No. 23 Mississippi State Heads West For Long Beach Invitational
May 25, 2016 | Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Having dropped consecutive games for the first time since May 7 of last season, the 23rd-ranked Mississippi State softball team will attempt to right its ship this weekend when it heads to Long Beach, Calif., for the five-team Long Beach Invitational, hosted by Long Beach State University.
Mississippi State (18-4) will open its portion of tournament play on Friday when the Bulldogs lock horns with the Syracuse Orange (8-7) in an 11:15 a.m. PDT contest and will then remain on site to battle fourth-ranked UCLA (19-1) at 3:45 p.m. Saturday's schedule has MState facing Mercer (5-9) at 9 a.m. and the host 49ers (10-9) at 1:30 p.m.
The Bulldogs will close out their portion of tournament play on Sunday at 12:15 p.m. with a rematch against the Bruins, who returned every starter off of last season's national semifinalist squad. Every game of the three-day tournament will take place at the City of Long Beach's Mayfair Park. There will be no live statistics available for this event.
State, which checked into both national polls on Tuesday and Wednesday, holds a combined 2-1 record against the tournament field, having defeated the Orange in both series meetings, while falling to UCLA by a 5-0 count in the only meeting between the two squads on Feb. 12, 1999. Saturday's slate will hold first time meetings for Mississippi State against both Long Beach State and Mercer.
The Bulldogs had their 13-game home winning streak snapped on Tuesday evening with a 2-0 setback to cross-state nemesis Southern Miss in Starkville. Despite the loss, Mississippi State still boasts five players hitting .304 or better, including redshirt sophomore Hayle Guess who leads the squad with a .449 (31-for-69) average, 12 extra-base hits (2 HR) and 21 runs scored.
State's three-armed pitching staff has been key for the Maroon and White this season, particularly righthanders Ragan Blake and Stephanie Comeaux who have combined to post an 18-2 record and a 0.69 ERA in 131 innings of work.
"I think (the pitching staff) has been the reason for our success this season," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "Ragan, Stephanie and even Sara (Hickerson) have really stepped up and started dominating on the mound against not only the weaker teams, but some of the stronger teams as well. I feel confident every time we go out there that we are going to be competitive, no matter what team we are playing. I think that has been the biggest difference that we have seen this Spring over some past years."
Despite dropping their first five outings of the season, Syracuse has rebounded to post victories in eight of their last 10 games while outscoring opponents 64-30 along the way. Carrying a .264 team batting clip, SU is led offensively by senior infielder/pitcher Alexis Switenko who is currently maintaining a .324 batting clip with five home runs, 12 RBI and 11 runs scored. From the circle, the Orange has gotten most of its innings from sophomore righthander Erin Downey (4-4, 3.93 ERA) who has struck out 66 batters in 57 innings of work. Syracuse also has the option of throwing Switenko who boasts a team-best 4-1 record with a 3.15 ERA.
UCLA, who finished the 2005 season with a 40-20 record after falling to Michigan in the national title game, has won 19 of their first 20 games of the campaign behind a two-armed pitching staff that has combined to post a paltry 0.69 team ERA. Reigning Pac-10 Pitcher of the Week and sophomore righthander Anjelica Selden (11-1, 0.19) has posted shutouts in six of her 10 complete games this season, while tallying 138 strikeouts in 73.2 innings from the circle. Junior Lisa Dodd has been equally as impressive en route to posting an 8-0 record and a 1.34 ERA.
The Bruins have put together a .317 batting average through 20 games as well on the shoulders of a trio of hitters. Senior third baseman Andrea Duran leads the team in almost every offensive statistic and has compiled a .426 (26-for-61) batting average with 14 extra-base hits (5 HR), 18 RBI and 25 runs scored. Jodie Legaspi (.375, 5 HR, 17 RBI) and Emily Zaplatosch (.344, 2, 13) have proven to be nightmares for opposing pitchers as well.
"Our goal is to get to where we can compete for national championships and against the best teams in the country," Miller said. "Obviously, UCLA is the measuring stick for that type of a program. They are there each and every year, obviously, with their history and their past success, and it has been well earned. These two games will give us a good measure of where we are at right now and what we need to do as we begin conference play next weekend."
Mercer, who churned out a 1-2 record in their stay at the Kipa Aloha Tournament in Honolulu this past weekend, has split its last six outings, including a 6-0 loss to sixth-ranked Cal on Sunday. The Bears have been paced by a trio of .300 hitters, including senior outfielder/pitcher Katie Rosentreter who leads the team with a .382 batting average, while also pacing the team from the circle where she has tallied a 4-5 record and a 2.41 ERA. Rosentreter complements her batting clip with three extra-base hits and seven RBI as well.
The host 49ers will enter the weekend fresh from a 2-3 second place showing at the Arizona-hosted Hillenbrand Invitational. A very balanced squad, Long Beach State, who has made 16 NCAA postseason appearances in its history, is led offensively by senior second baseman Tiffanie Wedell (.310, 8 RBI) and junior Michelle Turner (.288, 4 HR, 17 RBI). Turner has also been LBSU's best option from the circle where the Buena Park, Calif., native has posted a 7-5 record and a 1.77 ERA with 69 strikeouts in 79 innings of action.
