No. 23 State Splits Saturday Doubleheader

Saturday, February 27

Gulfport, Miss.

5:30 PM

Mississippi State

11-1

Incarnate Word

5-10

Incarnate Word

Mississippi State

No. 23 State Splits Saturday Doubleheader

February 27, 2016 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: hailstate.com

GULFPORT, Miss. – No. 23 Mississippi State (11-2) split its twin billing on day two of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Softball Classic at the Gulfport Sportsplex on Saturday.

MSU opened the day with a 6-0 win over Incarnate Word (5-10) as freshman pitcher Cori Cooper stole the show once again as she struck out nine in a complete-game shutout. A four-run fourth inning allowed the Bulldogs enough cushion to cruise to victory.

Game two was a rematch from the 2015 NCAA Tournament Lafayette Regional as No. 24 Baylor (10-3) got the best of State in the top 25 matchup. A pair of home runs and Bulldog errors allowed the Bears to claim a 4-0 win.

Freshman Sarai Niu led the Bulldog offense on Saturday by finishing 2-for-3 at the plate with two runs batted in, along with having reached base three times via hit by pitch.

GAME ONE: No. 23 MSU 6, Incarnate Word 0
Freshman Emily Heimberger once again sparked the Bulldogs early on as an infield single and a stolen base by the second baseman put MSU in position. Junior Caroline Seitz would bring her home with a double to the wall two batters later, putting their side up 1-0 after one.

The Bulldogs blew the game wide open in the home half of the third as four hits led to four runs. A single from senior Kayla Winkfield and a double from junior Mackenzie Toler each pushed across one run to extend the lead. A two-run single from Niu really put State out in front with a 5-0 lead through three.

Sophomore Olivia Golden would join the fun in the fifth as she delivered a stand-up double to left, scoring sophomore pinch runner Carmen Carter and putting State ahead 6-0.

For the second time in as many starts, Cooper (2-0) dominated in a complete-game victory. Cooper struck out nine this time around, which matched a single-game best, and allowed just three hits in the shutout.

Sarah Leah (1-2) suffered the loss for Incarnate Word as she allowed all 11 of MSU's hits and six runs as IUW's lone pitcher in the contest.

GAME TWO: No. 24 Baylor 4, No. 23 MSU 0
A pitcher's duel from the start, both defenses kept the opposing offenses in check with impressive plays in the field.

The game remained scoreless until Baylor got a pitch to hit and sent it over the wall in left center with a runner on first to take a 2-0 lead in the home half of the third.

A pair of MSU fielding errors in the fourth allowed the Bears to add one and push their advantage to 3-0. Another home run, this time with no runners on put Baylor on top 4-0 after six.

Starting pitcher Heather Stearns (4-1) went the distance for the victory in a one-hit shutout for Baylor. Freshman Regan Green (2-1) suffered the loss for MSU as she was the lone Bulldog pitcher in the game and allowed all four Baylor runs on six hits paired with five strikeouts.

State will conclude its time on the coast Sunday in a rematch with McNeese State at 12:30 p.m. CT. The game can be heard through HailStatePLUS as the voice of Bulldog softball, Anthony Craven, will have the call.

For more information on the MSU softball program, follow “HailStateSB” on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. You can also find all-access coverage of the Bulldogs on SnapChat by searching for “HailStateSnap.”