#StateToTheShow: Sacco-Ferrie, Davidson Gear Up For Postseason Push
July 14, 2026 | Softball
STARKVILLE – With four games remaining in the regular season, Sierra Sacco-Ferrie, Mia Davidson and the Portland Cascade have nearly secured the final playoff position in the AUSL. The Cascade is clinging to a 2.5 game lead over Peja Goold's Oklahoma City Spark while Bulldog pitching coach Taryne Mowatt-McKinney led the Chicago Bandits on an AUSL-record nine-game winning streak to climb into second place in the standings.
At 13-8, the Bandits could clinch a playoff spot as soon as Wednesday night with a combination of a Spark loss on Tuesday and their own win against the Carolina Blaze on Wednesday or if the Spark were to lose any two of their final five games. The Cascade need any combination of three wins or three Spark losses to secure the final playoff position. The second- and third-place clubs will play a one-game playoff on Thursday, July 23. The winner earns the right to face No. 1 seed in a three-game championship series on July 25-27. The Utah Talons would currently be the No. 1 seed as the first team to clinch a berth and cling to a one-game lead over Mowatt-McKinney's Bandits.
Davidson played a key role in Portland's series at Oklahoma City last week, hitting her first career AUSL home run, a two-run blast as part of a seven-run third inning. That was enough for the Cascade, which cruised to an 8-4 win to split the series. Davidson also had a single in the first game of that series.
Sacco-Ferrie may have missed the first game of the Oklahoma City series, but she returned from a stint on the injured list in the series finale. She was back in the starting lineup on July 7 at Carolina, driving in a run and scoring one herself. Arguably her best games of the season were to follow. In Game 2 against the Blaze, Sacco went 2-for-3, and she opened the series against Chicago with a double, walk and run scored. She is 4-for-11 over the last four games with three runs scored.
The Bulldog duo was even more impressive on defense. On July 11, Davidson caught a runner stealing for the first time this year. Against Carolina on July 8, Davidson applied the tag at the plate to complete a double play and preserve a 1-1 tie in the fifth inning before Portland went on to win in walk-off fashion. Sacco-Ferrie scored the winning run in that game after being placed on second to begin the eighth inning. Sacco-Ferrie added to her own highlight reel with a diving catch in left field in that game that landed at No. 4 on SportsCenter's Top 10 plays, which stood at the time as the highest-ranked play in AUSL history.
Peja Goold saw action against one batter last week for the Spark. She was called upon with the Spark trailing 5-3 against the Talons. With runners on first and second, Goold struck out the only batter she faced on six pitches to end the frame.
Oklahoma City's remaining schedule is entirely on the road, including two games against the last-place Texas Volts (July 14-15) and a three-game set at Carolina (July 18-20). Portland is at home the rest of the way, but its road is a little tougher with two games against Utah (July 15-16) before closing out the year with two games against the Volts (July 17-18). Chicago is at Carolina for two games (July 15-16) before ending the year at home against the Talons (July 18-19) in a series that could determine the No. 1 seed.
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
At 13-8, the Bandits could clinch a playoff spot as soon as Wednesday night with a combination of a Spark loss on Tuesday and their own win against the Carolina Blaze on Wednesday or if the Spark were to lose any two of their final five games. The Cascade need any combination of three wins or three Spark losses to secure the final playoff position. The second- and third-place clubs will play a one-game playoff on Thursday, July 23. The winner earns the right to face No. 1 seed in a three-game championship series on July 25-27. The Utah Talons would currently be the No. 1 seed as the first team to clinch a berth and cling to a one-game lead over Mowatt-McKinney's Bandits.
Davidson played a key role in Portland's series at Oklahoma City last week, hitting her first career AUSL home run, a two-run blast as part of a seven-run third inning. That was enough for the Cascade, which cruised to an 8-4 win to split the series. Davidson also had a single in the first game of that series.
Sacco-Ferrie may have missed the first game of the Oklahoma City series, but she returned from a stint on the injured list in the series finale. She was back in the starting lineup on July 7 at Carolina, driving in a run and scoring one herself. Arguably her best games of the season were to follow. In Game 2 against the Blaze, Sacco went 2-for-3, and she opened the series against Chicago with a double, walk and run scored. She is 4-for-11 over the last four games with three runs scored.
The Bulldog duo was even more impressive on defense. On July 11, Davidson caught a runner stealing for the first time this year. Against Carolina on July 8, Davidson applied the tag at the plate to complete a double play and preserve a 1-1 tie in the fifth inning before Portland went on to win in walk-off fashion. Sacco-Ferrie scored the winning run in that game after being placed on second to begin the eighth inning. Sacco-Ferrie added to her own highlight reel with a diving catch in left field in that game that landed at No. 4 on SportsCenter's Top 10 plays, which stood at the time as the highest-ranked play in AUSL history.
Peja Goold saw action against one batter last week for the Spark. She was called upon with the Spark trailing 5-3 against the Talons. With runners on first and second, Goold struck out the only batter she faced on six pitches to end the frame.
Oklahoma City's remaining schedule is entirely on the road, including two games against the last-place Texas Volts (July 14-15) and a three-game set at Carolina (July 18-20). Portland is at home the rest of the way, but its road is a little tougher with two games against Utah (July 15-16) before closing out the year with two games against the Volts (July 17-18). Chicago is at Carolina for two games (July 15-16) before ending the year at home against the Talons (July 18-19) in a series that could determine the No. 1 seed.
Bulldogs In The Show
Mia Davidson – Portland Cascade
| Opponent | GP-GS | AVG | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | HBP | SO | SF | SH | SB | OBP | SLG | PO | A | E | FLD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/4 – at OKC, L, 3-12 | 1-1 | .500 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .500 | .500 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- |
| 7/5 – at OKC, W, 8-4 | 1-1 | .333 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | 1.333 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 7/7 – vs. CAR, W, 4-2 | 1-1 | .000 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- |
| 7/8 – vs. CAR, W, 2-1 | 1-1 | .000 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 7/10 – vs. CHI, L, 6-8 | 1-0 | -- | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 7/11 – vs. CHI, L, 0-2 | 1-1 | .000 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 7/12 – vs. CHI, W, 5-4 | 1-1 | .000 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | .000 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Weekly Totals | 7-6 | .154 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .154 | .385 | 34 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Season Totals | 12-11 | .107 | 28 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .167 | .214 | 44 | 3 | 0 | 1.000 |
Peja Goold – Oklahoma City Spark
| Opponent | APP-GS | ERA | W-L | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | 2B | 3B | HR | AB | B/AVG | PO | A | E | FLD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/4 – vs. PDX, W, 12-3 | DNP | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 7/5 – vs. PDX, L, 4-8 | DNP | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 7/9 – vs. UTA, W, 4-3 | DNP | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 7/11 – vs. UTA, L, 4-5 | 1-0 | 0.00 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- |
| 7/12 – vs. UTA, W, 4-2 | DNP | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Weekly Totals | 1-0 | 0.00 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- |
| Season Totals | 8-1 | 15.27 | 1-1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7.1 | 17 | 19 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 38 | .447 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .500 |
Sierra Sacco-Ferrie – Portland Cascade
| Opponent | GP-GS | AVG | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | HBP | SO | SF | SH | SB | OBP | SLG | PO | A | E | FLD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/4 – at OKC, L, 3-12 | DNP | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 7/5 – at OKC, W, 8-4 | 1-0 | .000 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- |
| 7/7 – vs. CAR, W, 4-2 | 1-1 | .000 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- |
| 7/8 – vs. CAR, W, 2-1 | 1-1 | .667 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .667 | .667 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 7/10 – vs. CHI, L, 6-8 | 1-1 | .500 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .667 | 1.000 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 7/11 – vs. CHI, L, 0-2 | 1-1 | .000 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 7/12 – vs. CHI, W, 5-4 | 1-1 | .333 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | .333 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Weekly Totals | 6-5 | .267 | 15 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .313 | .333 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Season Totals | 15-14 | .222 | 36 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | .333 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
Players Mentioned
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