The Snowman Returns To Starkville

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State will once again host The Snowman: Alex Wilcox Memorial tournament on March 3-5. This year's field features Dartmouth, Abilene Christian and Murray State.

The Bulldogs (12-4) have never played Dartmouth or ACU, and the last time they met the Racers, Wilcox was a member of the team. While she did not play against Murray State in 2018, the Racers were in Starkville for the previously-named February Freezer tournament that now bears her name. Wilcox did play in two games in that event.

Dartmouth will be just the second Ivy League team that MSU has ever played. The Bulldogs defeated Columbia, 12-4, in 2012.

Mississippi State is the winner of six straight and eight of its last 10 heading into the tournament. The Bulldogs are among the top 30 teams nationally in on-base percentage, scoring, walks, triples per game and strikeout-to-walk ratio.

All MSU games will be streamed on SEC Network+. Admission to all games at Nusz Park is free. Fans in attendance on Friday will receive teal Strike Out Cancer t-shirts. Wilcox passed away from her battle with ovarian cancer in the summer of 2018. Her courageous fight inspired the softball community nationwide, and she was the first female student-athlete in MSU history to have her jersey retired.

Additional promotions this weekend include Military Appreciation Day on Saturday and Faculty/Staff Appreciation Day on Sunday.

Game Coverage

Leading Off

Paige Power: Six Bulldogs have an OPS of 1.000 or better with Paige Cook leading the team at 1.186. Additionally, Cook is hitting .444 (8-for-18) with runners in scoring position and is currently riding a career-long eight-game hitting streak while batting .500 (11-for-22) in that span.

Brownlee Brings Them Home: Aquana Brownlee leads the team with 19 RBIs, which is 20th in the NCAA. She is second on the team in total bases (33).

Marron's Marks: Josey Marron tied the MSU freshman record with 13 strikeouts against Furman (Feb. 26) in her last outing. She is averaging 11.2 strikeouts per 7 innings, which is 19th in the NCAA and fifth in the SEC.

Josey Just Wins: Marron has won each of her first five career starts. She's also thrown three complete games, including one-hit shutouts against South Florida (2/19) and Furman (2/26).

Everybody Up!: State has now batted around in an inning six times this year. MSU's biggest inning of the year came against Indiana (2/17) when State sent 13 batters to the plate in the fourth.

Magic Number: MSU was 24-1 last season when the Bulldogs scored more than five runs. State has scored at least five in 11 of its 12 wins of 2023 and is 11-1 when doing so.

Free Pass: Riley Hull is tied for third in the SEC with 13 walks this year. As a team, State's 67 walks rank eighth nationally.

Lineup Log: Samantha Ricketts has yet to repeat the same lineup card through 16 games of the season. She has reused two defensive alignments but has not repeated a batting order.

Bulldog Bunts: The Bulldogs are 8-for-9 (.889) when bunting this season along with eight successful sacrifice bunts. Kiersten Landers is 2-for-2, and Brylie St. Clair is 6-for-6 when bunting.

About the Opponents

Dartmouth (3-2, 0-0 Ivy)
Rankings: NFCA Coaches – NR | USA Softball – NR | D1Softball – NR | Softball America – NR
Head coach: Jennifer Williams | at DART: 43-61 (5th Year) | Career: 211-183-1 (13th Year)
Batting Average: .277; Runs Per Game: 4.2; Hits Per Game: 5.8; Slugging Percentage: .328
ERA: 2.40; K/7: 5.2; K/BB Ratio: 1.2; Opp. Batting Avg: .241

Abilene Christian (4-12, 0-0 WAC)
Rankings: NFCA Coaches – NR | USA Softball – NR | D1Softball – NR | Softball America – NR
Head coach: Abigail Farler | at ACU: 50-88 (4th Year) | Career: 170-132 (7th Year)
Batting Average: .295; Runs Per Game: 4.9; Hits Per Game: 7.6; Slugging Percentage: .444
ERA: 7.52; K/7: 4.0; K/BB Ratio: 0.7; Opp. Batting Avg: .343

Murray State (8-6, 0-0 MVC)
Rankings: NFCA Coaches – 20 | USA Softball – 20 | D1Softball – 19 | Softball America – 18
Head coach: Cindy Ball-Malone | at UCF: 148-61-2 (5th Year) | Career: 247-177-2 (9th Year)
Batting Average: .346; Runs Per Game: 4.8; Hits Per Game: 9.3; Slugging Percentage: .523
ERA: 2.25; K/7: 9.0; K/BB Ratio: 2.0; Opp. Batting Avg: .179

On Deck

Mississippi State remains home next weekend to host the Bulldog Invitational. State will welcome Southeastern Louisiana, No. 1 Oklahoma, Omaha and East Tennessee State to Starkville over four days on March 9-12.

Follow the Bulldogs

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

The Snowman Returns To Starkville

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Aquana Brownlee

Paige Cook

Riley Hull

Kiersten Landers

Josey Marron

Brylie St. Clair

Mississippi State University Athletics

The Snowman Returns To Starkville

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Aquana Brownlee

Paige Cook

Riley Hull

Kiersten Landers

Josey Marron

Brylie St. Clair

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