Friday, February 11
Irvine, Calif.
8:30 PM
Mississippi State
1-1
0
vs
9
#1 Oklahoma
3-0
1
2
3
4
5
R
H
E
Mississippi State
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
2
Oklahoma
2
3
2
2
X
9
8
2
Softball Falls To No. 1 Oklahoma
February 11, 2022 | Softball
IRVINE, Calif. – Mississippi State fell to the defending national champions on Friday night, dropping a five-inning game, 8-0 to No. 1 Oklahoma (3-0).
MSU (1-1) used four pitchers in the game. Matalasi Faapito and Kenley Hawk were the most effective. Faapito allowed one hit and an unearned run in 1.0 inning of relief work after coming on with a pair of runners on base. Hawk struck out a pair and allowed two unearned runs in one inning of work.
Mia Davidson paced the offense, reaching twice in three trips with a hit-by-pitch and a double. Davidson has now reached base in a career-best 22 straight games. Addison Purvis also drew a pair of walks, and Chloe Malau'ulu singled and took second on an errant throw.
"I thought we had good learning opportunities for a lot of the new players throughout that game," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "Playing against the best team in the country, that's what the goal is. We're looking to challenge ourselves, to get better and for them to learn and gain that experience going into SEC play. It was good to see some of the young ones get out there."
State had chances to strike early, but left runners on base in each inning, including runners on second and third in the first frame.
"I thought Mia did what she does best, and that's that she's consistent. She finds a way on base, whether it's a hit, a walk or an HBP. She's giving us a chance."
Samantha Ricketts on which pitcher showed her the most tonight…
"Just getting them innings against a challenging, powerful lineup was good experience for them and something they'll be able to grow from. I really liked what Kenley Hawk did. A couple of wild pitches and got a little wild there, but she came out and immediately attacked and did what she'd been showing us over the past year. I'm excited to get her some more innings moving forward. She provides a different look, and when she attacks the zone, she's a tough matchup."
Kenley Hawk – Came on to pitch in relief … it was first inning since May 1, 2021, at South Carolina … did not allow an earned run.
Chloe Malau'ulu – Singled for her second hit of the day included the season opener.
Dawg Debuts – Bri Bower made her first career start and her collegiate debut … Addison Purvis made her 2022 debut, making her first career start at first base.
Pitching Staff – In two games Friday, MSU used six pitchers … four of those pitchers did not allow an earned run … they combined for 15 strikeouts out of 33 total outs over the two games with just three walks.
Tiare Jennings beat out an infield single to open the frame. Jocelyn Alo then hit a two-run home run.
Mississippi State 0, Oklahoma 2
Bottom 2
Mackenzie Donihoo and Rylie Boone led off with back-to-back singles. Jennings then reached on an error by the shortstop that also allowed Donihoo to score from second. Kinzie Hansen singled to center and advanced on the throw as Boone came around to score. Jennings advanced to third on the play. Grace Lyons hit a sacrifice fly to center field to score Jennings.
Mississippi State 0, Oklahoma 5
Bottom 3
With two outs, Donihoo homered to left. Grace Green then pinch hit and also homered to left.
Mississippi State 0, Oklahoma 7
Bottom 4
With two outs, Lyons was hit by a pitch. She advanced to second and third on a pair of wild pitches. Hannah Coor pinch hit and walked. She took second on a wild pitch. With runners now on second and third, Lynnsie Elam hit a grounder to the shortstop, but was safe at first when the first baseman mishandled the throw. The error allowed by Lyons and Coor to score.
Mississippi State 0, Oklahoma 9
MSU (1-1) used four pitchers in the game. Matalasi Faapito and Kenley Hawk were the most effective. Faapito allowed one hit and an unearned run in 1.0 inning of relief work after coming on with a pair of runners on base. Hawk struck out a pair and allowed two unearned runs in one inning of work.
Mia Davidson paced the offense, reaching twice in three trips with a hit-by-pitch and a double. Davidson has now reached base in a career-best 22 straight games. Addison Purvis also drew a pair of walks, and Chloe Malau'ulu singled and took second on an errant throw.
"I thought we had good learning opportunities for a lot of the new players throughout that game," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "Playing against the best team in the country, that's what the goal is. We're looking to challenge ourselves, to get better and for them to learn and gain that experience going into SEC play. It was good to see some of the young ones get out there."
State had chances to strike early, but left runners on base in each inning, including runners on second and third in the first frame.
Quotables
Samantha Ricketts on Mia Davidson's reached-base streak…"I thought Mia did what she does best, and that's that she's consistent. She finds a way on base, whether it's a hit, a walk or an HBP. She's giving us a chance."
Samantha Ricketts on which pitcher showed her the most tonight…
"Just getting them innings against a challenging, powerful lineup was good experience for them and something they'll be able to grow from. I really liked what Kenley Hawk did. A couple of wild pitches and got a little wild there, but she came out and immediately attacked and did what she'd been showing us over the past year. I'm excited to get her some more innings moving forward. She provides a different look, and when she attacks the zone, she's a tough matchup."
Quick Hitters
Mia Davidson – Doubled and was hit by a pitch … extended her career-long reached-base streak to 22 games dating back to last season … went 3-for-4 on the day including the season opener with a pair of doubles and pair of hit-by-pitches.Kenley Hawk – Came on to pitch in relief … it was first inning since May 1, 2021, at South Carolina … did not allow an earned run.
Chloe Malau'ulu – Singled for her second hit of the day included the season opener.
Dawg Debuts – Bri Bower made her first career start and her collegiate debut … Addison Purvis made her 2022 debut, making her first career start at first base.
Pitching Staff – In two games Friday, MSU used six pitchers … four of those pitchers did not allow an earned run … they combined for 15 strikeouts out of 33 total outs over the two games with just three walks.
Scoring Recap
Bottom 1Tiare Jennings beat out an infield single to open the frame. Jocelyn Alo then hit a two-run home run.
Mississippi State 0, Oklahoma 2
Bottom 2
Mackenzie Donihoo and Rylie Boone led off with back-to-back singles. Jennings then reached on an error by the shortstop that also allowed Donihoo to score from second. Kinzie Hansen singled to center and advanced on the throw as Boone came around to score. Jennings advanced to third on the play. Grace Lyons hit a sacrifice fly to center field to score Jennings.
Mississippi State 0, Oklahoma 5
Bottom 3
With two outs, Donihoo homered to left. Grace Green then pinch hit and also homered to left.
Mississippi State 0, Oklahoma 7
Bottom 4
With two outs, Lyons was hit by a pitch. She advanced to second and third on a pair of wild pitches. Hannah Coor pinch hit and walked. She took second on a wild pitch. With runners now on second and third, Lynnsie Elam hit a grounder to the shortstop, but was safe at first when the first baseman mishandled the throw. The error allowed by Lyons and Coor to score.
Mississippi State 0, Oklahoma 9
On Deck
The Bulldogs will play No. 3 UCLA at Bill Barber Park on Saturday. First pitch is set for 3 p.m. CT, and the game will be broadcast by FloSports.Follow the Bulldogs
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: May, Nicole (1-0)
L: Bower, Bri (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Davidson, Mia 1
Base Running:
HBP: Davidson, Mia 1
Batting:
2B: Hansen, Kinzie 1
HR: Alo, Jocelyn 1 ; Donihoo, Mackenzie 1 ; Green, Grace 1
RBI: Alo, Jocelyn 2 ; Hansen, Kinzie 1 ; Lyons, Grace 1 ; Donihoo, Mackenzie 1 ; Green, Grace 1
SF: Lyons, Grace 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Jennings, Tiare 2 ; Alo, Jocelyn 1 ; Lyons, Grace 1 ; Coor, Hannah 1 ; Donihoo, Mackenzie 2 ; Boone, Rylie 1 ; Green, Grace 1
HBP: Lyons, Grace 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
2
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
lf/1b
AB
2
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C/INF
/ SoftballP/INF
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
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