Stiles Leads State To Sweep On First Day Of The Snowman

Friday, February 13

Starkville

12:30 p.m.

Mississippi State

6-0

Murray State

3-4

Murray State

Mississippi State

Stiles Leads State To Sweep On First Day Of The Snowman

February 13, 2026 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Game 1 Box Score (PDF)Game 2 Box Score (PDF)Photo Gallery Photo Gallery 2

By: Brian Ogden, Director/Communications

STARKVILLE – Morgan Stiles led the way out of the leadoff spot as No. 19 Mississippi State opened The Snowman: Alex Wilcox Memorial presented by Newk's Eatery with a pair of run-rule wins.

State (7-0) defeated Murray State, 9-1, in five innings, and finished off Rutgers, 8-0, in six frames. Stiles was 6-for-7 on the day with a pair of doubles. She is now hitting .583 for the season with a 1.547 OPS.

"I really liked how we came out and scored first in both games. I think that's something that's always the focus for us, trying to find a way to get on the board first and give our pitchers a little bit of a cushion," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "Two great games in the circle from Alyssa Faircloth and Peja Goold. They just did a great job commanding the zone all game long and mixing their speeds and pitches, so like the start there. I thought another game with solid defense behind them and the offense found ways to score early and score late. I thought we did a good job of playing two complete games."

Paige Ernstes produced her first multi-RBI game of the year against the Racers (3-4) with a single and a sacrifice fly. Tatum Silva recorded her first career hit and multi-RBI game in the Maroon and White by plating a pair on a double.

In the second game, Stiles went 4-for-4 with two doubles and scored three times which are all career bests. Kiarra Sells produced a two-run home run, and Nadia Barbary registered her third multi-RBI game of the season.

In the circle, State saw two pitchers toss complete games. Alyssa Faircloth started against Murray State, striking out nine batters while allowing just two hits. Peja Goold tossed her second one-hitter of year, striking out eight.

Quotables

Samantha Ricketts on Morgan Stiles in the leadoff spot ...
"I think last year we knew that was probably where Morgan was going to project. She's just the top of the lineup type hitter. Her freshman year, she kind of had the luxury to learn a little bit, figure it out, kind of ease into her college season. But with the way she finished last season she's just picking up right off where she left off last year. I think we knew right away she was going to be ready for it, and she's just such a consistent hitter. She's got a great eye and does a really good job with making adjustments mid-at-bat, and I think it really sets the tone for our offense at the top of the order."

Morgan Stiles on her career-long hitting streak…
"I think I really leaned on what I learned last year throughout the whole season and its ups and downs. I just have been putting in the work and relying on that when I get up into the box, and it's been really good."

Quick Hitters

The Magic Number – MSU has scored five or more runs in 88 of State's 108 wins (81.5 percent) since 2023 … State is 158-20 when scoring five or more under Coach Ricketts … MSU has scored five or more runs in every game this year.

Nadia Barbary – Extended her reached base streak to 11 games against Murray State … batting .361 (13-for-36) in that span with an .718 slugging percentage … leads the team with three multi-RBI games … plated a pair of runs against Rutgers with a single and sacrifice fly.

Paige Ernstes – Plated two runs against Murray State for her third career multi-RBI game.

Alyssa Faircloth – Retired the first nine batters in order against Murray State … threw her second complete game of the season, allowing one run and striking out nine … leads the pitching staff with 34 strikeouts … entered the weekend ranked eighth nationally in strikeouts per seven innings.

Peja Goold – Threw her second complete game shutout of the season … in both, the only hit allowed has come from the nine-hole hitter … struck out eight … is now 24-2 when striking out at least five hitters since the start of last year.

Kinley Keller – Doubled against Murray State for her first career hit … recorded her first career start against Rutgers.

Kiarra Sells – Homered for the second time this season against Rutgers.

Tatum Silva – Brought in two runs on an RBI single against Murray State, which was also her first hit at MSU.

Morgan Stiles – Extended her hitting streak to a career-long 11 games dating back to last year … hitting .634 (26-for-41) during the streak with a .732 slugging percentage … finished the day 6-for-7 with a pair of doubles … leads the team in multi-hit games with five … had a career-high four hits against Rutgers.

Scoring Recap vs. Murray State

Bottom 1
Morgan Stiles singled through the left side before advancing to second on Nadia Barbary's walk. Kiara Sells walked to load the bases. Taylor Troutman and Anna Carder walked to score Stiles and Barbary. Anna Grace Richardson grounded out to second base, scoring Sells and advancing Troutman and Carder. Paige Ernstes hit a sacrifice fly to score Troutman before Morgan Bernadini doubled home Carder.
Murray State 0, No. 19 Mississippi State 5

Bottom 3
Richardson led off with a double to center field before scoring on Ernstes' single.
Murray State 0, No. 19 Mississippi State 6

Top 4
Katy Huels was hit by a pitch to open the frame. She advanced to second on Kynadee Warner's single. Adison Hicks singled to center field to score Huels and advance Warner.
Murray State 1, No. 19 Mississippi State 6

Bottom 4
With one out, Kinley Keller doubled to left field. Carder walked before Richardson reached first on a fielder's choice to center that saw Carder retired at second as Keller advanced to third. Richardson stole second. Ernstes was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Tatum Silva scored Richardson and Keller on a single to left field. Ally Supan pinch ran for Ernstes at second before Gabby Schaeffer scored her with a single into right center.
Murray State 1, No. 19 Mississippi State 9

Scoring Recap vs. Rutgers

Bottom 1
To lead off, Morgan Stiles singled to center field. With one out, Kiarra Sells drew a walk that advanced Stiles to second. Anna Carder singled to left field, scoring Stiles.
Rutgers 0, No. 19 Mississippi State 1

Bottom 2
To start the inning, Kinley Keller singled to the shortstop. She was thrown out on a fielder's choice to second base that left Abby Grace Richardson safe at first. Richardson advanced to second after Gabby Schaeffer was hit by a pitch. A single from Stiles loaded the bases before a sac fly from Nadia Barbary scored Richardson.
Rutgers 0, No. 19 Mississippi State 2

Bottom 4
Richardson drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch. With one out, she scored on a double by Stiles. Kiarra Sells hit a two-run homer with two outs.
Rutgers 0, No. 19 Mississippi State 5

Bottom 6
Schaeffer opened the inning with a walk and took two bases on a wild pitch. Stiles ripped a double down the right field line, scoring Schaeffer. Stiles advanced to third on a wild pitch before scoring on a single from Barbary. Kiarra Sells reached on a fielder's choice that saw Barbary retired before stealing second base. With two outs, Paige Ernstes singled to left field scoring Sells.
Rutgers 0, No. 19 Mississippi State 8

Next Up

The Bulldogs have two more games at The Snowman scheduled on Saturday. State hosts Rutgers for a rematch at 12:30 p.m. CT before meeting North Texas at 3 p.m. Both games will be available on SEC Network+.

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

State Hosts Eighth Annual Snowman Tournament

Thursday, February 12

Rounding Third: Peja Goold

Wednesday, February 11

Ammon Shuts Out Golden Eagles As State Claims Home Opener

Tuesday, February 10

Dear Ol’ State: Samantha Ricketts On Softball’s Hot Start And More

Monday, February 09

Next Event

Rutgers

Feb 14 (Sat)

12:30 p.m.

Watch Preview Live stats Tickets History

0Days

0Hours

0Minutes

0Seconds

Full Schedule

Team Stats

Pitching:

W: Faircloth, Alyssa (3-0)

L: Hailey Brereton (0-1)

Murray State

Batting:

RBI: Adison Hicks 1

Base Running:

RUNS: Katy Huels 1

HBP: Katy Huels 1

Mississippi State

Batting:

2B: Keller, Kinley 1 ; Richardson, Abby Grace 1 ; Bernardini, Morgan 1

RBI: Troutman, Taylor 1 ; Carder, Anna 1 ; Richardson, Abby Grace 1 ; Ernstes, Paige 2 ; Bernardini, Morgan 1 ; Silva, Tatum 2 ; Schaeffer, Gabby 1

SF: Ernstes, Paige 1

Base Running:

RUNS: Stiles, Morgan 1 ; Barbary, Nadia 1 ; Sells, Kiarra 1 ; Troutman, Taylor 1 ; Keller, Kinley 1 ; Carder, Anna 1 ; Richardson, Abby Grace 2 ; Supan, Ally 1