Wednesday, February 12
Starkville
2:00 PM
Mississippi State
5-0
16
vs
2
Alabama State
2-4
1
2
3
4
5
R
H
E
Alabama State
0
0
2
0
0
2
3
4
Mississippi State
1
1
8
6
0
16
14
0
Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics
Bulldog Bats Explode for Run-Rule Victory in Home Opener
February 12, 2020 | Softball
by Brian Ogden, Assistant Director/Communications
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State's softball program opened its home slate with a bang on Wednesday, cruising to a 16-2 victory in five innings against Alabama State. The Bulldogs' scoring output was their highest since April 26, 2014, when they scored 18 against Arkansas.
Despite a slow start, MSU batted around in both the third and fourth innings, totaling 14 runs in those two frames alone. State's 16 runs were tied for fifth-most in MSU history.
Fa Leilua homered twice, and Madisyn Kennedy and Lindsey Williams each hit the first long balls of their career in the rout. Leilua and Kennedy finished with three RBIs, while Williams led the team with four thanks to a two-run blast in the fourth inning, a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch in the third and an RBI single in the second.
"I thought they did a good job of hitting the curveball, and just making the adjustment to the moved up game time," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "Getting that first win at home under our belt, getting used to everything – first time for our home crowd too, and making sure everything's running smoothly – so it was good to get back out here. That team, they're going to do a good job, but that we know our expectations. If we're going to be an elite team we need to answer back in a big way."
A pair of Bulldog freshmen recorded their first career hits in pinch hit appearances at the plate. Brylie St. Clair tripled to right field on the first pitch she saw to bring home a run. Kiki Edwards then doubled in her first career at-bat to bring St. Clair home.
In the circle, Aspen Wesley started and three 3.0 innings, recording five strikeouts and allowing two runs. Kenley Hawk relieved her in the fourth and set down the Hornets in order with her first career strikeout to earn the win.
Ricketts improved to 5-0 as a head coach and is now just one win shy of tying the MSU record for the best start by a first-year head coach.
"It's very early, but it does feel good," Ricketts said. "I think the biggest thing for us is getting [the players] to understand that what we're doing and the start we had over the weekend, that comes based on the work we do every day in practice. We talked early on that we've got 100 days together to practice and be out on the field and only 50 game days. We need to work hard and outperform everybody in practice and push each other because that's what makes those game days really special for us."
State now returns to Starkville for its home opener on Wednesday before hosting the Bulldog Kickoff Classic on the weekend.
Anna Kate Segars – Made her first start of the year with a single and a double.
Madisyn Kennedy – Hit her first career home run with the game tied, 2-2, to bring home three runs … Scored twice.
Kiki Edwards – Pinch hit in the fourth and doubled home a run in her first career at-bat … Also scored a run in her MSU debut.
Brylie St. Clair – Pinch hit in the fourth and tripled on the first pitch she saw in her first career at-bat … Drove in a run and scored.
Aspen Wesley – Made her MSU debut in the circle, striking out five.
Kenley Hawk – Made her MSU debut, setting down the Hornets in order in 1.0 inning of work … Earned her first career win and registered her first career strikeout.
Next Woman Up – MSU batted around twice in the game in consecutive innings … Over the third and fourth innings, State sent 23 batters to the plate and collected 14 runs.
Home Sweet Home Runs – State hit four home runs, the most the Bulldogs have hit in a game since the final home game of the 2019 season against Missouri on April 28, 2019.
With two outs and nobody on base, Fa Leilua homered to center.
Alabama State 0, Mississippi State 1
Bottom 2
Madisyn Kennedy and Anna Kate Segars reached base on a pair of errors to open the inning. After a strikeout and a foul out, Lindsey Williams singled up the middle to bring home Kennedy.
Alabama State 0, Mississippi State 2
Top 3
With one out, Schylur Edwards walked and later advanced to second on a wild pitch. Kindall DeRamus singled, bringing home Edwards before advancing to second on the throw. Alexis Sydnor doubled to left bringing home DeRamus.
Alabama State 2, Mississippi State 2
Bottom 3
Mia Davidson led off with a single to left field. Chloe Malau'ulu singled up the middle with one out to advance her to second. Madisyn Kennedy then hit a three-run homer to left field. Anna Kate Segars and Montana Davidson each singled, and Jackie McKenna walked to load the bases. Lindsey Williams was then hit by pitch, bringing home Segars. Candace Denis reached on an error when the ball was thrown out of playing, allowing McKenna and Montana Davidson to score. Chloe Malau'ulu closed the scoring with a two-run single past the second baseman.
Alabama State 2, Mississippi State 10
Bottom 4
Anna Kate Segars led off with a single. Brylie St. Clair pinch hit and tripled to right field to score bring her home. Kiki Edwards then pinch hit with a double to left center scoring St. Clair from third. Lindsey Williams hit a two-run homer to left field. After Candace Denis singled, and Fa Leilua hit a two-run shot over the scoreboard.
Alabama State 2, Mississippi State 16
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State's softball program opened its home slate with a bang on Wednesday, cruising to a 16-2 victory in five innings against Alabama State. The Bulldogs' scoring output was their highest since April 26, 2014, when they scored 18 against Arkansas.
Despite a slow start, MSU batted around in both the third and fourth innings, totaling 14 runs in those two frames alone. State's 16 runs were tied for fifth-most in MSU history.
Fa Leilua homered twice, and Madisyn Kennedy and Lindsey Williams each hit the first long balls of their career in the rout. Leilua and Kennedy finished with three RBIs, while Williams led the team with four thanks to a two-run blast in the fourth inning, a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch in the third and an RBI single in the second.
"I thought they did a good job of hitting the curveball, and just making the adjustment to the moved up game time," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "Getting that first win at home under our belt, getting used to everything – first time for our home crowd too, and making sure everything's running smoothly – so it was good to get back out here. That team, they're going to do a good job, but that we know our expectations. If we're going to be an elite team we need to answer back in a big way."
A pair of Bulldog freshmen recorded their first career hits in pinch hit appearances at the plate. Brylie St. Clair tripled to right field on the first pitch she saw to bring home a run. Kiki Edwards then doubled in her first career at-bat to bring St. Clair home.
In the circle, Aspen Wesley started and three 3.0 innings, recording five strikeouts and allowing two runs. Kenley Hawk relieved her in the fourth and set down the Hornets in order with her first career strikeout to earn the win.
Ricketts improved to 5-0 as a head coach and is now just one win shy of tying the MSU record for the best start by a first-year head coach.
"It's very early, but it does feel good," Ricketts said. "I think the biggest thing for us is getting [the players] to understand that what we're doing and the start we had over the weekend, that comes based on the work we do every day in practice. We talked early on that we've got 100 days together to practice and be out on the field and only 50 game days. We need to work hard and outperform everybody in practice and push each other because that's what makes those game days really special for us."
State now returns to Starkville for its home opener on Wednesday before hosting the Bulldog Kickoff Classic on the weekend.
Quick Hitters
Fa Leilua – Went 2-for-3 at the plate with two home runs … Game marked her 10th career three-RBI contest and 36th multi-RBI game … Fifth multi-homer game of her career.Anna Kate Segars – Made her first start of the year with a single and a double.
Madisyn Kennedy – Hit her first career home run with the game tied, 2-2, to bring home three runs … Scored twice.
Kiki Edwards – Pinch hit in the fourth and doubled home a run in her first career at-bat … Also scored a run in her MSU debut.
Brylie St. Clair – Pinch hit in the fourth and tripled on the first pitch she saw in her first career at-bat … Drove in a run and scored.
Aspen Wesley – Made her MSU debut in the circle, striking out five.
Kenley Hawk – Made her MSU debut, setting down the Hornets in order in 1.0 inning of work … Earned her first career win and registered her first career strikeout.
Next Woman Up – MSU batted around twice in the game in consecutive innings … Over the third and fourth innings, State sent 23 batters to the plate and collected 14 runs.
Home Sweet Home Runs – State hit four home runs, the most the Bulldogs have hit in a game since the final home game of the 2019 season against Missouri on April 28, 2019.
Scoring Recap
Bottom 1With two outs and nobody on base, Fa Leilua homered to center.
Alabama State 0, Mississippi State 1
Bottom 2
Madisyn Kennedy and Anna Kate Segars reached base on a pair of errors to open the inning. After a strikeout and a foul out, Lindsey Williams singled up the middle to bring home Kennedy.
Alabama State 0, Mississippi State 2
Top 3
With one out, Schylur Edwards walked and later advanced to second on a wild pitch. Kindall DeRamus singled, bringing home Edwards before advancing to second on the throw. Alexis Sydnor doubled to left bringing home DeRamus.
Alabama State 2, Mississippi State 2
Bottom 3
Mia Davidson led off with a single to left field. Chloe Malau'ulu singled up the middle with one out to advance her to second. Madisyn Kennedy then hit a three-run homer to left field. Anna Kate Segars and Montana Davidson each singled, and Jackie McKenna walked to load the bases. Lindsey Williams was then hit by pitch, bringing home Segars. Candace Denis reached on an error when the ball was thrown out of playing, allowing McKenna and Montana Davidson to score. Chloe Malau'ulu closed the scoring with a two-run single past the second baseman.
Alabama State 2, Mississippi State 10
Bottom 4
Anna Kate Segars led off with a single. Brylie St. Clair pinch hit and tripled to right field to score bring her home. Kiki Edwards then pinch hit with a double to left center scoring St. Clair from third. Lindsey Williams hit a two-run homer to left field. After Candace Denis singled, and Fa Leilua hit a two-run shot over the scoreboard.
Alabama State 2, Mississippi State 16
On Deck
MSU remains home to host the Bulldog Kickoff Classic on Feb. 14-16. State will welcome Tulsa, North Alabama and Tennessee State for two days of round robin play leading into a four-team bracket.Follow the Bulldogs
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Hawk, Kenley (1-0)
L: Bradford, Vanessa (0-3)
Batting:
2B: Sydnor, Alexis 1
RBI: DeRamus, Kindall 1 ; Sydnor, Alexis 1
SH: Sydnor, Alexis 1
Base Running:
RUNS: DeRamus, Kindall 1 ; Edwards, Schylur 1
SB: DeRamus, Kindall 1
Batting:
2B: Segars, Anna Kate 1 ; Edwards, Kiki 1
3B: St. Clair, Brylie 1
HR: Leilua, Fa 2 ; Kennedy, Madisyn 1 ; Williams, Lindsey 1
RBI: Denis, Candace 2 ; Leilua, Fa 3 ; Malau'ulu, Chloe 2 ; Kennedy, Madisyn 3 ; St. Clair, Brylie 1 ; Edwards, Kiki 1 ; Williams, Lindsey 4
Base Running:
RUNS: Denis, Candace 2 ; Davidson, Mia 1 ; Leilua, Fa 2 ; Malau'ulu, Chloe 1 ; Kennedy, Madisyn 2 ; Segars, Anna Kate 2 ; Davidson, Montana 1 ; St. Clair, Brylie 1 ; McKenna, Jackie 1 ; Edwards, Kiki 1 ; Williams, Lindsey 2
HBP: Leilua, Fa 1 ; Brownlee, Aquana 1 ; Williams, Lindsey 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
2
R
2
H
2
RBI
4
Players Mentioned
C/INF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
P/UTL
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
P/OF
/ Softball
SS/3B
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
C/3B
/ SoftballOF/1B
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballINF
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