Saturday, February 22
Huntsville, Ala.
12:30 p.m.
Mississippi State
11-1
10
vs
1
Louisiana Tech
6-6
1
2
3
4
5
R
H
E
Louisiana Tech
0
0
0
0
1
1
2
0
Mississippi State
1
5
4
0
X
10
8
0
Bulldogs Open Rocket City Showcase With Pair of Victories
February 22, 2025 | Softball
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – No. 17 Mississippi State opened the Rocket City Softball Showcase on Saturday with a pair of victories over Louisiana Tech and North Alabama.
Sierra Sacco was the star of the day's first game, driving in a career-high five RBIs and hitting two homers, including a grand slam, against her former team. Local product Morgan Stiles drove in two runs in the return to her home state as the Bulldogs cruised to a 10-1 victory over Louisiana Tech (6-6) in five innings.
The nightcap was driven by Nadia Barbary's two RBIs. Sacco scored three times, reaching in every trip to the plate, with an RBI double to her credit. Meanwhile, Riley Hull also scored twice as State beat North Alabama, 6-2.
"The message has been to just continue to play our game no matter who the opponent is week in and week out, and I thought we set the tone staying aggressive and on the attack," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "Sierra set the tone on the first pitch she saw. I really liked to see that out of us in Game 1. Hopefully, that's the way we continue to play throughout the weekend."
In the circle, Raelin Chaffin cruised against Louisiana Tech, striking out the final eight batters she faced in order. She went 4.0 innings, allowing just one hit and striking out nine to earn her seventh straight victory. Delainey Everett earned the win against the Lions (6-6) after throwing 3.0 scoreless innings in relief.
"Sierra is one of the best hitters in the country, just one of the best overall players. I don't think she gets enough credit for what she's able to do. When she's able to stand in, she can beat you over your head, beat you in front. She has all the tools you need to be elite at this level. It's fun to see her grow year after year, and even as a senior add to her game. Her confidence and her ability to set the tone for us and pick up RBIs is huge."
Sierra Sacco on facing her former team and hitting a grand slam...
"I knew going against them would be a good matchup. From me, I was just focused on getting a good pitch that I could drive because that's what I've been working on in the cages. For me it was just about getting a good pitch to hit, and I did. I knew she had just thrown four balls to the previous batter, so I was going to make her throw me one. That got it to 2-1 and then I was just thinking hit something hard and low and it ended up going out of the park. Those aren't always planned, but it ends up working out sometimes. That's nice."
Samantha Ricketts on Delainey Everett's mentality...
"She's a competitor, and you know every time she's out there, she's going to bring the velocity. She's going to attack. She's not afraid. I thought the defense did a great job behind her of having her back."
Morgan Bernardini – Went 2-for-2 with two runs scored and an RBI against Louisiana Tech.
Raelin Chaffin – Struck out the final eight batters she faced … earned her seventh consecutive victory, the longest streak to open an MSU career in the program's modern era (since 1997) … struck out nine of the 13 batters she faced in 4.0 innings and allowed just one hit.
Kylee Edwards – Singled, walked and scored twice against Louisiana Tech … stole home against the Bulldogs.
Delainey Everett – Earned the win against North Alabama with 3.0 scoreless innings in relief.
Riley Hull – Singled, walked and scored twice against North Alabama.
Josey Marron – Recorded her 200th career strikeout … threw 4.0 innings.
Sierra Sacco – Hit her first home run of the season and third of her career … followed that with the 56th grand slam in school history and State's second of the year … was 2-for-3 with a career-high five RBIs against her former team … also stole a base against Louisiana Tech … reached in every plate appearance against North Alabama with an RBI double and three walks … scored three times.
Lexi Sosa – Extended her hitting streak to a career-long four games with her third double of the season against Louisiana Tech.
Morgan Stiles – Drove in two runs with a walk and a sacrifice fly against Louisiana Tech.
Sierra Sacco homered to right-center field to lead off the inning.
Louisiana Tech 0, No. 17 Mississippi State 1
Bottom 2
Jessie Blaine led off the inning with a single to right field. Morgan Bernardini moved Blaine to third with a single into right-center field, and Bernardini advanced to second on the throw. Kylee Edwards drew a walk to load the bases. Riley Hull reached first on a fielder's choice that saw Blaine thrown out at the plate. Morgan Stiles walked, scoring Bernardini before Sacco hit a grand slam to center field.
Louisiana Tech 0, No. 17 Mississippi State 6
Bottom 3
Lexi Sosa doubled to left-center field, and Kalani Sells pinch ran. Blaine walked, and Sells advanced on a wild pitch. Sells then scored on a wild pitch and Blaine took second. Gretta Grassel entered as a pinch runner for Blaine on second. Bernardini drove in Grassel with a single into left field before Edwards singled to right field and advanced Bernardini to second. Hull singled to left field to load the bases. Stiles scored Bernardini with a sacrifice fly to left. Sacco reached on a fielder's choice that saw Hull thrown out at second but advanced Edwards to third. Sacco and Edwards executed a double steal, allowing Edwards to come home.
Louisiana Tech 0, No. 17 Mississippi State 10
Top 5
Karolyn Glover hit a solo homer to left field.
Louisiana Tech 1, No. 17 Mississippi State 10
Natalie Shaw singled to shortstop. Shaw advanced to second on Gyvan Hammons' ground out. Briley Dover walked, and Katie Davis entered as a pinch runner for Shaw. Hailey Jones drove in both runners with a double down the right field line.
North Alabama 2. No. 17 Mississippi State 0
Bottom 3
Riley Hull drew a leadoff walk. Xiane Romero bunted Hull to second where she scored on Sierra Sacco's double to right field. Nadia Barbary singled to right, and Sacco moved to third. Kiarra Sells brought her home with a ground ball that saw Barbary thrown out at second.
North Alabama 2, No. 17 Mississippi State 2
Bottom 5
Sacco drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Barbary reached first and Sacco scored from second on an error by the second baseman.
North Alabama 2, No. 17 Mississippi State 3
Bottom 6
With one out, Edwards walked. She advanced to second from Hull's single through the left side. Hull and Edwards moved up on back-to-back wild pitches, scoring Edwards and pushing Hull to third. Sacco walked and stole second. Barbary scored Edwards and Sacco with a double down the left field line.
North Alabama 2, No. 17 Mississippi State 6
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
Sierra Sacco was the star of the day's first game, driving in a career-high five RBIs and hitting two homers, including a grand slam, against her former team. Local product Morgan Stiles drove in two runs in the return to her home state as the Bulldogs cruised to a 10-1 victory over Louisiana Tech (6-6) in five innings.
The nightcap was driven by Nadia Barbary's two RBIs. Sacco scored three times, reaching in every trip to the plate, with an RBI double to her credit. Meanwhile, Riley Hull also scored twice as State beat North Alabama, 6-2.
"The message has been to just continue to play our game no matter who the opponent is week in and week out, and I thought we set the tone staying aggressive and on the attack," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "Sierra set the tone on the first pitch she saw. I really liked to see that out of us in Game 1. Hopefully, that's the way we continue to play throughout the weekend."
In the circle, Raelin Chaffin cruised against Louisiana Tech, striking out the final eight batters she faced in order. She went 4.0 innings, allowing just one hit and striking out nine to earn her seventh straight victory. Delainey Everett earned the win against the Lions (6-6) after throwing 3.0 scoreless innings in relief.
Quotables
Samantha Ricketts on Sierra Sacco's shift to standing in instead of slapping this year..."Sierra is one of the best hitters in the country, just one of the best overall players. I don't think she gets enough credit for what she's able to do. When she's able to stand in, she can beat you over your head, beat you in front. She has all the tools you need to be elite at this level. It's fun to see her grow year after year, and even as a senior add to her game. Her confidence and her ability to set the tone for us and pick up RBIs is huge."
Sierra Sacco on facing her former team and hitting a grand slam...
"I knew going against them would be a good matchup. From me, I was just focused on getting a good pitch that I could drive because that's what I've been working on in the cages. For me it was just about getting a good pitch to hit, and I did. I knew she had just thrown four balls to the previous batter, so I was going to make her throw me one. That got it to 2-1 and then I was just thinking hit something hard and low and it ended up going out of the park. Those aren't always planned, but it ends up working out sometimes. That's nice."
Samantha Ricketts on Delainey Everett's mentality...
"She's a competitor, and you know every time she's out there, she's going to bring the velocity. She's going to attack. She's not afraid. I thought the defense did a great job behind her of having her back."
Quick Hitters
Nadia Barbary – Drove in two runs with a single and a double against North Alabama.Morgan Bernardini – Went 2-for-2 with two runs scored and an RBI against Louisiana Tech.
Raelin Chaffin – Struck out the final eight batters she faced … earned her seventh consecutive victory, the longest streak to open an MSU career in the program's modern era (since 1997) … struck out nine of the 13 batters she faced in 4.0 innings and allowed just one hit.
Kylee Edwards – Singled, walked and scored twice against Louisiana Tech … stole home against the Bulldogs.
Delainey Everett – Earned the win against North Alabama with 3.0 scoreless innings in relief.
Riley Hull – Singled, walked and scored twice against North Alabama.
Josey Marron – Recorded her 200th career strikeout … threw 4.0 innings.
Sierra Sacco – Hit her first home run of the season and third of her career … followed that with the 56th grand slam in school history and State's second of the year … was 2-for-3 with a career-high five RBIs against her former team … also stole a base against Louisiana Tech … reached in every plate appearance against North Alabama with an RBI double and three walks … scored three times.
Lexi Sosa – Extended her hitting streak to a career-long four games with her third double of the season against Louisiana Tech.
Morgan Stiles – Drove in two runs with a walk and a sacrifice fly against Louisiana Tech.
Scoring Recap vs. Louisiana Tech
Bottom 1Sierra Sacco homered to right-center field to lead off the inning.
Louisiana Tech 0, No. 17 Mississippi State 1
Bottom 2
Jessie Blaine led off the inning with a single to right field. Morgan Bernardini moved Blaine to third with a single into right-center field, and Bernardini advanced to second on the throw. Kylee Edwards drew a walk to load the bases. Riley Hull reached first on a fielder's choice that saw Blaine thrown out at the plate. Morgan Stiles walked, scoring Bernardini before Sacco hit a grand slam to center field.
Louisiana Tech 0, No. 17 Mississippi State 6
Bottom 3
Lexi Sosa doubled to left-center field, and Kalani Sells pinch ran. Blaine walked, and Sells advanced on a wild pitch. Sells then scored on a wild pitch and Blaine took second. Gretta Grassel entered as a pinch runner for Blaine on second. Bernardini drove in Grassel with a single into left field before Edwards singled to right field and advanced Bernardini to second. Hull singled to left field to load the bases. Stiles scored Bernardini with a sacrifice fly to left. Sacco reached on a fielder's choice that saw Hull thrown out at second but advanced Edwards to third. Sacco and Edwards executed a double steal, allowing Edwards to come home.
Louisiana Tech 0, No. 17 Mississippi State 10
Top 5
Karolyn Glover hit a solo homer to left field.
Louisiana Tech 1, No. 17 Mississippi State 10
Scoring Recap vs. North Alabama
Top 3Natalie Shaw singled to shortstop. Shaw advanced to second on Gyvan Hammons' ground out. Briley Dover walked, and Katie Davis entered as a pinch runner for Shaw. Hailey Jones drove in both runners with a double down the right field line.
North Alabama 2. No. 17 Mississippi State 0
Bottom 3
Riley Hull drew a leadoff walk. Xiane Romero bunted Hull to second where she scored on Sierra Sacco's double to right field. Nadia Barbary singled to right, and Sacco moved to third. Kiarra Sells brought her home with a ground ball that saw Barbary thrown out at second.
North Alabama 2, No. 17 Mississippi State 2
Bottom 5
Sacco drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Barbary reached first and Sacco scored from second on an error by the second baseman.
North Alabama 2, No. 17 Mississippi State 3
Bottom 6
With one out, Edwards walked. She advanced to second from Hull's single through the left side. Hull and Edwards moved up on back-to-back wild pitches, scoring Edwards and pushing Hull to third. Sacco walked and stole second. Barbary scored Edwards and Sacco with a double down the left field line.
North Alabama 2, No. 17 Mississippi State 6
Next Up
Mississippi State will play Jacksonville State at 10 a.m. CT on Sunday at UAH Charger Park before crossing town to meet Miami (Ohio) at 12:30 p.m. at Toyota Field.For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Everett, Delainey (2-0)
L: Emily Simon (3-2)
Batting:
2B: Hailey Jones 2
RBI: Hailey Jones 2
SH: Gyvan Hammons 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Briley Dover 1 ; Katie Davis 1
SB: Briley Dover 1
HBP: Briley Dover 1
PO: Jorga Roberson 1
Batting:
2B: Sacco, Sierra 1 ; Barbary, Nadia 1
RBI: Sacco, Sierra 1 ; Barbary, Nadia 2 ; Sells, Kiarra 1
SH: Romero, Xiane 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Sacco, Sierra 3 ; Edwards, Kylee 1 ; Hull, Riley 2
SB: Sacco, Sierra 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
2
AB
1
R
3
H
1
RBI
1
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
1
AB
2
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
INF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
C/OF
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
INF
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
INF
/ SoftballSOFTBALL | Postgame Press Conference vs. Washington
Saturday, May 17
SOFTBALL | Postgame Press Conference vs. Texas Tech
Saturday, May 17
SOFTBALL | Raelin Chaffin ESPN2 Postgame Interview
Saturday, May 17
SOFTBALL | Postgame Press Conference vs. Washington
Friday, May 16