Bulldogs Open SEC Play At No. 3 Florida

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Mississippi State softball closed the 2021 regular season on a seven-game winning streak in conference play. That run will be put to the test this weekend, when the Bulldogs head to No. 3 Florida to open SEC play on March 12-14.

Saturday's game time has been changed to a 3 p.m. CT first pitch due to forecasted inclement weather in Gainesville that morning. All three games will air nationally on SEC Network. Sunday's game will also start at 3 p.m., and Monday night's first pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.

In their last trip to Gainesville in 2019, MSU won the series on the final day of the regular season for its first series win in the swamp since 2004.

The Gators (21-1) are No. 4 in the latest NFCA Coaches' Poll. MSU has already played games against No. 1 Oklahoma and then-No. 3 UCLA. With No. 2 Alabama also on the schedule this spring, State has a chance to play games against Nos. 1-4 all in the same season for the first time.

Mississippi State (15-8) is coming off its 10th run-rule victory of the season, which is tied for the fourth-most in a single year in program history. State is led by Mia Davidson, who is leading the nation in total bases and is second nationally in both slugging percentage and home runs. She leads the SEC in all three categories.

Game Coverage

Leading Off

Let's Keep Streaking: The Bulldogs finished the 2021 regular season with seven consecutive victories in SEC play, which is tied with the 1999 season for the second-longest SEC winning streak in program history. That streak remains active entering this weekend.

Historic Homers: Mia Davidson became the 13th player in NCAA softball history to hit 80 career homers, which is tied with LSU's Eddy Furniss for the most in SEC baseball and softball history. Her career homers per game rate (0.349) is just a tick ahead of the NCAA softball career record holder, Stacey Nuveman (UCLA), who homered at a 0.341 rate.

Keeping It Clean: Davidson leads the nation in total bases and is second in home runs while ranking sixth in slugging percentage (1.098). She has a team-high 19 extra-base hits out of 26 total hits.

Have Mercy: 10 of MSU's 14 wins have come via run-rule, which is tied for the fourth-most in a season in school history and the most since 2018 (11).

Don't Try It: While State is not among the nation's leaders in runners caught stealing, the Bulldogs are tied for 10th in the NCAA with just six stolen bases allowed this season simply because runners aren't attempting many thefts.

Launching Pad: MSU is averaging 1.48 homers per game, which ranks 12th in the nation. With 55 regular-season games on the schedule, State is on pace for a school-record 81.4-homer season.The Bulldogs have hit at least one home run in every game they've won this season.

Lineup Log: Samantha Ricketts has reused a lineup card in just one game this season. In 23 games, she's used 21 different batting orders and 16 defensive alignments. Last year, she used 33 different batting orders and 16 different fielding alignments.

Substitute Shuffle: Ricketts is known for being creative with her flex and offensive player positions and is averaging using 14.5 players per game this season, the highest rate of her career.

About Florida (21-1, 0-0 SEC)

Rankings: NFCA Coaches – 4 | USA Softball – 4 | D1Softball – 3 | Softball America – 4
Head Coach: Tim Walton | Record at UF: 860-183 (17th Year) | Career Record: 983-247 (20th Year)
Batting Average: .372 | Runs Per Game: 7.9 | Hits Per Game: 9.8 | Slugging Pct: .548
ERA: 1.45 | K/7: 7.0 | K/BB Ratio: 2.0 | Opp. Batting Avg: .148

Series History
Overall: 21-42 | Home: 8-20 | Away: 10-20 | Neutral: 3-2
Current Streak: Lost 5 | Last Meeting: May 13, 2021 in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (MSU 2, UF 6)

About the Gators
In its last trip to Gainesville in 2019, MSU won the series for its first series win over the Gators since 2004. State has just two series victories in the swamp. With the Gators ranked No. 4 and No. 2 Alabama on the schedule, MSU has the chance to play each of the nation's top four teams in the same season. MSU already played No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 3 UCLA. Kendra Falby is riding the longest hitting streak by a freshman in UF history at 14 games. Skylar Wallace hit both an inside-the-park homer and left the yard in Sunday's doubleheader.

On Deck

Mississippi State will play its home SEC opener next week when the Bulldogs welcome Ole Miss to Nusz Park on March 18-20. The middle game of the series will feature MSU celebrating its 40th anniversary and recognizing the Ladies of the 80s.

Friday night's game will begin at 6 p.m. CT on SEC Network+. The Saturday game will be televised nationally on SEC Network at 4:30 p.m. The series finale is set for 12 p.m. on Sunday on SEC Network+.

Follow the Bulldogs

For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."

Bulldogs Open SEC Play At No. 3 Florida

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Players Mentioned

Mia Davidson

Mississippi State University Athletics

Bulldogs Open SEC Play At No. 3 Florida

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Mia Davidson

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