Bulldogs Head To No. 15 LSU For All For Alex Weekend

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State softball will head to No. 15 LSU on April 21-23 to begin the final stretch of the regular season. The Bulldogs played their final non-conference game on Wednesday night and now face three final SEC series against teams that are all ranked in the NFCA Top 25.

This weekend is a special one for State as it marks the first time that the Bulldogs and Tigers will meet during All for Alex weekend. The SEC-wide initiative was created by MSU head coach Samantha Ricketts and LSU head coach Beth Torina. The first edition was scheduled for State's planned trip to Baton Rouge in 2020 before the conference season was canceled.

Alex Wilcox was a member of MSU's 2018 softball team before passing away from ovarian cancer. Torina's mother is an 11-year survivor of the disease, leading the Tiger head coach to found the Geaux Teal Foundation. MSU players and staff will participate in the annual Geaux Teal Walk ahead of Saturday's nationally-televised game.

MSU and LSU met four times in the span of five days last spring, closing the regular season with a three-game set before opening the SEC Tournament against each other. The teams split those contests with State winning the regular-season finale and SEC Tournament game.

Game Coverage

Leading Off

Barbary Building: Nadia Barbary leads the team with nine hits in the last 11 games, which has also accounted for more than a third of her season hits total (23).

Milestone Markers: The next home run for Paige Cook, Chloe Malau'ulu and Madisyn Kennedy will be the 20th of their careers and put them in the MSU career top 10. Grace Fagan is six career strikeouts shy of 200.

Paige Power: Paige Cook leads the team in slugging percentage (.602), home runs (8), total bases (65) and RBIs (32). She is second in batting average (.315) by just four points.

Off The Bench: Samantha Ricketts used a school-record 21 players in State's last game against Memphis (4/19).

All For Alex: The SEC will be united in wearing teal or teal accents on Saturday to honor the late Alex Wilcox who played at MSU and passed away from ovarian cancer in 2018.

Taking On Top Teams: Every remaining SEC opponent on State's schedule is currently ranked, and if they stay so through their contests with MSU, the Bulldogs are on track to play 25 regular-season games against ranked teams in 2023. That would break the MSU regular season record set in 2017 by one game.

Pitching Coach's Prowess: Since Josh Johnson arrived at MSU in 2020, the Bulldogs rank fifth nationally with 1,400 strikeouts, behind only Alabama (1,469) in the SEC.

FIP-Ping Out: Aspen Wesley (1.18) and Josey Marron (1.20) rank Nos. 10 and 11 nationally in fielding-independent pitching, which estimates a pitcher's ERA without the results of balls put in play.

Disciplined Dawgs: MSU has struck out just 72 times in conference play, which is the fewest in the SEC, despite having already faced two of the top three pitching staffs in strikeouts.

About LSU (34-11, 7-8 SEC)

Rankings: NFCA Coaches – 15 | USA Softball – 15 | D1Softball – 14 | Softball America – 18
Head Coach: Beth Torina | Record at LSU: 613-325 (16th Year) | Career Record: 484-214 (12th Year)
Batting Average: .311 | Runs Per Game: 5.4 | Hits Per Game: 8.1 | Slugging Pct: .462
ERA: 1.98 | K/7: 6.0 | K/BB Ratio: 2.4 | Opp. Batting Avg: .213

Series History
Overall: 12-62 | Home: 9-31 | Away: 2-29 | Neutral: 1-2
Current Streak: Won 2 | Last Meeting: May 11, 2022 in Gainesville, Fla. (MSU 7, LSU 4 [9 inn.])

About the Tigers
The Tigers are No. 5 in the lastest RPI with the No. 3 strength of schedule in the country. LSU has 11 shutouts this year, which ranks No. 25 nationally. The Tigers are also 25th in fielding percentage and just outside the top 25 in batting average. LSU is eighth in the country with 164 walks. Their defense has turned 20 double plays, which is second in the SEC. Danieca Coffey leads the conference and is 12th nationally in hits. Her batting average and on-base percentage are both top 10 in the SEC. Two Tigers are among the SEC's top 10 in ERA.

On Deck

State's final home series is set for April 28-30 against No. 20 Kentucky. On Friday, MSU will play at home for the first time on April 28 since the passing of Alex Wilcox and the creation of the annual 4:28 Wall Sit Challenge in her honor. Fans will be able to participate at the game, which starts at 6 p.m. CT. The Bulldogs will celebrate their senior class before Saturday's 4 p.m. game on SEC Network. Samoan Day closes the home schedule on Sunday at 12 p.m.

Follow the Bulldogs

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

Bulldogs Head To No. 15 LSU For All For Alex Weekend

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Nadia Barbary

Paige Cook

Grace Fagan

Madisyn Kennedy

Chloe Malau'ulu

Josey Marron

Aspen Wesley

Mississippi State University Athletics

Bulldogs Head To No. 15 LSU For All For Alex Weekend

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Nadia Barbary

Paige Cook

Grace Fagan

Madisyn Kennedy

Chloe Malau'ulu

Josey Marron

Aspen Wesley

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