Mississippi State
43-19
#2 Oklahoma
52-10
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi State | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 0 |
| Oklahoma | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
Unseeded Bulldogs Punch First Ticket To Women’s College World Series
May 24, 2026 | Softball
NORMAN, Okla. – No. 20 Mississippi State did what many thought was impossible, downing No. 2 Oklahoma on the road, 6-0, to reach the program's first Women's College World Series.
The historic win saw the Bulldogs snap the Sooners' run of five straight trips to Oklahoma City and became the first team to shut out OU (52-10) since Alabama did so in the 2019 World Series – a 399-game streak.
"I'm just even more excited for this group. I think for us right now, obviously, this is something that's never been done before, and I'm just so proud of this group," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "When nobody believed in us, they believed it themselves and in each other. It was the 25 that I've got, and the parents up in the stands. Really, I love how we came out – loose, free and just wanted to compete and leave everything we had on the field. Delainey [Everett] just competed her butt off, and what an outstanding game. Nobody in our dugout was surprised, because that's the type of pitcher, the type of athlete, that Delainey is. She's a dog through and through, and she was going to give literally everything she had for her team in that moment."
Delainey Everett pitched a gem. She went 7.0 innings, allowing just three hits. The junior left hander struck out three in the longest outing of her career.
State (43-19) got on the board early as Kinley Keller drove in three runs in the first three innings. From there it was MSU's turn to launch some long balls. Paige Ernstes led off the fourth with a solo homer, and Morgan Bernardini hit a two-run shot in the fifth.
"Today is my parents' wedding anniversary, so every single any inning I was out there, I was like, 'This is for them. This is for him.' Trust in the girls, you know, is one way to get my mind off it. I lived through that and for that, but the girls is really gets me through it. He would just be so proud. If he wasn't so hard me, I would not be here today. But it's knowing everything that, one, I've been through, that him and I have been through together. Obviously, like, you know, daughters and dads have a special connection through softball. He coached me up until I got here. So just remembering the big games that we won, all the little titles that we had, just set me up for this moment, and I always know that he's here."
Morgan Bernardini on scoring early in a hostile crowd…
"Yeah, I think really just tried to embrace it, right? We know that we're the underdogs in this environment. It's tough to play in. And that's total respect for Oklahoma, the whole softball program. I think we came in knowing that. I think our upper classmen really tried to help out our lower classmen or people who haven't played here before. Like, I would talk to Tatum in left field like, 'Hey, the corner's weird. We've got to work in the corner.' and stuff like that. I think we really embraced it, and we know that, at the end of the day, we all love college softball. We all love women's sports, and no matter if they're rooting for us or rooting against us, they were all supporting the sport. Just us knowing that and being able to take it and run with it. Getting off to a good start, setting the tone for the game, really being able to have [Delainey's] back. We know that [the pitchers] have had our back all season and sometimes we'd let them down. Now I think it's really important for us to step up as an offense and just know, like, it's us against the world."
Morgan Bernardini – Hit a two-run homer for her sixth NCAA Tournament hit of 2026 … four of those have been for extra bases … leads MSU with a .426 (6-for-15) average in the tournament this year … 4-for-7 in the Super Regional with four RBIs.
Delainey Everett – Threw a career-high 7.0 innings without allowing a run … struck out three … first MSU pitcher to shut out a top-five team in the postseason since Aspen Wesley did so against then-No. 2 Florida State in the 2022 Tallahassee Regional … held Oklahoma to its lowest hit total since March 28 at LSU (next would 4 hits, three times)
Paige Ernstes – Hit her fourth home run of the season and her first career NCAA Tournament homer.
Kinley Keller – Went 2-for-2 today … has reached base in every game of the 2026 postseason … extended her career-long reached-base streak to nine games … drove in the game's first three runs for a new career high.
Xiane Romero – Doubled and scored in the first.
Morgan Stiles – Added to her MSU NCAA Tournament career record with her 15th and 16th hits … boasts a career .457 (16-for-35) average in the NCAA Tournament … has a hit in all 10 NCAA Tournament games she's played in her career.
Nadia Barbary drew a one-out walk before Xiane Romero doubled to right field. Both runners scored on Kinley Keller's single to right-center.
No. 20 Mississippi State 2, No. 2 Oklahoma 0
Top 3
Morgan Stiles led off with a single through the left side. She moved to second on a passed ball and advanced to third on Romero's fly out to center. Keller drove in Stiles by beating out an infield single to the shortstop in the five-six hole.
No. 20 Mississippi State 3, No. 2 Oklahoma 0
Top 4
Paige Ernstes hit the first pitch of the inning over the left field wall.
No. 20 Mississippi State 4, No. 2 Oklahoma 0
Top 5
Nadia Barbary walked and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Ally Supan pinch ran for her at second. With two outs, Morgan Bernardini hit a two-run homer to left field.
No. 20 Mississippi State 6, No. 2 Oklahoma 0
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Everett, Delainey (3-1)
L: Guachino, Miali (15-3)
Batting:
2B: Romero, Xiane 1 ; Richardson, Abby Grace 1
HR: Bernardini, Morgan 1 ; Ernstes, Paige 1
RBI: Keller, Kinley 3 ; Bernardini, Morgan 2 ; Ernstes, Paige 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Stiles, Morgan 1 ; Barbary, Nadia 1 ; Supan, Ally 1 ; Romero, Xiane 1 ; Bernardini, Morgan 1 ; Ernstes, Paige 1
Base Running:
HBP: Wells, Kendall 1 ; Parker, Allyssa 1
