Thursday, May 28
Oklahoma City, Okla.
11 a.m.
Mississippi State
vs
#4 Texas Tech
State Makes First Women’s College World Series Appearance In Program History
May 27, 2026 | Softball
OKLAHOMA CITY – The No. 20 Mississippi State softball team will make its first Women's College World Series appearance this week, opening play in the first game of the tournament at 11 a.m. CT on Thursday against No. 4 Texas Tech.
The Red Raiders are a familiar foe for the Bulldogs. Texas Tech ended State's season in the Lubbock Regional last year. That game was part of MSU being the only team to play three games in 2025 against the final four teams at the 2025 Women's College World Series.
Despite the season-ending loss, the Bulldogs did open the year last year with an extra-innings victory over the Red Raiders. Kiarra Sells drove in the game-winning run with her first career hit in that game. Sells is 4-for-7 against the Red Raiders in her career, and Morgan Stiles is 4-for-9.
Stiles holds MSU's career NCAA Tournament hits record in large part because of her success against Texas Tech last year. Stiles collected eight hits in the Lubbock Regional, as many as she has in six games this year and one shy of the State single-year tournament record. When the Bulldogs faced Texas Tech head-to-head in the winner's bracket game, Stiles matched her then-career high with three hits, all off of Red Raider ace NiJaree Canady.
Should the Bulldogs win on Thursday, they will advance to play the winner of No. 6 Texas and No. 8 Tennessee at 2 p.m. on Saturday. That game will air nationally on ABC. In the event of a loss, the team plays the loser between the Longhorns and Lady Vols at 6 p.m. on Friday with the game airing on ESPN2.
Shutting Out The Sooners: State became the first team to shut out Oklahoma since Alabama did so in the 2019 Women's College World Series (399 games). Delainey Everett threw the first MSU shut out of a top-five team in the NCAA Tournament since Aspen Wesley in the 2022 Tallahassee Regional against then-No. 2 Florida State.
Deuces: MSU's deepest postseason runs both saw the Bulldogs defeat the nation's No. 2-ranked team twice on the road. In 2022, MSU took down then-No. 2 Florida State to reach its first Super Regional, and this year the Dawgs toppled No. 2 Oklahoma.
Regional For The Records: Alyssa Faircloth turned in the best regional performance by an MSU pitcher on record. She set MSU NCAA Tournament single-year records for wins, strikeouts and strikeouts looking, while not allowing a run in 15.2 innings.
Postseason Prowess: Morgan Stiles has broken the MSU career record for NCAA Tournament hits (16) and needs just one to match the single-season record.
All Ag Does Is Win: Abby Grace Richardson played in both the NJCAA World Series and now the Women's College World Series. The last to do that in their career was Alabama's Kendal Clark in 2024, who played in the 2023 NJCAA World Series where Richardson won a national championship.
Rewriting Records: MSU's pitching staff has broken the single-season school record with 516 strikeouts which is just the eighth 500-strikeout season by an SEC team since 2016. Five of the previous seven teams to reach that mark reached the Women's College World Series.
A Big O For Oregon: Alyssa Faircloth's no-hitter at No. 12 Oregon (May 16) in the Eugene Regional was MSU's first ever in the NCAA Tournament and first ever against a ranked team. It was State's third this year, all by a different pitcher.
Broccoli Bites: Similar to the 2018 Mississippi State baseball team that reached Omaha with its Rally Banana, the Bulldogs embraced broccoli at the Eugene Regional after a fan danced with the vegetable in centerfield through every pitch of every game.
All-American Arms: Alyssa Faircloth and Peja Goold were both named Second Team All-Americans by various outlets. They are the first Bulldog pitchers to earn All-American status since Kellie Wilkerson (1999-02) did so every year of her career. Faircloth was the league's coaches' SEC Newcomer of the Year, while Goold earned the same title from USA Today Sports.
In Extra Innings: 2-2 | One-Run Games: 8-9
Tournament Record By Opponent: Alabama, 0-0; Arkansas, 0-0; Nebraska, 0-0; Tennessee, 0-0; Texas, 0-4; Texas Tech, 0-2; UCLA, 0-0
The Red Raiders are a familiar foe for the Bulldogs. Texas Tech ended State's season in the Lubbock Regional last year. That game was part of MSU being the only team to play three games in 2025 against the final four teams at the 2025 Women's College World Series.
Despite the season-ending loss, the Bulldogs did open the year last year with an extra-innings victory over the Red Raiders. Kiarra Sells drove in the game-winning run with her first career hit in that game. Sells is 4-for-7 against the Red Raiders in her career, and Morgan Stiles is 4-for-9.
Stiles holds MSU's career NCAA Tournament hits record in large part because of her success against Texas Tech last year. Stiles collected eight hits in the Lubbock Regional, as many as she has in six games this year and one shy of the State single-year tournament record. When the Bulldogs faced Texas Tech head-to-head in the winner's bracket game, Stiles matched her then-career high with three hits, all off of Red Raider ace NiJaree Canady.
Should the Bulldogs win on Thursday, they will advance to play the winner of No. 6 Texas and No. 8 Tennessee at 2 p.m. on Saturday. That game will air nationally on ABC. In the event of a loss, the team plays the loser between the Longhorns and Lady Vols at 6 p.m. on Friday with the game airing on ESPN2.
Leading Off
Toppling A Giant: The Bulldogs clinched their first trip to the Women's College World Series in the Norman Super Regional while ending Oklahoma's run of five consecutive trips to Oklahoma City. State is the only team to beat the Sooners twice this season, and Samantha Ricketts is the only former Sooner-turned-head coach to defeat her mentor Patty Gasso.Shutting Out The Sooners: State became the first team to shut out Oklahoma since Alabama did so in the 2019 Women's College World Series (399 games). Delainey Everett threw the first MSU shut out of a top-five team in the NCAA Tournament since Aspen Wesley in the 2022 Tallahassee Regional against then-No. 2 Florida State.
Deuces: MSU's deepest postseason runs both saw the Bulldogs defeat the nation's No. 2-ranked team twice on the road. In 2022, MSU took down then-No. 2 Florida State to reach its first Super Regional, and this year the Dawgs toppled No. 2 Oklahoma.
Regional For The Records: Alyssa Faircloth turned in the best regional performance by an MSU pitcher on record. She set MSU NCAA Tournament single-year records for wins, strikeouts and strikeouts looking, while not allowing a run in 15.2 innings.
Postseason Prowess: Morgan Stiles has broken the MSU career record for NCAA Tournament hits (16) and needs just one to match the single-season record.
All Ag Does Is Win: Abby Grace Richardson played in both the NJCAA World Series and now the Women's College World Series. The last to do that in their career was Alabama's Kendal Clark in 2024, who played in the 2023 NJCAA World Series where Richardson won a national championship.
Rewriting Records: MSU's pitching staff has broken the single-season school record with 516 strikeouts which is just the eighth 500-strikeout season by an SEC team since 2016. Five of the previous seven teams to reach that mark reached the Women's College World Series.
A Big O For Oregon: Alyssa Faircloth's no-hitter at No. 12 Oregon (May 16) in the Eugene Regional was MSU's first ever in the NCAA Tournament and first ever against a ranked team. It was State's third this year, all by a different pitcher.
Broccoli Bites: Similar to the 2018 Mississippi State baseball team that reached Omaha with its Rally Banana, the Bulldogs embraced broccoli at the Eugene Regional after a fan danced with the vegetable in centerfield through every pitch of every game.
All-American Arms: Alyssa Faircloth and Peja Goold were both named Second Team All-Americans by various outlets. They are the first Bulldog pitchers to earn All-American status since Kellie Wilkerson (1999-02) did so every year of her career. Faircloth was the league's coaches' SEC Newcomer of the Year, while Goold earned the same title from USA Today Sports.
NCAA Tournament History
Appearances: 20 | Overall: 30-40 | vs. Ranked Teams: 5-27 | WCWS: First AppearancesIn Extra Innings: 2-2 | One-Run Games: 8-9
Tournament Record By Opponent: Alabama, 0-0; Arkansas, 0-0; Nebraska, 0-0; Tennessee, 0-0; Texas, 0-4; Texas Tech, 0-2; UCLA, 0-0
Tournament Notables
Mississippi State is making its first Women's College World Series appearance. The Bulldogs' five NCAA Tournament wins this year are a school record, and State tied the record for its longest postseason winning streak by winning its first four games. Each time that MSU has reached a stage of the tournament for the first time in school history it has been by beating the NFCA-ranked No. 2 team in the nation at their own field. Samantha Ricketts is 14-10 in the NCAA Tournament at MSU, which is double the wins of the second-best total by a Bulldog coach.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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