STARKVILLE – In what will be its final midweek game and final non-conference game of the 2025 season, No. 18 Mississippi State is set to host Central Arkansas at Nusz Park at 5 p.m. CT on Tuesday.
The Bulldogs are currently tied for third in the SEC with a 6-3 conference record, which is tied for their best start to league play since 2000. State took down No. 1 Texas on Friday night, marking the third upset of the nation's top team in program history.
Sierra Sacco and Nadia Barbary have been a big part of MSU's recent success. The duo is hitting a combined .485 over the last 10 games with eight extra-base hits and 16 RBIs. Barbary leads the team in RBIs in that span with 10.
Mississippi State remained No. 17 in the most-recent Softball America poll released on Monday. The remaining polls will reveal their rankings on Tuesday morning.
With a win, MSU would secure its fourth 30-win season under Samantha Ricketts and mark the 200th victory in Nusz Park since the facility was constructed in 2016. With 16 regular season games remaining, the Bulldogs need to play just .500 ball or better to close the regular season with Rickett's highest single-season win total in her six-year tenure leading the program.
Leading Off
Toppling Top-ranked Texas: The Bulldogs defeated the No. 1-ranked team for the third time in program history on Friday night, downing Texas, 4-3, in walk-off fashion. It was State's first win over No. 1 since defeating LSU, 9-4, in Nusz Park on April 8, 2015, and Samantha Ricketts now boasts 42 victories over NFCA-ranked teams, which is two shy of the MSU record.
SEC Start: MSU started SEC play with a 5-1 record for the first time in program history. State's 6-3 mark in league games to this point is tied with 2000 for its best start since opening the 1998 season at 8-3. In 2000, State went on to a 9-3 record for its best 12-game start in SEC play.
Sierra Sets TheTable: Sierra Sacco is among the top 10 nationally in batting average (10th), hits (8th), runs (4th) and on-base percentage (10th). MSU is 56-8 when she scores since the start of last year.
Barbary's Big Year: Nadia Barbary is just four hits shy of her previous single-season career high, and she is just three total bases from matching her single-season career high. Meanwhile, she has struck out less than ever before with a strikeout every 17 at-bats. Her previous best was one strikeout every seven at-bats as a freshman.
Slugging Sosa: : Sixty-one percent (14-of-23) of Lexi Sosa's hits have gone for extra bases this year, and she leads the team lead with nine homers.
Call The Bomb Squad: State's 50 long balls rank 15th nationally, and State is on pace to match the school record with 73 home runs this year. MSU has scored 99 runs on homers this year, which accounts for 38.8 percent of its scoring, and the Bulldogs have tied the school record with five grand slams.
Fifty-Fifty: : MSU is 11 stolen bases away from its first 50 homer-50 stolen base season since 2018. State has accomplished that feat two other times in 2015 and 2013 as well. MSU currently has 50 homers and 39 stolen bases.
Where Are You Going?: Jessie Blaine and Ella Wesolowski have combined to pick off six runners. The next best SEC team has just two.
Blaine's five pickoffs are one shy of the MSU single-season record, and she has also caught three runners stealing.
Magic Number: The Bulldogs have scored five or more runs in 73 of State's 90 wins (80.2 percent) over the past three seasons, and they are 143-15 under Samantha Ricketts when scoring at least five.
About Central Arkansas (17-19, 5-3 ASUN)
Rankings: NFCA Coaches – NR | USA Softball – NR | D1Softball – NR | Softball America – NR
Head Coach: Jenny Parsons | Record at UCA: 125-79-1 (4th Year) | Career Record: 294-286-1 (11th Year)
Batting Average: .293 | Runs Per Game: 4.78 | Hits Per Game: 7.75 | Slugging Pct: .402
ERA: 6.20 | K/7: 4.06 | K/BB Ratio: 1.10 | Opp. Batting Avg: .291
Series History
Overall: 10-2 | Home: 8-2 | Away: 2-0 | Neutral: 0-0
Current Streak: Lost 1 | Last Meeting: Feb. 18-19, 2022, split in Starkville, Miss. (G1: MSU, 11-3 [6 inn.] | G2: UCA, 5-3)
Notables
Central Arkansas is coming off a series win against Austin Peay, highlighted by the highest-scoring game in program history, a 16-15 walk-off victory on Friday night. That game also saw the Bears bat around in the first inning for the second time this year. The Bears have played three other SEC teams and are 0-4 against the conference. Central Arkansas is among the top 15 teams in the nation in fielding percentage (.976) and double plays (19). Catcher Autumn Vessier is ranked 24th in the nation with nine runners caught stealing. Kylie Griffin leads the ASUN with 51 hits, which ranks 13th in the country.
On Deck
Mississippi State returns to the road this weekend, heading to Knoxville, Tennessee. The Bulldogs will play the No. 9 Tennessee Lady Vols in a three-game series April 4-6. Friday and Saturday's games will air on SEC Network at 5 p.m. and 3 p.m., respectively. Sunday's series finale is set for 12:30 p.m. on SEC Network+.
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