Bulldogs Break From Conference Play For Series At Northwestern

EVANSTON, Ill. – No. 18 Mississippi State softball will meet Northwestern for the first-time in program history this weekend when the Bulldogs and Wildcats play three games over two days.

The series begins with a nationally-televised game on Big Ten Network on Friday at 2:30 p.m. CT. Fans can also stream the game on the FOX Sports app. The series will continue to Saturday with a doubleheader that will see both games broadcast on B1G+.

The Bulldogs are 9-0 in first meetings with programs since 2023. MSU will look to extend that streak this weekend against the Wildcats. MSU is also 3-1 on its current season-long eight-game road trip.

State's pitching staff is led by two of the nation's top arms. Raelin Chaffin leads the nation with 14 wins, and her 1.32 ERA ranks 21st nationally. Meanwhile, Delainey Everett is No. 13 in the nation with a 1.13 ERA. Sierra Sacco is among the nation's top 10 offensively in batting average (.500; 8th), on-base percentage (.617; 4th) and hits (44; 9th).

Game Coverage

Leading Off

Taking Down Top Teams: Samantha Ricketts now boasts 41 victories against NFCA-ranked opponents in her coaching career, which ranks second all-time at Mississippi State. She is three away from tying to program record.

Sierra Sets the Table: One of the best hitters in the nation, Sierra Sacco is riding a career-long 28-game reached-base streak and 15-game hitting streak. She is among the top 10 nationally in batting average (8th), hits (9th), on-base percentage (4th) and runs (10th). Her .708 on-base percentage in conference games leads the SEC, and her SEC-only batting average (.588) is second in the league. MSU is 52-8 when scores a run.

Winner Winner: Raelin Chaffin leads the nation with 14 wins, which includes four of MSU's five wins in conference play. The only SEC game where she did not record a win, she earned the save in relief. State is 12-1 in her starts this year.

Keep It Clean: State's .968 fielding percentage would be its highest in a season since 2014 (.976). Sierra Sacco has not made an error since the 2023 season, going 188 straight chances error-free, and Jessie Blaine has recorded 199 chances dating back to last season without an error. Blaine is looking to become just the sixth player in program history with a 200-chance errorless streak.

Where Are You Going?: Bulldog catchers have dominated opposing team's running games. Jessie Blaine and Ella Wesolowski have combined to pick off five runners while all other SEC teams combined have six pickoffs. Blaine has also caught three runners stealing, and Wesolowski has one. The duo are both tied for third in school history with four career pickoffs.

Call The Bomb Squad: State's 41 long balls rank 18th nationally. MSU has scored 83 runs on homers this year, which accounts for 39.7 percent of its runs.

Magic Number: The Bulldogs have scored five or more runs in 70 of State's 87 wins (80.5 percent) over the past three seasons, and they are 140-15 under Samantha Ricketts when scoring at least five.

About Northwestern (13-9, 4-0 Big Ten)

Series History

Overall: First Meeting | Home: N/A | Away: N/A | Neutral: N/A
Current Streak: N/A

Notables

Northwestern, winner of seven straight, is coming off a 4-0 sweep of the Big Ten's opening weekend at Devon Park in Oklahoma City. The Wildcats defeated Penn State and Michigan State twice each, by a combined score of 40-18. The 'Cats scored a run in 20-of-26 innings last weekend, including a 14 straight frames. Their seven-game winning streak is currently the second-longest among all Big Ten teams, trailing only UCLA. During the streak, the Wildcats are averaging 9.14 runs as a team while holding opponents to an average of 3.57 runs. The Wildcats have now won 18-consecutive Big Ten series, dating back to the start of the 2023 season.

On Deck

The Bulldogs will take an in-state trip to Southern Miss next week on March 26. First pitch against is set for 6 p.m. CT. From there, State will return home to host No. 2 Texas for a three-game series beginning March 28.

Follow the Bulldogs

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

Bulldogs Break From Conference Play For Series At Northwestern

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jessie Blaine

Raelin Chaffin

Delainey Everett

Sierra Sacco

Ella Wesolowski

Mississippi State University Athletics

Bulldogs Break From Conference Play For Series At Northwestern

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jessie Blaine

Raelin Chaffin

Delainey Everett

Sierra Sacco

Ella Wesolowski

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