Bulldogs Primed For Battle Against Sooners
March 09, 2023 | Softball
After State’s Thursday win, MSU and Oklahoma to square off this weekend.
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State softball has a massive opportunity coming up against the top-ranked Oklahoma Sooners during the Bulldog Invitational this weekend in Starkville.
The toughness of the Bulldogs shined in a 6-5 victory over Southeastern Louisiana in game one of the invitational Thursday night. Following the win, State head coach Samantha Ricketts discussed how the Bulldogs battled back to defeat a talented team in the opening game of the event.
"I thought we showed a lot of fight," Ricketts said. "We've had innings like [Southeastern Louisiana's three-run fifth] where things kind of get a little out of hand, but I thought we did a good job of limiting the damage."
The winning run in the sixth inning came from a sacrifice fly from senior outfielder Brylie St. Clair. As a veteran for the Bulldogs, St. Clair spoke to the media about the message to the team heading out of Thursday and into Friday's matchup against Oklahoma.
"[We are] coming in here tomorrow, just relaxed and confident, and know that we have the skills and the ability to do good and leave it all on the field," St. Clair said.
The reigning national champions will roll into Nusz Park with a 17-1 record and a talented roster, but the Bulldogs have a plethora of talented veterans and newcomers that are excited to come out and compete against the Sooners.
The Bulldogs dropped a tough game to Oklahoma in the Mark Campbell Invitational last season, but that was last year. MSU has grown since that last meeting and this year's squad certainly has the ability to compete with any team in the country.
With experience in big-time games, graduate transfer Kiersten Landers explained the main focus for the Bulldogs heading into this weekend's matchups against the Sooners.
"I think that it's just to have each other's backs," Landers said. "It's gonna be a tough game, and there's [going to be] ups and downs and everything. I feel like [our goal has to be] just being there for one another and being in each other's hip pockets and really making sure that we're just calm, cool and collected and play the game that we love."
The Bulldogs face Oklahoma Friday at 6 p.m. CT in the first of two highly-anticipated matchups against the Sooners. The two teams will meet again on Saturday at 3 p.m.
Ricketts said that her team is looking forward to the test that Oklahoma provides her club.
"We're excited for the challenge," Ricketts said. "We know that we have nothing to lose, and we get to play loose and we get to have fun and play our game which is what we do best. We're going to respect our opponent, we're going to play hard, play our game and understand that it's going to take a full team effort."
