State Makes 19th NCAA Tournament, Bound For Lubbock

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State's softball program will play in the NCAA Tournament for the seventh time in the last eight tournaments. The Bulldogs (37-17, 13-11 SEC) will start their road to Oklahoma City as the No. 2 seed in the Lubbock Regional.

MSU will open the double-elimination regional on Friday, May 16 at 7 p.m. CT against Washington at 7 p.m. CT at Rocky Johnson Field. Along with the Bulldogs and the Huskies, the Lubbock Regional features host Texas Tech, which earned the No. 12 overall national seed, and Brown. State met Texas Tech on Opening Day, defeating the Red Raiders, 3-1 in eight innings.

"We are excited texcited for the challenge ahead as we return to the postseason," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "Earning a spot in the NCAA Tournament is always special, and we're excited for the opportunity to compete in Lubbock. This team has battled all season, and we're ready to bring our fight to the postseason."

The Bulldogs' first game of the regional will air on ESPN2. Television assignments for the remaining games of the regional will be announced later this week.

The winner of the Lubbock Regional will advance to Super Regionals to face the winner of the Tallahassee Regional, hosted by No. 5 Florida State. Also competing in the Tallahassee Regional are Auburn, South Florida and Robert Morris.

The Bulldogs put together their first season finishing above .500 in conference play since 2001 despite being picked No. 13 in the SEC Coaches' Preseason Poll. MSU won 37 games in the regular season, matching their highest win total ever under Ricketts set in 2022 when they reached the Super Regionals. The Bulldogs won five SEC series in 2025 for the first time since 2007.

Along the way, Ricketts broke the program record for career ranked wins by a head coach at State with her 45th such victory. Twenty-five of her ranked wins have come in the last two years alone, and of MSU's 17 top-five wins in school history, she has coached the Bulldogs to five of them.

The Bulldogs are led by First Team All-SEC selection and AUSL College Draft fifth-overall pick Sierra Sacco and Second Team All-SEC members Raelin Chaffin and Nadia Barbary. Sacco ranks among the top 10 nationally in batting average. Chaffin was also taken in the AUSL College Draft and broke the program record with 10 wins in conference play, and Barbary was also tabbed to the SEC All-Defensive Team at third base.

State is making its 19th NCAA Tournament appearance. The Bulldogs have made 11 of the last 13 tournament fields, and all 19 appearances have come since 2000. In 2022, the Bulldogs reached the Super Regionals for the first time in program history, winning the Tallahassee Regional to earn the right to host the Starkville Super Regional.

Lubbock Regional Schedule (All Times Central)

Friday, May 16
Game 1: No. 12 Texas Tech vs. Brown – 4:30 p.m.
Game 2: Mississippi State vs. Washington – 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 17
Game 3: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner – 1 p.m.
Game 4: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser – 3:30 p.m.
Game 5: Game 3 Loser vs. Game 4 Winner – 6 p.m.

Sunday, May 18
Game 6: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner – 2 p.m.
Game 7: If Necessary – 4:30 p.m.

About the Lubbock Regional Field

No. 12 Texas Tech (45-12, 20-4 Big 12)
Series History: 3-1 overall, First meeting in Lubbock
Last Meeting: Feb. 7, 2025, in Clearwater, Fla. (MSU 3, TTU 1 [8 inn.])
Current Streak: Mississippi State won 3

Washington (34-17, 12-9 Big Ten)
Series History: 1-7 overall, 1-4 at neutral sites
Last Meeting: May 19, 2019, in Seattle, Wash. (MSU 0, UW 8)
Current Streak: Washington won 5

Brown (33-15, 13-8 Ivy)
Series History: First Meeting

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

Mississippi State University Athletics

State Makes 19th NCAA Tournament, Bound For Lubbock

Players Mentioned

Nadia Barbary

Raelin Chaffin

Sierra Sacco

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