Wednesday, March 31
Hattiesburg, Miss.
6:00 PM
Mississippi State
at
Southern Miss
Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics
In-State Foe Southern Miss On Tap For Midweek Tilt
March 30, 2021 | Softball
STARKVILLE – The longest road stretch of the season continues for Mississippi State softball on Wednesday, when the Bulldogs head to Hattiesburg for an in-state contest. MSU will play at Southern Miss at 6 p.m. CT, and the game will stream for free on C-USA TV.
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The Bulldogs (15-14, 0-9 SEC) have returned to form, scoring 10 runs over their last two games. Fa Leilua and Mia Davidson have begun to heat up with both homering over the weekend. Leilua leads the team in on-base percentage over the last 10 games while Davidson is slugging .538 in that span.
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Davidson continues her run at the MSU career home run title for both baseball and softball. There are only two legendary student-athletes left that have outslugged her. The senior is one homer shy of Will Clark's 61, and she needs seven to match Rafael Palmeiro (67) for the all-time record.
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A pair of sophomores has helped spark the State lineup in recent weeks. Brylie St. Clair started every game at Arkansas this weekend and is hitting .318 on the year, which ranks fourth on the team. Paige Cook is the fifth Bulldog batting above .300 with a .306 mark that improves to a team-leading .333 in SEC play.
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Thunder Rolling In: Mia Davidson is tied for eighth in SEC history with 60 career home runs. She is one away from Will Clark's mark (61) and seven away from Rafael Palmeiro (67) in her quest to become MSU's all-time home run queen in baseball and softball.
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Going For Extra Bases: 16 of Davidson's 20 hits have gone for extra bases. Fa Leilua has gotten extra bases on 13 of her 27 hits.
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Favorite Frame: The sixth inning is MSU's best inning, producing its highest batting average (.355) and slugging percentage (.582) and its lowest ERA (0.58) and opponents' average (.195) of any frame.
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Sophomore Spark: Brylie St. Clair (.333) and Paige Cook (.321) are leading the team in batting average over the last 10 games. They also lead the team in SEC play.
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Shuffling The Squad: Samantha Ricketts has used 19 different batting lineups and 11 different fielding alignments this season. The Bulldogs have repeated three combinations a total of 11 times but have used a unique lineup in each of their last eight games.
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In The Hit Column: MSU has outhit the opponent in 21 of its 29 games, including two of three games in its last series at then-No. 15/15 Arkansas.
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Who's Hot: Leilua is batting .417 (5-for-12) over the last five games while slugging .667. In the last 10 games, she leads the team with a .484 on-base percentage. Chloe Malau'ulu is batting .417 (5-for-12) with runners on base over the last 10 contests.
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Rankings: NFCA Coaches - NR | USA Softball - NR | Softball America – NR | D1Softball - NR
Head Coach: Brian Levin | Record at USM: 32-19 (2nd Year) | Career Record: 372-172 (11th Year)
Batting Average: .245; Runs Per Game: 4.0; Hits Per Game: 6.2; Slugging Pct: .372
ERA: 2.16; K/7: 7.9; K/BB Ratio: 3.0; Opp. Batting Avg: .228
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The Bulldogs (15-14, 0-9 SEC) have returned to form, scoring 10 runs over their last two games. Fa Leilua and Mia Davidson have begun to heat up with both homering over the weekend. Leilua leads the team in on-base percentage over the last 10 games while Davidson is slugging .538 in that span.
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Davidson continues her run at the MSU career home run title for both baseball and softball. There are only two legendary student-athletes left that have outslugged her. The senior is one homer shy of Will Clark's 61, and she needs seven to match Rafael Palmeiro (67) for the all-time record.
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A pair of sophomores has helped spark the State lineup in recent weeks. Brylie St. Clair started every game at Arkansas this weekend and is hitting .318 on the year, which ranks fourth on the team. Paige Cook is the fifth Bulldog batting above .300 with a .306 mark that improves to a team-leading .333 in SEC play.
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Leading Off
Through The Gauntlet: MSU has played one of the toughest schedules in the country, with its past opponents combining for a .696 winning percentage, which ranks sixth in the NCAA. 11 of MSU's 14 losses came to teams that are ranked or receiving votes in the latest NFCA poll.Â
Thunder Rolling In: Mia Davidson is tied for eighth in SEC history with 60 career home runs. She is one away from Will Clark's mark (61) and seven away from Rafael Palmeiro (67) in her quest to become MSU's all-time home run queen in baseball and softball.
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Going For Extra Bases: 16 of Davidson's 20 hits have gone for extra bases. Fa Leilua has gotten extra bases on 13 of her 27 hits.
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Favorite Frame: The sixth inning is MSU's best inning, producing its highest batting average (.355) and slugging percentage (.582) and its lowest ERA (0.58) and opponents' average (.195) of any frame.
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Sophomore Spark: Brylie St. Clair (.333) and Paige Cook (.321) are leading the team in batting average over the last 10 games. They also lead the team in SEC play.
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Shuffling The Squad: Samantha Ricketts has used 19 different batting lineups and 11 different fielding alignments this season. The Bulldogs have repeated three combinations a total of 11 times but have used a unique lineup in each of their last eight games.
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In The Hit Column: MSU has outhit the opponent in 21 of its 29 games, including two of three games in its last series at then-No. 15/15 Arkansas.
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Who's Hot: Leilua is batting .417 (5-for-12) over the last five games while slugging .667. In the last 10 games, she leads the team with a .484 on-base percentage. Chloe Malau'ulu is batting .417 (5-for-12) with runners on base over the last 10 contests.
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About Southern Miss
The Golden Eagles are coming off a seven-day break after losing at Ole Miss last Wednesday, 4-1. Prior to that game they had won six of their last seven. The pitching staff ranks 40th nationally in ERA, and Morgan Leinstock leads the nation as one of five pitchers with four saves. Kaylan Ladner is 8-1 with a 1.32 ERA. USM leads C-USA and is ninth nationally, drawing 104 walks as a team. Destini Brown leads C-USA in runs (29) and is third in triples (3). Meanwhile, Alyssa Davis leads the league in hits (31) and RBIs (22).Â
Rankings: NFCA Coaches - NR | USA Softball - NR | Softball America – NR | D1Softball - NR
Head Coach: Brian Levin | Record at USM: 32-19 (2nd Year) | Career Record: 372-172 (11th Year)
Batting Average: .245; Runs Per Game: 4.0; Hits Per Game: 6.2; Slugging Pct: .372
ERA: 2.16; K/7: 7.9; K/BB Ratio: 3.0; Opp. Batting Avg: .228
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On Deck
The Bulldogs remain on a lengthy road stretch this weekend but will not return to SEC play. Instead, State will travel to North Alabama on Saturday, April 3 for a double header. Game 1 is set to begin at 1 p.m. CT.Â
Follow the Bulldogs
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."Â
Players Mentioned
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