lead into the third. With one runner aboard, Dani Woods' routine fly ball to right field was misplayed by Katie Cooley, allowing Staci Ramsey to score all the way from first with the 1-0 Alabama lead.
Capper Reed's RBI single with the next at-bat stretched the lead out to a pair and, after an errant throw moments later following a stolen base, the Crimson Tide got a runner to third to set the table for Leah White who hit a single through the left side to cushion the lead to 3-0. Jackie Wilkins' run-scoring double moments later completed the damage.
Alabama put something together again in the fifth, getting successive one-out singles from Ashley Courtney and Stephanie VanBrakle, but Comeaux got some help from her defense this time as State used a clutch double play to get out of the inning.
Bures and Tanelda McDonald both reached via one-out singles in the sixth to pave the way for Jessup, who chased Wright from the circle with a run-scoring single to centerfield that brought Bures racing home from second base. The ensuing at-bat produced a chance for MSU to tack on another run, but after Courtney fumbled the throw on a play at the plate, the senior still recovered in time to tag out pinch runner Melissa Massey who had already began to make her way toward the first base dugout.
Mississippi State and the nationally-ranked Crimson Tide will close out their weekend series on Sunday afternoon when the two meet in the series finale at 1:30 p.m. WMSV 91.1 FM will broadcast the game live from Tuscaloosa with Anthony Craven calling all the balls and strikes.
#10 ALABAMA 4, MISSISSIPPI STATE 1
Mississippi State (25-20) 000 001 0 - 1 5 2Alabama (43-9) 040 000 x - 4 9 1Comeaux and Johnson. Wright, Owens (6) and Courtney. W * Wright (15-3). L * Comeaux (8-6). Save * Owens (9).
