Starkville, Miss. – Samantha Ricketts and her Mississippi State Bulldogs softball team is gearing up for what could be a monumental SEC series against the #10 ranked Florida Gators this weekend at home in Starkville.
Fresh off a strong performance against the #18 Arkansas Razorbacks, where the Mississippi State softball team claimed the series 2-1, the MSU Bulldogs are looking to maintain their momentum and secure a statement series win against one of the top teams in the country.
Let’s start taking a look at this series.
Table of Contents
- Mississippi State softball preview: 2024 MSU Bulldogs vs. Florida Gators
- Meet the teams in the 2024 Miss. State softball – Florida Gators series
- 2024 Mississippi State softball schedule – How to watch MSU Bulldogs vs. Florida Gators
- Final thoughts on 2024 series between Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Florida Gators
Mississippi State softball preview: 2024 MSU Bulldogs vs. Florida Gators
Miss. State enters this SEC softball series with an impressive 24-7 overall record and a 5-4 mark in SEC play. That’s not bad considering the Bulldogs have only dropped one of the three SEC series they’ve played up to this point in the season.
The Bulldogs have been a force to be reckoned with at home, boasting a 14-2 record at Nusz Park. The only team they’ve lost to in Starkville happens to be the Texas A&M Aggies, who are currently second in the 2024 SEC softball standings.
MSU’s offensive prowess has been on full display, with the team hitting .336 and averaging 7.1 runs per game. Leading the charge is Madisyn Kennedy, who is batting .415 with a team-high 12 home runs and 40 RBIs.
But Florida isn’t a team that can be overlooked easily.
The Bulldogs will have their work cut out for them against a formidable Florida softball team. The Gators enter into the weekend series in Starkville with a 29-4 overall record and a 5-1 mark in SEC play. Up to this point, Florida has been an absolutely dominant force in all facets of the game, with a .378 team batting average, 49 home runs, and a 1.17 team ERA.
So, on the pitching side of things, while the Bulldogs have been strong with a 2.57 team ERA, MSU will need to be solid in this area to have a chance at winning this weekend. Aspen Wesley has been the ace of the staff with a 9-2 overall record and a solid 3.22 ERA in 58.2 innings pitched. As a whole, the Mississippi State pitching staff has managed to hold foes to a .217 batting average and have struck out 166 batters across 190.2 innings pitched.
Mississippi State softball schedule – 2024 MSU Bulldogs vs. Florida Gators
Here’s the slate of games for the weekend series between the Florida Gators and Mississippi State Bulldogs.
| Date | Time | Location | Opponent | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 28 (Thu) | 5:00 PM | Home | #10 Florida | Starkville |
| Mar 29 (Fri) | 4:00 PM | Home | #10 Florida | Starkville |
| Mar 30 (Sat) | 12:00 PM | Home | #10 Florida | Starkville |
I can’t guarantee an unforgettable experience, but Nusz Park is a really solid venue and I absolutely do recommend that you make your way to Nusz Park at some point this weekend, if at all possible. Samantha Ricketts and the Mississippi State Bulldogs are off to a phenomenal start this season and they’re going to need a home field advantage as they take on the Florida Gators.
Meet the teams in the 2024 Miss. State softball – Florida Gators series
Let’s start going over everyone involved in this series, starting with the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Mississippi State softball stats
- Record: 24-7
- Batting average: .336
- ERA: 2.57
- Homeruns: 33
- Opponents strikeouts: 166
- Runs scored per game: 7.1 (220 runs in 31 games)
- Opponents’ batting average: .217
- Opponents’ ERA: 7.35
The Mississippi State Bulldogs have been impressive to get this season started. Through the first half of the 2024 MSU softball season, Ricketts and the Miss. State Bulldogs have compiled a solid 24-7 record.
State’s approach at the plate has been a huge strength, with the team hitting .336 and scoring an average of 7.1 runs per game, while also hitting 33 home runs. That’s not the most home runs ever, but it’s enough to keep opposing pitchers on their toes.
The Bulldogs’ pitching staff has been really reliable, posting a 2.57 ERA and striking out 166 opposing batters. While they’re doing that, MSU’s pitching staff has held their opponents to a .217 batting average, making it difficult for teams to plate runs against them.
Mississippi State softball best wins
Given the Bulldogs’ record up to this point in the season, you’ll find that the Miss. State softball team has managed to win quite a few games so far this year. And there are several notable wins.
So far, MSU has two wins over the #23 Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns, one win over the #13 Utah Utes, one win over #8 Clemson, one over #17 Texas A&M, two over #18 Arkansas, and then a couple of road wins over a solid Ole Miss team.
Here’s what those wins look like from a score perspective:
- Mississippi State 9 – Louisiana 1 (6 innings)
- Mississippi State 2 – Louisiana 1
- Mississippi State 6 – Clemson 3
- Mississippi State 10 – Utah 2
- Mississippi State 15 – Arkansas 7
- Mississippi State 6 – Arkansas 3
- Mississippi State 5 – Ole Miss 1
- Mississippi State 4 – Ole Miss 0
- Mississippi State 6 – Texas A&M 5
While the Bulldogs have several other good wins (UAB twice, UCF, Notre Dame, etc.), this collection right here (in no particular order) appears to be the most impressive based on the opponent’s assumed ranking and the location of the games (road or neutral sites).
The Ole Miss and Arkansas series wins are absolutely the highlights so far in SEC play, but that one win over Texas A&M represents the only time the Aggies have lost in conference play so far.
Mississippi State softball worst losses
Miss. State is doing well, for the most part. That said, if you take a look at the way the schedule and record looks up to this point in the season, you’ll see a few painful losses here and there.
Nothing too big though.
There’s a loss to Oklahoma (who is the best college softball team on the planet over the last 3 or so seasons) and then a couple of late night contests out on the west coast against west coast teams. Plus some frustrating losses in conference play.
Here’s what some of those losses look like:
- UC Davis 2 – Mississippi State 1
- Oklahoma 9 – Mississippi State 3
- Fresno State 3 – Mississippi State 1
- Ole Miss 10 – Mississippi State 9
- Texas A&M 9 – Mississippi State 0
Arguably the worst loss on the year for the Bulldogs? That’s getting humbled and blown out at home by the Texas A&M Aggies. Otherwise, for the most part, this selection of losses isn’t really that big of a deal.
But the Bulldogs cannot make losing like that a habit.
Florida softball stats
- Record: 29-4
- Batting average: .378
- ERA: 1.17
- Homeruns: 49
- Opponents strikeouts: 164
- Runs scored per game: 9 (297 runs in 33 games)
- Opponents’ batting average: .144
- Opponents’ ERA: 10.13
The #10 ranked Florida Gators have been a force to be reckoned with throughout the vast majority of this season, so it’s no surprise that they’re rolling into Starkville while boasting an impressive 29-4 record.
Florida’s offense has been nothing short of spectacular, hitting .378 as a team and scoring an average of 9 runs per game, while also launching 49 home runs. That’s incredible and incredibly dangerous for opposing pitchers.
In the circle, Florida’s pitching staff has been equally dominant, posting a remarkable 1.17 ERA and holding opponents to a paltry .144 batting average. The Gators’ hurlers have also racked up 164 strikeouts, showcasing their ability to overpower opposing hitters.
Mississippi State has been really solid. Florida has been otherworldly, though they’re not perfect.
Florida Gators softball best wins
There’s no shortage of impressive wins for the Florida Gators. Absolutely no shortage. This softball team is spectacular and they’ve accomplished a lot throughout this season.
Including sweeping the Kentucky Wildcats in punishing fashion and taking a series from the Alabama Crimson Tide. Oh, and they managed to get a win over the UCLA Bruins on neutral ground.
- Florida 1 – UCLA 0
- Florida 2 – Alabama 0
- Florida 11 – Alabama 2
- Florida 10 – Kentucky 2
- Florida 9 – Kentucky 1
- Florida 7 – Kentucky 1
This team is phenomenal and scary. But, well, technically speaking they’re still vulnerable to losing. I guess.
Florida Gators’ worst losses
There aren’t really many losses to choose from here. In total, Florida has lost four games. So, here are those four losses.
- Oklahoma State 3 – Florida 0
- Alabama 3 – Florida 0
- Michigan 2 – Florida 1
- Michigan 10 – Florida 2
The Gators are good and it’s going to take a lot of talent to take them down. Mississippi State features a talented roster, but are the Bulldogs at the same sort of level as the Cowgirls, Crimson Tide, or Wolverines?
That remains to be seen.
2024 Mississippi State softball schedule – How to watch MSU Bulldogs vs. Florida Gators
- Game 1 – Mississippi State vs. Florida – 3/28 at 5 p.m.
- Game 2 – Mississippi State vs. Florida – 3/29 at 4 p.m.
- Game 3 – Mississippi State vs. Florida – 3/30 at 12 p.m.
Final thoughts on 2024 series between Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Florida Gators
Florida has been on another level throughout this season. Mississippi State has been really, really good, but it remains to be seen if Samantha Ricketts and her Bulldogs are in a position to keep up with the Gators, let alone beat a team as talented as Florida.
MSU’s latest road trip gives me hope that this SEC series won’t be a complete and total disaster for the Miss. State Bulldogs, but I do fear that this series will end up looking like the one Mississippi State had against the Texas A&M Aggies a few weeks back.
I hope that’s just an irrational fear.
If Mississippi State were to make it through this series with a win over a team as talented as the Gators, it would suddenly become pretty evident that this program would have taken a massive step forward under Samantha Rickett’s leadership. But even if MSU is able to keep things close and competitive, it’s clear that a step forward has been taken.
It’s certainly safe to say that MSU is in a better place than it was a season ago. I think that’s becoming more and more clear. It’s safe to say MSU is in a better place than it was prior to the hiring of Ricketts as the head coach.
I’m just curious as to how much better Mississippi State softball is when comparing how its historically fared against the best teams in the SEC.
This weekend should give us a pretty good look at that.
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