STARKVILLE, Miss. – Throughout the weekend, the #17 Mississippi State softball team showcased some impressive potential in a hard-fought series against the #10 Florida Gators at Nusz Park.
Unfortunately for Samantha Ricketts and her Mississippi State Bulldogs (as well as MSU softball fans), Florida eventually came out on top as the Bulldogs ultimately fell short in two of the three games against the Gators.
If you’re thinking this sounds similar to the MSU baseball series down in Gainesville, you’d be correct.
Table of contents
- Miss. State softball weekend recap: Bulldogs unable to overcome Florida Gators after claiming series opener
- High notes and Mississippi State softball highlights from series vs. Florida Gators
- Low moments from the Miss. State softball series vs. Florida
- Final Thoughts on Mississippi State softball’s series loss to Florida
Let’s start looking at what happened to the Bulldogs this past weekend.
Miss. State softball weekend recap: Bulldogs unable to overcome Florida Gators after claiming series opener
In the series opener, Mississippi State staged an epic comeback, erasing a six-run deficit in the bottom of the sixth inning to secure a thrilling 13-12 victory. It was an impressive win for Samantha Ricketts and the Bulldogs to celebrate.
However, the Gators bounced back in game two, holding off a late Bulldog rally to even the series with an 8-5 win. And that forced a rubber match on Saturday.
The decisive third game saw Mississippi State take an early lead, but this time Florida staged a comeback. The Gators rallied in the top of the seventh inning, scoring three runs to clinch the series with a 7-6 triumph.
Game 1: Mississippi State 13 – Florida 12
The #17 Mississippi State softball team pulled off a remarkable comeback victory in the series opener against No. 10 Florida at Nusz Park on Thursday night. The game was wonky and back-and-forth with plenty of runs scored.
Trailing 12-6 in the bottom of the sixth inning, the Bulldogs erupted for seven runs, capped off by a walk-off two-run homer from Paige Cook, to secure a thrilling 13-12 triumph. The improbable comeback showcased Mississippi State’s resilience and set the tone for an exciting series against the Gators.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 12 | 11 | 2 |
| Mississippi State | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 13 | 14 | 1 |
Game 2: Mississippi State 5 – Florida 8
Game 2 wasn’t as much fun as game 1. Mostly because the #17 Mississippi State softball team suffered a tough 8-5 loss to #10 Florida as the Bulldogs couldn’t complete another comeback bid against the Gators.
In game 2 of the series on Friday evening at Nusz Park, despite taking an early 2-0 lead, the Bulldogs couldn’t contain the Gators’ offensive surge. Led by Jocelyn Erickson’s two home runs and five RBIs, Florida pushed ahead of MSU.
Mississippi State tried to mount a late rally in the seventh inning, scoring three runs and bringing the tying run to the plate, but the Bulldogs ultimately fell short.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 2 |
| Mississippi State | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 1 |
Game 3 – Mississippi State 6 – Florida 7
Ricketts and the Bulldogs were so close. So, so close. They almost got a series win over the #10 ranked team in the country. And yet, because Florida happens to be really good, it’s not that shocking that MSU fell short.
It is disappointing though.
In a back-and-forth battle, the #17 Mississippi State softball team suffered a heartbreaking 7-6 loss to No. 10 Florida in the series finale on Saturday at Nusz Park. The Bulldogs took an early lead and held a 6-4 advantage heading into the seventh inning, but the Gators rallied with three runs, including a go-ahead two-run homer by Jocelyn Erickson.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 0 |
| Mississippi State | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 11 | 1 |
High notes and Mississippi State softball highlights from series vs. Florida Gators
This series started out great. Staging a comeback scoring surge to overtake what seemed like an insurmountable lead late in the game? Just an absolutely incredible way to get the weekend going.
And it’s a lot of fun to watch lead-taking home runs get hit. Shoutout to Paige Cook for making that happen Thursday evening.
But even though that sort of fun wasn’t had on Friday or Saturday, there were still some impressive moments worth celebrating.
The young players on this roster are really thriving right now and that’s exciting for the future of the Mississippi State softball program. Samantha Ricketts has done well to recruit in recent years and the amount of talent accumulated in Starkville is impressive right now.
Low moments from the Miss. State softball series vs. Florida
Like what happened in Gainesville to Chris Lemonis and his Miss. State Bulldogs baseball team, the Mississippi State softball team had a few less-than-ideal sort of moments late in games against the Gators.
Saturday is a great example of this. Arguably the perfect example.
MSU had a solid lead over the #10 Florida Gators, but the Bulldogs weren’t able to hold on for a series win.
Friday is also a decent example as what was once a close game spiraled out of control for the Bulldogs in a hurry. But none of this is all that surprising. Florida is better at the plate than anyone else in the SEC (MSU, in many regards is second to the Gators in the conference, by the way).
The Gators can score runs in a hurry. And that unfortunately happened.
Final Thoughts on Mississippi State softball’s series loss to Florida
I’m not really all that heartbroken over this series. Ricketts and the Bulldogs were pretty impressive throughout the weekend. They looked solid, competed well, and didn’t let the stage seem too big.
I’m really impressed with the way the Mississippi State softball team looks right now and I’m hopeful that MSU will continue to improve as it moves forward.
I’m not big on moral victories and that’s not something I really want this to be. I’m disappointed State didn’t come away with a series it arguably should have won. But the fact that this program is in this position is something to celebrate.
Ricketts has the team rolling in the right direction. That bitter feeling that comes with this series loss is proof of that. Now hopefully the next time a top 10 team rolls into Starkville, State sends them home with a couple of losses.
The Underdog Tribune 
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