STARKVILLE — Mississippi State softball kicked off the Snowman: Alex Wilcox Memorial presented by Newk’s Eatery with two dominant wins on Friday. The Bulldogs (7-0) defeated Murray State 9-1 in five innings and shut out Rutgers 8-0 in six frames, according to school officials.
Morgan Stiles led the offensive charge, going 6-for-7 with two doubles and extending her hitting streak to 11 games. She also scored three times and posted a career-best four hits against Rutgers. Coach Samantha Ricketts praised Stiles for her consistency at the top of the lineup.
“I really liked how we came out and scored first in both games,” Ricketts said. “That’s always a focus for us. Our pitchers, Alyssa Faircloth and Peja Goold, did a great job commanding the zone. We played two complete games with solid defense and effective offense, which was encouraging.”
Faircloth struck out nine batters and allowed only two hits in her start against Murray State. Goold tossed her second one-hitter of the season, striking out eight. Offensively, Kinley Keller hit her first career home run, and Nadia Barbary extended her reached-base streak to 11 games, batting .361 over that span.
In the second game, Paige Ernstes and Silva contributed multi-RBI performances. Ernstes drove in two runs, including her third career multi-RBI game, while Silva plated two and recorded her first hit at MSU. The Bulldogs have now scored five or more runs in 88 of their last 108 wins since 2023, according to team statistics.
Next, Mississippi State will face Rutgers again at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, followed by a game against North Texas at 3 p.m. Both contests will be streamed on SEC Network+.
