Bulldog Pitching Showing Out In The Circle
February 14, 2024 | Softball
State has allowed only two earned runs through season’s first six games.
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State softball's pitching staff has lit the circle ablaze since the season began last Friday.
Over six games, State's staff has recorded 39 total strikeouts, walked just one batter, surrendered only two earned runs and – perhaps most impressively – pitched the first back-to-back no-hitters in program history when Josey Marron and Matalasi Faapito completed the feat in consecutive games over the weekend.
"Two no-hitters in the [first] four games was great and being able to see them back out there and having a fresh start [was too]," head coach Samantha Ricketts said about the best part of the Bulldogs' hot start. "This team has really been locked into the fact that every game is important. We aren't just waiting for SEC play or [the] postseason. We treat these opponents just like we would March or April."
Fifth-year senior Aspen Wesley got the Bulldogs' impressive opening week in the circle kicked off Friday evening by recording five strikeouts and allowing one hit through 4.0 innings pitched in the 11-0 victory over UAB.
Marron followed suit in State's second game on Friday with the 24th no-hitter in program history and the first since Annie Willis accomplished the feat in 2021. The sophomore from Grimes, Iowa, recorded nine strikeouts through 5.0 innings in the 8-0 win over IUPUI.
"You really try not to think about it, but it's hard not to getting later on into the game," Marron said. "Especially in that last inning, I was [focused on] locking in and focusing on one pitch at a time and go from there."
Since the season started, one noticeable component of State's staff is the chemistry and bond between all members of the Bulldogs' pitching staff. As their teammates stepped into the circle, the cheers coming from the fellow members of the bullpen were the loudest.
"Everyone in our bullpen this year is extremely good," Marron said. "All offseason we've been preparing for the season and pushing each other, competing and not comparing. They're the loudest voices in the dugout the entire game. My fellow bullpen members are all I hear throughout the entire game, so their support is huge."
After two impressive outings on Friday from Marron and Wesley, State was not finished making a statement in the circle.
In the 10-0 victory over IUPUI on Saturday afternoon, Faapito secured State back-to-back no-hitters by recording nine strikeouts through 5.0 innings of work.
Accomplishing historic program feats alongside her fellow bullpen members brought about an overwhelming amount of excitement for Faapito after throwing the second no-hitter of her collegiate career.
"It's been amazing," Faapito. "Our pitching group is such a big family [and] we trust each other. When I'm not out there, I know that I'm going to be the biggest cheerleader for the pitcher that is out there. I love this group, and I love Coach T [Taryne Mowatt-McKinney]."
UCLA transfer Lexi Sosa got the start for the Bulldogs in the last game of the weekend, and she wasted no time making her presence felt in the Maroon and White.
Sosa recorded four strikeouts through 5.0 innings in the 6-2 victory over UAB. The win over the Blazers is the first in Maroon and White for the newcomer from San Diego, California.
"[It] was really fun to get Lexi back out there," Ricketts said. "It's been a couple of years for her. She was a huge recruit out of high school and took a year off to get back. She's worked really hard for this moment. I'm very proud of her."
If all of this wasn't enough, State showed on Tuesday that the strong pitching it displayed over the weekend was no fluke. Facing No. 23 Louisiana in a doubleheader, Wesley and Marron combined to allow just one earned run over the course of the evening to lead the Dawgs to a sweep of the double-dip.
As a result, MSU's team earned run average now sits at a microscopic 0.40 through the year's first half-dozen contests. The Dawgs will attempt to keep it up south of the border this weekend as they travel to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, for the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge. State faces UC Davis and UC San Diego on Feb. 16 before playing No. 13/16 Utah and No. 5/7 Clemson on Feb. 17.
