Courtesy: mstateathletics.com Brittany Bell's two-out base hit in the sixth inning rallied Mississippi State to a 4-3 win and the Bulldog Classic championship.
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Brittany Bell’s two-out base hit in the bottom of
the sixth scored Ka’ili Smith with the winning run as Mississippi State
rallied to defeat Troy 4-3 and claim the 2010 Bulldog Classic
championship Sunday afternoon at the MSU Softball Field.
Smith, who was named the Bulldog Classic Most Valuable Player, led-off
the decisive inning with a single to right field. Jessie Bailey moved
her to second with a sacrifice bunt, and two batters later, Bell lined
a 3-2 offering from Troy’s Ashlyn Williams to right center that scored
Smith with the game-winner.
The Bulldogs (13-6) trailed in the game until the home half of the
fifth. With two outs in the inning, Jessie Spain kept MSU alive as she
was hit by a pitch. Pinch-runner Brittany Gates moved to second on a
Chelsea Bramlett walk, and all-tournament selection Allie Heon gave the
Dawgs a 3-2 lead as she cleared the bases with a double to center
field.
“I thought Troy’s pitcher (Williams) threw a great game. We had a hard
time getting on top of that rise ball, but I thought we really battled
and had some key hits at key times. Brittany Bell came through with the
winning hit, and Jessie Spain did a nice job of getting on base to
score the tying run,” MSU head coach Jay Miller said. “It’s always good
to come from behind, especially going into conference play because it
gives you a little bit of a builder. It was a good win overall.”
Troy (14-6), however, was not done as Sarah Harris’ base hit the next
half inning scored Adkins to knot the game 3-3 and put the lead run at
third. Freshman Stephanie Becker gave the Bulldogs a chance to win as
she entered the game and got a strikeout to end the threat.
One of three MSU pitchers on the afternoon, Becker struck-out three and
held Troy to one hit over the final 1.1 innings to earn the win and
improve to 3-1 on the year. All-tournament selection Misty Flesher kept
the Dawgs in the game, holding the Trojans to a run and four hits over
the middle 3.2 frames.
“Our pitchers did a nice job all weekend. Kylie (Vry) and Misty threw
well, and Stephanie came in and shut them down,” Miller said.
Troy jumped out to a 2-0 lead after scoring an unearned run in both the
first and second innings off Vry. Bulldog freshman Erin Nesbit cut into
the two-run deficit in the third as she lined the first pitch she saw
from Williams off the scoreboard in left field for her third home run
of the season.
Williams was saddled with the loss to fall to 10-5 on the year. She
went the distance, giving up four runs on six hits with seven
strikeouts.
Bramlett, a preseason All-SEC selection, matched her career high as she
tallied a hit in her 16th-straight game. The Cordova, Tenn., native
also swiped a base, giving her 20 consecutive successful steals to open
the season and a school fourth-most 27 going back to 2009.
The Bulldogs open Southeastern Conference play Tuesday and Wednesday,
hosting 20th-ranked Tennessee in a three-game set that begins at 4 p.m.
both days.
Bulldog Classic All-Tournament Team:
MVP – Ka’ili Smith, Mississippi State
Ashley Lawrence, Mississippi Valley State
China Frost, Wright State
Louie Haney, Wright State
Kala Moore, Troy
Sarah Harris, Troy
Ashlyn Williams, Troy
Chelsea Bramlett, Mississippi State
Allie Heon, Mississippi State
Jessie Bailey, Mississippi State
Misty Flesher, Mississippi State
Kylie Vry, Mississippi State
Courtesy: mstateathletics.com
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