Thursday, March 28
Starkville
5:00 PM
Mississippi State
vs
#10 Florida
SEC’s Top Offenses Set To Meet In Starkville
March 27, 2024 | Softball
STARKVILLE – The top two offenses in the SEC will go head-to-head this week in Starkville as No. 17/17 Mississippi State hosts No. 10/9 Florida.
The Gators lead the SEC in runs scored this year, but the Bulldogs are right on their heels, ranking second. Both teams are among the top three in the league in batting average, on-base percentage, hits, RBIs and walks.
While State is paced offensively by Madisyn Kennedy, whose 1.583 OPS ranks third nationally, Florida is led by reigning NFCA Player of the Year Skylar Wallace and her 1.584 OPS that ranks second in the country.
The series was shifted to begin on Thursday to accommodate the Easter holiday, and the series opener will be televised nationally on SEC Network at 5 p.m. CT. Thursday night is First Responder Night at Nusz Park and the game will be followed by MSU's third annual First Responder Home Run Derby.
Friday evening's contest is Greek Night and Food Truck Friday, and on Saturday all kids in attendance can participate in a postgame Easter egg hunt in the outfield.
Friday, March 29 at 4 p.m. | Watch on SEC Network+ | Live Stats | Buy Tickets
Saturday, March 30 at 12 p.m. | Watch on SEC Network+ | Live Stats | Buy Tickets
March Madi-ness: Madisyn Kennedy is leading the team with a 1.250 slugging percentage and .569 on-base percentage in March while hitting nine homers and collecting 29 RBIs. Her .417 batting average is second.
Hot Hitter: Madisyn Kennedy is hitting .415 over her current career-long 18-game on-base streak. Her streak is currently the fifth-longest in the nation this season and the third-longest active streak in the country.
Leadoff Leaders: Mississippi State (50.6 percent) and Florida (51.4 percent) are the only teams in the conference that have seen their leadoff hitters reach base in at least 50 percent of innings.
Magic Number: MSU is 69-4 since the start of 2022 when scoring five or more runs. State scored at least five in 25 of its 27 wins of 2023 and has done so in 21 of 24 wins in 2024.
Spreading The Nusz: The Bulldogs are 14-2 at home this year and outscoring opponents, 137-33, in those games. State has played an average of just 5.69 innings at home with nine run-rule victories in Nusz Park.
Speedy State: MSU has already matched its 2023 season total with 29 stolen bases. Sierra Sacco leads the team, going 12-for-12 on steal attempts, which is sixth in the SEC.
Rewriting Record Books: Paige Cook now has 55 career two-out RBIs, which is sixth in MSU history. She is 10th in program history with 123 RBIs. Madisyn Kennedy is tied for ninth in program history with 128 RBIs.
Going The Distance: As a team, MSU has tossed 14 complete games already this year after throwing just eight last season. Josey Marron and Aspen Wesley have accounted for 11 complete games.
Marron Leaves Her Mark: Josey Marron's 138 career strikeouts through her first two years rank 13th in school history. Should she reach 200 this season, she'd become just the ninth Bulldog to record 200 strikeouts before the end of her sophomore season.
Head Coach: Tim Walton | Record at UF: 955-227 (19th Year) | Career Record: 1,078-291 (22nd Year)
Batting Average: .378 | Runs Per Game: 9.00 | Hits Per Game: 9.48 | Slugging Pct: .659
ERA: 1.17 | K/7: 5.98 | K/BB Ratio: 2.69 | Opp. Batting Avg: .144
Current Streak: Lost 1 | Last Series: March 12-14, 2022, UF won in Gainesville, Fla. (G1: UF, 8-4 | G2: MSU, 1-0 | G3: UF, 3-0)
The Gators lead the SEC in runs scored this year, but the Bulldogs are right on their heels, ranking second. Both teams are among the top three in the league in batting average, on-base percentage, hits, RBIs and walks.
While State is paced offensively by Madisyn Kennedy, whose 1.583 OPS ranks third nationally, Florida is led by reigning NFCA Player of the Year Skylar Wallace and her 1.584 OPS that ranks second in the country.
The series was shifted to begin on Thursday to accommodate the Easter holiday, and the series opener will be televised nationally on SEC Network at 5 p.m. CT. Thursday night is First Responder Night at Nusz Park and the game will be followed by MSU's third annual First Responder Home Run Derby.
Friday evening's contest is Greek Night and Food Truck Friday, and on Saturday all kids in attendance can participate in a postgame Easter egg hunt in the outfield.
Game Coverage
Thursday, March 28 at 5 p.m. | Watch on SEC Network | Live Stats | Buy TicketsFriday, March 29 at 4 p.m. | Watch on SEC Network+ | Live Stats | Buy Tickets
Saturday, March 30 at 12 p.m. | Watch on SEC Network+ | Live Stats | Buy Tickets
Leading Off
Fun Times In Fayetteville: State claimed its first series victory in Fayetteville since 2015 last weekend. Friday night was seventh comeback victory of the year. On Sunday, State claimed its 12th run-rule victory of the year and its first on the road in SEC play since that same 2015 series.March Madi-ness: Madisyn Kennedy is leading the team with a 1.250 slugging percentage and .569 on-base percentage in March while hitting nine homers and collecting 29 RBIs. Her .417 batting average is second.
Hot Hitter: Madisyn Kennedy is hitting .415 over her current career-long 18-game on-base streak. Her streak is currently the fifth-longest in the nation this season and the third-longest active streak in the country.
Leadoff Leaders: Mississippi State (50.6 percent) and Florida (51.4 percent) are the only teams in the conference that have seen their leadoff hitters reach base in at least 50 percent of innings.
Magic Number: MSU is 69-4 since the start of 2022 when scoring five or more runs. State scored at least five in 25 of its 27 wins of 2023 and has done so in 21 of 24 wins in 2024.
Spreading The Nusz: The Bulldogs are 14-2 at home this year and outscoring opponents, 137-33, in those games. State has played an average of just 5.69 innings at home with nine run-rule victories in Nusz Park.
Speedy State: MSU has already matched its 2023 season total with 29 stolen bases. Sierra Sacco leads the team, going 12-for-12 on steal attempts, which is sixth in the SEC.
Rewriting Record Books: Paige Cook now has 55 career two-out RBIs, which is sixth in MSU history. She is 10th in program history with 123 RBIs. Madisyn Kennedy is tied for ninth in program history with 128 RBIs.
Going The Distance: As a team, MSU has tossed 14 complete games already this year after throwing just eight last season. Josey Marron and Aspen Wesley have accounted for 11 complete games.
Marron Leaves Her Mark: Josey Marron's 138 career strikeouts through her first two years rank 13th in school history. Should she reach 200 this season, she'd become just the ninth Bulldog to record 200 strikeouts before the end of her sophomore season.
About Florida (29-4, 5-1 SEC)
Rankings: NFCA Coaches – 10 | USA Softball – 9 | D1Softball – 10 | Softball America – 9Head Coach: Tim Walton | Record at UF: 955-227 (19th Year) | Career Record: 1,078-291 (22nd Year)
Batting Average: .378 | Runs Per Game: 9.00 | Hits Per Game: 9.48 | Slugging Pct: .659
ERA: 1.17 | K/7: 5.98 | K/BB Ratio: 2.69 | Opp. Batting Avg: .144
Series History
Overall: 22-44 | Home: 8-20 | Away: 11-22 | Neutral: 3-2Current Streak: Lost 1 | Last Series: March 12-14, 2022, UF won in Gainesville, Fla. (G1: UF, 8-4 | G2: MSU, 1-0 | G3: UF, 3-0)
About the Gators
Florida has already broken its school record with 23 run-rule victories this year. The Gators also lead the nation with 17 shutouts, which is third in their history. Florida leads the nation in fielding percentage (.985) and doubles (66) as well. 2023 NFCA Player of the Year Skylar Wallace is second nationally in OPS (1.584), first in on-base percentage (.630) and fifth in batting average (.488). Freshman Keagan Rothrock is already 10th in Florida freshman history with 112 strikeouts, which ranks 13th nationally. She has thrown 13 complete games this year with seven shutouts.On Deck
The Bulldogs hit the road for a four-game trip next week. State will head to UAB on Wednesday, April 3 for a 5 p.m. CT first pitch. From there, the team heads to Columbia, South Carolina, for a three-game set with the No. 22/RV Gamecocks beginning Friday, April 5.Follow the Bulldogs
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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