Friday, April 10
Starkville
5 p.m.
Mississippi State
vs
#8 Arkansas
No. 13 Mississippi State Host No. 8 Arkansas On All For Alex Weekend
April 09, 2026 | Softball
STARKVILLE – Another busy weekend is on tap at Nusz Park at No. 13 Mississippi State prepares to host No. 8 Arkansas along with both All For Alex Weekend and Alumni Weekend.
The series will be State's third against a top-10 opponent this year and second such matchup at home. The Bulldogs are coming off of a series loss at No. 5 Florida that came down to a replay review on the final play of the weekend to decide the series.
All 15 teams around the SEC will wear teal uniforms or teal accents on Saturday as the conference celebrates the life and legacy of former Bulldog student-athlete Alex Wilcox and raises awareness of the symptoms of ovarian cancer that took her life.
Students in attendance Saturday can pick up a free teal Wilcox jersey t-shirt and free loaded teas. Fans will be able to purchase replica teal jerseys all weekend. Saturday will also feature pregame alumni recognition.
Sunday is State's annual Bark in the Park day and the only day of the year that pets, excluding service animals, are allowed in Nusz Park. Dog owners must sign a waiver upon arrival, and disruptive dogs may be asked to relocate. Section 101 will remain a dog-free section for those fans that wish to avoid pets in attendance. Fans can also pick up free dog tags on arrival.
Pop At The Top: Kiarra Sells has been consistent at the top of the order over the last seven games since moving into the leadoff spot. Since moving to that spot, she is hitting .474 with a 1.512 OPS. For the season, she has reached safely in 60.0 percent (15 of 25) of her leadoff opportunities.
Tale Of Two Seasons: Nadia Barbary boasted 30 extra-base hits with eight homers in her first two seasons combined. In the last two seasons, Barbary has posted back-to-back double-digit homer seasons with 43 extra-base hits. She enters the weekend among the MSU career top-10 in both doubles (43, T-7th) and homers (29, 9th).
Fill 'Er Up: Mississippi State has dominated the strike zone, leading the nation with 379 strikeouts, which is sixth-most in program history. The Bulldogs have 310 more strikeouts than walks and also lead the SEC for fewest walks allowed. Meanwhile, only four other teams in the country have reached 300 strikeouts this year.
Down On Strikes: Alyssa Faircloth became the fastest MSU pitcher to record 100 strikeouts in a season, needing just 55.2 innings to do so. She now boasts 178, which ranks fifth nationally, and is just 22 away from the sixth 200-strikeout in school history.
Win The Late Innings: In Mississippi State's SEC games this year, 45 of 71 runs (63.4 percent) scored by both teams came in the fifth inning or later and only 12 total runs combined have been scored in the first two frames.
Protecting The Plate: The Bulldogs have thrown out 11 runners at the plate this year, including seven when leading by one run, tied or trailing.
Paige Powers Up: Paige Ernstes drove in five runs, the highest single-game RBI total by a Bulldog this year, in Game 2 at No. 5 Florida (4/4). That was one shy of her season total entering that game.
Sacrificial State: Des Rivera has tied the MSU single-season record with five sacrifice flies, which is sixth nationally. As a team, the Bulldogs boast 20, which ranks is just one shy from the school record.
Head Coach: Courtney Deifel | Record at Ark: 392-184 (11th Year) | Career Record: 419-211 (12th Year)
Batting Average: .370 | Runs Per Game: 8.81 | Hits Per Game: 9.50 | Slugging Pct: .637
ERA: 2.38 | K/7: 7.03 | K/BB Ratio: 2.47 | Opp. Batting Avg: .215
Current Streak: Won 1 | Last Series: March 22-24, 2024, MSU won in Fayetteville, Ark. (G1: MSU, 6-3 | G2: Ark, 3-0 | G3: MSU, 15-7 [5 inn.])
The series will be State's third against a top-10 opponent this year and second such matchup at home. The Bulldogs are coming off of a series loss at No. 5 Florida that came down to a replay review on the final play of the weekend to decide the series.
All 15 teams around the SEC will wear teal uniforms or teal accents on Saturday as the conference celebrates the life and legacy of former Bulldog student-athlete Alex Wilcox and raises awareness of the symptoms of ovarian cancer that took her life.
Students in attendance Saturday can pick up a free teal Wilcox jersey t-shirt and free loaded teas. Fans will be able to purchase replica teal jerseys all weekend. Saturday will also feature pregame alumni recognition.
Sunday is State's annual Bark in the Park day and the only day of the year that pets, excluding service animals, are allowed in Nusz Park. Dog owners must sign a waiver upon arrival, and disruptive dogs may be asked to relocate. Section 101 will remain a dog-free section for those fans that wish to avoid pets in attendance. Fans can also pick up free dog tags on arrival.
Game Coverage
Friday, April 10
5 p.m. – Arkansas | Watch on SEC Network+ | Listen | Live Stats | Buy TicketsSaturday, April 11
2 p.m. – Arkansas | Watch on SEC Network+ | Listen | Live Stats | Buy TicketsSunday, April 12
11 a.m. – Arkansas | Watch on SEC Network+ | Listen | Live Stats | Buy TicketsLeading Off
Offensive Outbreak: State's bats broke out in Game 2 at No. 5 Florida (4/4), posting a season-high 14 hits and an SEC-season-high nine runs. Five different hitters had multiple hits, and eight of nine starters had at least onePop At The Top: Kiarra Sells has been consistent at the top of the order over the last seven games since moving into the leadoff spot. Since moving to that spot, she is hitting .474 with a 1.512 OPS. For the season, she has reached safely in 60.0 percent (15 of 25) of her leadoff opportunities.
Tale Of Two Seasons: Nadia Barbary boasted 30 extra-base hits with eight homers in her first two seasons combined. In the last two seasons, Barbary has posted back-to-back double-digit homer seasons with 43 extra-base hits. She enters the weekend among the MSU career top-10 in both doubles (43, T-7th) and homers (29, 9th).
Fill 'Er Up: Mississippi State has dominated the strike zone, leading the nation with 379 strikeouts, which is sixth-most in program history. The Bulldogs have 310 more strikeouts than walks and also lead the SEC for fewest walks allowed. Meanwhile, only four other teams in the country have reached 300 strikeouts this year.
Down On Strikes: Alyssa Faircloth became the fastest MSU pitcher to record 100 strikeouts in a season, needing just 55.2 innings to do so. She now boasts 178, which ranks fifth nationally, and is just 22 away from the sixth 200-strikeout in school history.
Win The Late Innings: In Mississippi State's SEC games this year, 45 of 71 runs (63.4 percent) scored by both teams came in the fifth inning or later and only 12 total runs combined have been scored in the first two frames.
Protecting The Plate: The Bulldogs have thrown out 11 runners at the plate this year, including seven when leading by one run, tied or trailing.
Paige Powers Up: Paige Ernstes drove in five runs, the highest single-game RBI total by a Bulldog this year, in Game 2 at No. 5 Florida (4/4). That was one shy of her season total entering that game.
Sacrificial State: Des Rivera has tied the MSU single-season record with five sacrifice flies, which is sixth nationally. As a team, the Bulldogs boast 20, which ranks is just one shy from the school record.
About Arkansas (33-5, 8-4 SEC)
Rankings: NFCA Coaches – 8 | USA Softball – 6 | D1Softball – 6 | Softball America – 7 Head Coach: Courtney Deifel | Record at Ark: 392-184 (11th Year) | Career Record: 419-211 (12th Year)
Batting Average: .370 | Runs Per Game: 8.81 | Hits Per Game: 9.50 | Slugging Pct: .637
ERA: 2.38 | K/7: 7.03 | K/BB Ratio: 2.47 | Opp. Batting Avg: .215
Series History
Overall: 40-36 | Home: 21-14 | Away: 18-20 | Neutral: 1-2 Current Streak: Won 1 | Last Series: March 22-24, 2024, MSU won in Fayetteville, Ark. (G1: MSU, 6-3 | G2: Ark, 3-0 | G3: MSU, 15-7 [5 inn.])
Notables
The Razorbacks are coming off a sweep of Auburn last weekend where they did not allow a single earned run. That marked the first time since May 3-4, 2000, that the Hogs did not allow an earned run over three games of a conference series. Arkansas returned 99.7 percent of its innings pitched from last season, including all 44 wins, nine saves and 346 strikeouts. Reagan Johnson broke the Arkansas career hits record earlier this season. Freshman Brinli Bain is batting .412 with three home runs, 13 doubles, 30 walks and 29 RBI. Entering the weekend, Bain leads all DI freshmen with a .555 on-base percentage.On Deck
The Bulldogs go back on the road and head west as they play at No. 14 Texas A&M next weekend. Friday's game will be broadcast nationally on SEC Network at 7:30 p.m. CT. The final two games of the series will air on SEC Network+ at 4 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday.Follow the Bulldogs
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB." 
Players Mentioned
INF
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C/INF
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C
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OF
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