No. 25 Bulldogs Trek to Columbia for Final Road SEC Series

STARKVILLE, Miss – Trekking to Columbia, S.C., No. 25 Mississippi State softball (34-15, 6-12 SEC) gears up for a Top 25 showdown with No. 13 South Carolina (38-11, 11-7 SEC) to round out the final road trip of the 2018 regular season.

The series begins on Friday, April 21 with a 5 p.m. CT first pitch from Columbia on the SEC Network +, which is available on WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app. Game two of the series will kick off a full slate of softball on the SEC Network with first pitch set for 11 a.m. CT on Saturday, April 28. The series finale is set for 12 p.m. CT on Sunday, April 29 and will be streamed live on the SEC Network +.

Mississippi State holds a slight advantage at 30-28 in an evenly matches series history with the Gamecocks. South Carolina holds the edge over the last 10 games of the series with six victories. In true road games, the Bulldogs hold a 12-10 record. State is making its first trip to Columbia since 2015.

The Bulldogs look to keep momentum rolling as State is coming off a 7-0 victory at Troy to round out the nonconference slate of the regular season. Senior Holly Ward turned in a one-hit performance in the circle against the Trojans.

Behind Ward's shutout performance on Wednesday night, Mississippi State recorded its 17^th shutout of the season, which ties the 1998 pitching staff for the most shutouts over a single season in school history. Heading into the final two weekends of the regular season, the Bulldog staff holds a 1.72 earned run average, which ranks fifth in the SEC and 14^th across all of Division I softball.

Ward anchors the staff, tossing a team-leading 131.1 innings to hold a 13-6 record with four saves. The right-handed has recorded seven shutouts and leads the staff with a 1.33 ERA to rank 10^th among SEC pitchers. Ward has struck out a team-high 136 batters and has issued just 37 walks this season.

Freshman Mia Davidson continues her dominance at the plate to submit her place as the spark of the Bulldog offense. She is the lone Bulldog this season to record 40 or more hits, runs scored and RBIs. She is tied with Georgia's Alyssa DiCarlo for the SEC lead in home runs at 16, which is one away from tying Courtney Bures (2005) for the MSU's freshman home run record. Davidson also leads the SEC with an .848 slugging percentage and 128 total bases.

SOUTH CAROLINA SERIES SCHEDULE
Friday, April 27 – No. 25 Mississippi State at No. 13 South Carolina (5 p.m. CT)
Saturday, April 28 – No. 25 Mississippi State at No. 13 South Carolina (11 a.m. CT)
Sunday, April 29 – No. 25 Mississippi State at No. 13 South Carolina (12 p.m. CT)

LAST TIME OUT
Behind a gem of a pitching performance by Holly Ward, Mississippi State softball tossed its record-tying 17th shutout of the 2018 season, blanking Troy, 7-0, at the Trojan Softball Complex.

Ward retired 13 straight Trojans to open the game, allowing just two base runners with an infield single in the fifth and a walk in the seventh inning. The right-hander struck out nine in the outing to record MSU's 17th shutout of the season, which ties the 1998 pitching staff for the most over a single-season in MSU history.

Wednesday, April 25
No. 25 Mississippi State def. Troy, 7-0 (Recap, Box Score)

SERIES HISTORY
Against South Carolina
Overall: Mississippi State leads 30-28
In Columbia: Mississippi State leads 12-10
Last Meeting: Mississippi State def. South Carolina, 5-2 (April 9, 2018 in Starkville, Miss.)
Current Streak: Mississippi State, +2

DIRTY THIRTY
For the sixth time under the helm of head coach Vann Stuedeman, the Bulldogs have recorded at least 30 victories in a season as MSU's notched its 30th victory of 2018 with an 11-0 run-rule victory over Alcorn State on April 10. The win also marks the 17th time in program history that the Bulldogs have won at least 30 games in a season.

SLUGGING TOWARDS SEASON RECORD
Forty-nine games into her freshman season, Mia Davidson has etched her name into the record books. Davidson slugged has slugged 16 home runs, which ties Georgia's Alyssa DiCarlo for the SEC lead. Davidson's 16 homers also stand as the third most bombs hit over a single season in MSU history. Her 16 homers are one shy of tying Courtney Bures (2005) for the MSU freshman record.

WARD UP
With her victory over the Tojans, Holly Ward added her name to another MSU career record list, improving her total to eight. The victory was Ward's 35th of her career, taking her into a tie for the ninth most victories in school history.

5th          Shutouts                                                    12
T5th        Saves                                                            7
6th          Strikeouts                                                 335
6th          Opponent Batting Avg.                     .232
T6th        Solo No-Hitters                                      1
9th          Innings Pitched                                     412.2
9th          Strikeouts per 7 Inn.                           5.69
T9th        Wins                                                             35

BOMB SQUAD
As a team, the Bulldogs have hit 42 home runs, which ranks as the fourth most homers knocked over a single-season in program history. MSU is currently tied for fifth in the Southeastern Conference in total home runs and have turned in 14 multi-home run games this season. Freshman Mia Davidson leads the team, knocking 16 of MSU's 42 home runs and is tied with Georgia's Alyssa DiCarlo for the SEC lead.

Five Bulldogs have also knocked the first home runs of their career this season: Carter Spexarth, Grace Dabbs, Carmen Carter, Macey Petrey and Bevia Robinson.

MAMA MIA!
Mia Davidson continues to prove that being a freshman is not a limitation when it comes to success at the plate in the SEC.

Davidson currently ranks in the top 10 in the Southeastern Conference in 10 offensive categories, including first in home runs (16), slugging percentage (.848) and total bases (128), third in hits (63), fourth in batting average (.417) and sixth in on-base percentage (.492)

Nationally, Davidson ranks in the top 15 in three categories – fifth in total bases, eighth in home runs and 12th in slugging percentage.

MISSISSIPPI QUEEN
In her seventh season at the helm of Mississippi State softball, Vann Stuedeman has notched 237 wins to surpass Kathy Arendsen (1997-2002) for the second-most victories in program history. Jay Miller (2003-211) holds the program record at 295.

WEATHER
Friday, April 27 – 76 Degrees; Partly Cloudy (10%)
Saturday, April 28 – 80 Degrees; Sunny (10%)
Sunday, April 29 – 72 Degrees; Sunny (0%)

WATCH LIVE
All three games of the weekend series at South Carolina will be available on WatchESPN and the WatchESPN appl. Saturday's contest will features a national broadcast on the SEC Network with Melissa Lee and Leigh Dakich on the call.

Friday, April 27 – No. 25 Mississippi State at No. 13 South Carolina (SECN+)
Saturday, April 28 – No. 25 Mississippi State at No. 13 South Carolina (SECN)
Sunday, April 29 – No. 25 Mississippi State at No. 13 South Carolina (SECN+)

LIVE STATS
South Carolina will provide live stats for all three games of the weekend series, which may be accessed through the link below.

No. 25 Mississippi State at South Carolina Live Stats

ADMISSION
Tickets for this weekend's series at the Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field can be purchased online. Single-game tickets are $7 for adults and #4 for youth.

ON DECK
No. 25 Mississippi State wraps up the regular season with a Top 25 showdown with Tennessee at Nusz Park. The final weekend series of the season will begin on Friday, May 4 at 6 p.m. CT.

FOLLOW THE DAWGS
For more on Mississippi State softball, follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching for "HailStateSB." You can also find all-access coverage of the program on SnapChat by searching for "HailStateSnap".

No. 25 Bulldogs Trek to Columbia for Final Road SEC Series

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Mia Davidson

Carter Spexarth

Holly Ward

Mississippi State University Athletics