10/31/04 - Madison County High School soccer player Bethany Frazier, a Mississippi State commitment, is officially visiting Mississippi State this weekend.

In other recruiting news, Starkville Academy soccer goal keeper Avery Allen, one of the top players in the southeast, has verbally committed to the University of Texas.

Source: Gene Swindoll

The Lady Bulldogs are in third place overall, firing a 289 on day two, giving them a 584 total at the Raven Course at Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort, a par 71, 5,937 yard course.

"It was an outstanding performance from the team today," said head coach Christi Sanders. "Consistency continues to be the key to our low scores. Beth shined today in all areas of her game today, especially putting. Most of all, I am proud of her composure on the course through her entire round."

Janet Dyer shot a 73 on day two, putting her in a tie for 16th entering the final day of competition. Tied for 22nd, Amanda Mathis fired a 72, lowering her score from day one by four strokes. Stephanie Godare recorded a 77 for a tie in 35th place. Junior Ashleigh Korzack is in a tie for 49th place after shooting a 78 in her second 18 holes.

Auburn takes the team lead, shooting a 13-under par 271, a tournament record. Leading the tournament, Auburn's Diana Ramage recorded a tournament record low 64 in the second round. Irwin is four strokes behind Ramage going into the last day.

On Sunday, the Lady Bulldogs tee off at 8:00 a.m. in a shotgun start.

Source: MSU Media Relations

In Flight A consolation action Saturday, junior Bulldog Florent Girod went 1-1. He downed Colorado's Jan Zelezny 6-2, 4-6, 1-0(3), taking the third set in a supertiebreaker. Girod then dropped a 6-1, 6-1 decision to Miami's Tim Krebs in the semifinals of that draw.

In main draw singles play in Flight B, sophomore Arnaud Roussel, claimed the first set against Wake Forest's Liron Strauss in Saturday's quarterfinals, but was unable to hang on to that lead, eventually falling 3-6, 7-6(3), 6-1.

In Flight C competition, Bulldog freshman Josh Irey was a 6-3, 6-4 winner over Samford's Brad Weaver, moving him into the finals of his consolation bracket. Irey is slated to meet fellow MSU newcomer Jordan Jones, who received a bye, in the finals.

In Flight B doubles main draw play Saturday, Girod and Irey teamed up, but dropped an 8-2 decision to Jason Labrosse and Tim Mulane of Arizona. The Bulldog pair will play a consolation match Sunday.

Source: MSU Media Relations

The Lady Bulldogs were led by senior Meggan Hodge, who finished 16th with a time of 21:32.47 on the 6K course.

Juniors Jennifer McPherson and Zita Magloire also finished in the top 30 for MSU. McPherson’s time of 21:52.42 captured 22nd place, while Magloire finished 26th (22:04.87).

In competing in just their third SEC Championship, both McPherson and Magloire improved on their previous best times in the meet. McPherson’s previous best time was 24:14.89 set just a year ago. Magloire’s previous best time came in 2002, when she ran 24:11.56.

Joy Griffith (23:09.13) and Mina Thorstenson (23:34.22) finished 58th and 72nd, respectively. Senior Jackie Rentschler’s time of 24:02.85 posted a 79th-place showing. Competing in her first conference championship, freshman Jacqui Aubert finished 90th (24:49.86).

"Our fourth and fifth runners didn’t run well," women’s head coach Al Schmidt said. "We just didn’t have a good day."

Tennessee’s women (55) edged meet host Arkansas (57) by just two points to capture the meet title in the closest finish ever at the Championship. Georgia finished third with 63 points, followed by Florida (160), Auburn (168), and Vanderbilt (177).

On the men’s side, MSU was led by senior Gedamu Ege, Ege finished 58th with a time of 25:39.40 on the 8K course. Sophomore Phillip Moore finished one spot behind Ege in 59th (25:39.67).

Freshmen John Brigham (25:44.73) and Robert Scribner (25:46.91) also finished back-to-back at 62nd and 63rd, respectively. Following behind the duo was sophomore Ryan Irwin (64th-place, 25:47.60).

"Our vision was to be one place higher than last year," men’s head coach Steve Dudley said. "As a coaching staff, we want this team to improve and get to where we’ll be in the top half of the conference."

Arkansas captured the men’s championship with 23 points. Florida (72) finished second and was followed by Georgia (81), Auburn (96), and Tennessee (124) in the top five.

Both MSU squads will compete at the NCAA South Regional on Nov. 13. The regional is being hosted by the University of Alabama and will be held at the Harry Pritchett Golf Course in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/30/04
Cross Country
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State University’s cross country squads are set to compete at the 2004 Southeastern Conference Championships Saturday, Oct. 30, hosted by the University of Arkansas. Both races will take place at the Razorback Cross Country Course on the UA campus. The women’s 6K race will begin at 9 a.m., followed by the men’s 8K run at 10 a.m.

The Lady Bulldogs, who have won two meets this season, are led by a trio of runners who each have three top 10 finishes to their credit. Junior Jennifer McPherson has been MSU’s top finisher in two races. McPherson finished second (10:26.75) at the MSU Short Course Invitational on Oct. 22. She also finished fifth (18:29.44) at the Auburn Invitational.

Zita Magloire captured the individual meet title at the Short Course Invitational with a time of 10:26.18. The junior is the reigning SEC Female Athlete of the Week.

Senior Meggan Hodge has had a remarkable comeback this season following a back injury, that kept her out during the 2004 track season. Her top finish was at the Short Course Invite, finishing third (10:30.71). Hodge was a First Team All-SEC selection in 2002.

At the 2003 SEC Championships, Tennessee won the meet with 57 points. The Lady Bulldogs finished seventh.

On the men’s side, the Bulldogs are seeking to improve on their eighth-place finish from a year ago. Arkansas is the defending champion, winning with 33 points last year.

Sophomore Ryan Irwin won his first career meet in the 6K race of the Short Course Invitational (19:35.37). Senior Gedamu Ege was MSU’s top finisher in the 5K race at the Short Course Invite (15:24.78).

Freshman Will McGee is the lone other Bulldog to finish in the top five of any race this season. McGee finished fifth at the Short Course Invite’s 6K race with a time of 21:58.04.

The last time an MSU cross country team captured a conference title was in 1962. The men’s team posted 37 points to beat Auburn. The Lady Bulldogs’ best team showing came in 1991, when the squad finished third.

Both MSU squads return to action on Nov. 13, at the NCAA South Regional in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Source: MSU Media Relations

In other MSU action Friday, junior Florent Girod split a pair of contests to reach the round of 16 in Flight A action. After opening the day with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Jacksonville State's Vedran Sirola, Girod fell 6-1, 6-0 to Virginia's Marko Miklo in the round of 16.

In Flight C competition, Bulldog newcomers Josh Irey and Jordan Jones were both straight-set victims in the first round of that draw, and would also endure setbacks in their first-round consolation matchups later in the day.

In Flight C doubles, Jones paired with Pepperdine's Kevin Borzenski, but the cross-country duo dropped an 8-6 decision to Samford's tandem of Manuel Miletic and Brad Weaver.

Bulldogs Girod and Irey received a first-round bye in Flight B doubles and will play their first match in the quarterfinals of that draw Saturday afternoon. Roussel is slated to pair up with Troy's Arthur Muller in Flight B action as well.

Source: MSU Media Relations

"The team effort was very steady and consistent throughout the round today," said head coach Christi Sanders. "We will change our strategy for one hole that cost us several shots today, but other than that, we will continue with the same game plan for tomorrow."

Senior Beth Irwin paced the Maroon and White today with her even par 71, tying her career low round which she set in the first round of this tournament in 2003. Irwin enters day two tied for third, one shot out of the lead. Janet Dyer and Stephanie Godare finished in a tie for 18th, both shooting a 74 in the opening round. Amanda Mathis and Ashleigh Korzack both fired a 76 on day one, leaving them tied for 39th.

"Beth had a solid and exciting round today," said Sanders. "She had four birdies, tying her with five other players for the lead in that category after the first round."

Virginia and Auburn are tied for the team lead after round one with a 292. Auburn’s Diana Ramage and Wake Forest’s Laura Crawford paced the field with their one-under par performances.

On Saturday, the Lady Bulldogs tee off at 8:00 a.m. in a shotgun start.

Source: MSU Media Relations 10/29/04
Softball
PLANT CITY, Fla. - A pair of pitchers posted victories in their national team debuts, while a Southeastern Conference athlete tallied the damage at the plate, as Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller led Team USA to a pair of tight victories over Athens 2004 gold medal participant Australia and The Netherlands Wednesday afternoon at the First World University Games at the International Softball Federation headquarters in Plant City, Fla.

Auburn catcher Sara Dean posted a RBI in both the first and sixth innings against the Aussies helped the US rally behind a six-strikeout day from Kami Keiter (Oklahoma), but the Red, White and Blue was forced to hold back a late surge in the bottom of the seventh to secure the win. Southern Illinois staff ace Amy Harre struck out six on the shoulders of a four-hit shutout against The Netherlands, but Team USA, again, had to fight off late inning dramatics in the victory.

"Having two rookie pitchers get their first wins in the Red, White and Blue uniform is quite a day," Miller said. "I think Kami and Amy did a great job from the circle along with (Arizona pitcher) Alicia (Hollowell) and (Tennessee pitcher) Monica (Abbott) who came in the seventh inning and did their job. Offensively we still need to get on track. We are fighting things at the plate and just need more swings and at-bats. Hopefully that will come around and we will be playing our best ball come the medal rounds."

Team USA lit up the scoreboard early against the Aussies, using just four at-bats to plate a run in the top of the first, capped off by Dean's RBI single that plated Cal-Berkeley speedster Vicky Galindo from third. The US would stretch their advantage to a pair in the sixth, using the top of the order again to do the damage when Dean singled home Galindo from second base.

Australia used opportunistic hitting to chase Keiter in its half of the seventh before the US called on Hollowell from the bullpen. The Aussies would spoil the shutout with a fielder's choice RBI, but Hollowell retired the last two batters of the game via strikeout.

Recording just one hit in the first four inning of play against the Netherlands, Team USA put together a two-run fifth, highlighted by a solo blast from Jodie Legaspi (UCLA), to provide the only runs of the game. The Netherlands used a single and a fielding error to put together a comeback effort in the seventh, but Abbott came on in relief of Harre and recorded the game's final outs to slam the door.

Team USA will continue round-robin play at the First World University Games on Thursday morning when the club takes on Canada at 9 a.m. EDT and China at noon.

Source: MSU Media Relations

State enters the weekend in a three-way tie for eighth place in the SEC and among five teams battling for the eighth and final slot in this year's SEC Volleyball Tournament Nov. 19-21 in Gainesville, Fla.

Bulldog junior outside hitter Rachel Cooper, MSU's team-leader with a career-best 326 kills, third-most in the SEC, has 942 career kills. With 12 more kills the Roscoe, Ill., native would climb to eighth on State's all-time career kills list.

Georgia is paced by junior middle blocker Alexandra Oquenda, who ranks third in the SEC in hitting percentage (.396) and kills per game (4.32) and fifth in blocks per game (1.33).

There is no charge for admission to MSU's home volleyball matches at the Newell-Grissom Building, and fans can serve for prizes during the promotional break following game two.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Following Saturday morning's scrimmage, Bulldog players and coaches will take part in an autograph-signing session around the Coliseum floor.

State fans will have another preseason opportunity to check out coach Rick Stansbury's defending SEC Champions next Saturday (Nov. 6), as the Bulldogs play host to Universidad Panamericana out of Mexico City. With tip-off set for 1 p.m., MSU's lone men's basketball exhibition contest will also be free of charge and open to the public.

Source: MSU Media Relations

"The team had a good practice round today and are ready for the final event of the fall season," said head coach Christi Sanders. "The golf course is in great shape, and the ball is rolling well on the greens."

The SEC field includes Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Kentucky, LSU, Mississippi State, Ole Miss and South Carolina. Competing in the ACC are Florida State, Duke, Maryland, Miami, North Carolina, NC State, Virginia and Wake Forest.

Sanders will send seniors Janet Dyer and Beth Irwin, juniors Stephanie Godare and Ashleigh Korzack and sophomore Amanda Mathis to compete for MSU.

The Challenge will consist of 54 holes. Each team will play five women and the winning team will be determined by taking the low four scores over the 54 holes.

In 2003, Mathis, Irwin and Korzack, competing as an individual, all paced the squad with their tied for 31st finish and 154 two-round total. The tournament was shortened to two rounds due to inclement weather on the final day of competition. Duke won the team title, firing consecuative rounds of 276. Elizabeth Janangelo was the individual medallist shooting a 69 in the first round and a 65 in the second, a tournament record.

Round one will begin with a traditional start at 7:30 a.m. on Friday.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/28/04
Softball
PLANT CITY, Fla. - The USA Elite team, skippered by third-year Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller, split day one of the 1st World University Softball Championship with a 3-0 victory over Japan in the afternoon and a 3-2 loss to Chinese Taipei in the evening.

Pitcher Alicia Hollowell (Arizona) struck out 10 and worked seven innings of shutout ball against Japan, while Jodie Legaspi (UCLA) and Norrelle Dickson (Oklahoma) provided RBI knocks in the fifth inning to secure the win. In the nightcap, Japan offset a 10-strikeout game from Monica Abbott (Tennessee) with three runs in the opening frame, then held off a late US surge to complete the triumph.

"We were a little tentative out of the gate against Japan, but finally connected in the fifth," Miller said. "Alicia really pitched a solid ball game for us. She really battled and made the pitches that she needed to.

"We dug ourselves into a hole in the first inning against Taipei. We kicked the ball around and made some errors that cost us. We really couldn't put anything together and they really played a nice game and made some good plays."

Japan got runners into scoring position in each of the first and third innings, but Hollowell shut down the threat both times, slamming the door with a strikeout to end the first, then inducing consecutive pop-ups to nix the Japan threat in the third. Team USA would take charge of the game by loading the bases in the fifth, then getting clutch hits from Legaspi and Dickson.

Chinese Taipei got back-to-back base hits to begin the first inning in the nightcap, then used a pair of crucial fielding errors by Team USA to take a 3-0 lead into the second. Highlighted by doubles from Vicky Galindo (Cal-Berkeley) and Sara Dean (Auburn), Team USA would cut the Taipei lead to just a single run with a rally in the sixth, but could not find the third run to even up the game.

Continuing in round robin play, the US will look to rebound on Wednesday as they play back-to-back games at noon against Australia and at 3 p.m. versus The Netherlands.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/27/04
Cross Country
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State University’s Zita Magloire has been named the Southeastern Conference’s Female Cross Country Athlete of the Week for her performance at the MSU Short Course Invitational, the league office announced on Monday.

"It was a great race for Zita," said women’s head coach Al Schmidt. "This is a great accomplishment for her."

Magloire captured top honors in the women’s 3K race on Oct. 22 in Starkville. The win marked the best finish of her career and her second top five finish of the season. Her previous season best finish (5th) came on Sept. 11 at the Memphis Twilight, a 4K course.

"I really must thank my team and coaches who have helped improve a lot this year," Magloire said.

The Tallahassee, Fla. native is a pre-med/biosciences major at MSU. She is the daughter of Harriett Paul and Gerard Magloire.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Joe Deraney turned in the Bulldogs low round of the day with a three-under-par 69. The Statesboro, Ga. senior finished 24th in the field. Senior Tim Satow fired a three-over par 75 and finished 53rd, while Josh Oller finished up the MSU scoring with a 76 in the final 18 holes. Jared Jimenez recorded a 78 on the day.

SMU took home team honors with a seven-shot victory over runner-up Arkansas, who posted a 32 under-par final tally. Mississippi, Georgia Southern and Alabama rounded out the top five in the team totals.

Baylor’s Jeremy Alcorn won the individual title with a three-round score of 13- under-par.

State will open the 2005 portion of the schedule in the spring when it takes part in the Central Florida/Rio Pinar Intercollegiate in Orlando, Fla. on Feb. 14-15.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/26/04
Women's Tennis
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Mississippi State's women's tennis team brought home three singles championship titles from the Wilson/ITA South Regional in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Monday. Sophomore Tarryn Rudman, freshman Renee Joseph and MSU's lone senior Magdi Rekasi all won the singles title in their respective brackets.

Randpark, South Africa, native Tarryn Rudman defeated Ole Miss's Virginia Tomatis in a Draw A Consolation match that came down to a super tiebreaker. Rudman fell 6-1 in the first set, but came back in the second set to win 7-6(5). Both players battled back and forth, but Rudman pulled the championship out in the end with an 11-9 super tiebreaker win.

Renee Joseph, a Rock Hill, S.C., native, defeated South Alabama's Ana Rupic in a 6-2, 6-2 decision in the finals of Draw B to win the title. This is Joseph's first main draw win in Maroon and White.

Lone senior Magdi Rekasi also won her singles championship in a super tiebreaker. After winning the first set 6-3, Rekasi dropped the second set in a close 7-5 decision. Rekasi clinched the victory in a 10-4 super tiebreaker.

In doubles action, State's tandem of Joseph and Kugakolova fell 8-6 in a close match to South Alabama's Nemcovicova and Stanic in the finals of Draw B doubles.

Next, MSU travels to Peachtree City, Ga., for the SEC Fall Classic held Nov. 4-7.

Source: MSU Media Relations

State sophomore Greg Huxman carded career rounds in the first two rounds. The Miami, Fla. native fired a five-under 67 in the opening round. He followed that up with a two-under 70. He sits in a tie for eighth at seven-under-par with two other participants. Huxman is two shots off the club house leaders Will Dodson of SMU and LSU’s Chris Wells, both are in at nine-under-par.

"I am very proud of the way Greg (Huxman) played today. He did not make a bogey on the day," said State coach Clay Homan.

The first round score of 280 for the Maroon and White is the best opening round since 1995 Gator Invitational. It also marks as the best overall round since the 1999 season. Senior Joe Deraney registered a two-under-par 70, Senior Tim Satow carded a one-under-par 71 and sophomore Josh Oller posted an even-par round. Jared Jimenez fired a 74 in the first round.

In the second round, Jimenez rebounded to shoot an even-par score and sits in 50th. Satow finished the day with a 73, while Deraney rounded out the MSU scoring with a 74, he and Satow are currently tied for 40th. Oller completed the day at plus three and in 56th place. After two rounds 39 players in the field are under-par.

"The weather conditions were ideal and the greens were soft, combined with a strong field," said Homan. "We played steady, but we needed to make a few more birdies."

MSU stands just three shots back of No. 2 Auburn, who fired a two-round total of 566. SMU leads the team competition at 27-under-par. Arkansas, No. 12 Georgia Southern, Mississippi and LSU round out the top-five teams.

The Bulldogs will close out competition Tuesday, teeing off at 8 a.m. They are paired with Alabama and Auburn in the final round.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/25/04
Men's Golf
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State's men's golf team looks to post its fourth-straight top-10 finish on Monday, Oct. 25 when they travel to Baton Rouge, La. for the University Club Intercollegiate, hosted by Louisiana State University.

The tournament will conclude fall action for the State linksters. They opened the slate with a sixth-place finish at the Raising Cane Classic and a third and sixth-place showing at the Cardinal Intercollegiate and the Memphis Intercollegiate respectively. The last time the Maroon and White finished in the top-10 of all four fall events was 1998 the fall campaign.

Head coach Clay Homan will start seniors Joe Deraney, Tim Satow, sophomores Josh Oller and Greg Huxman. Junior Jared Jimenez will round out the five-man crew. Deraney leads the team in scoring with a 72 average. The Statesboro, Ga. product will look to register his third-straight top-10 placing. Satow has finished in the top-25 in the previous two events.

"This is a very important week for us," said Clay Homan. "The competition in the tournament is the toughest that we have seen this fall."

This season the tournament will be played at the University Club. The 54-hole, two-day event had previously been held at the Country Club of Louisiana for the last 10 years. University Club cards a par 72 and spans over 7,274 yards.

The 14-team field includes four teams ranked in the top-25 by Golfstat. No. 2 Auburn, No. 11 Kent State, No. 12 Georgia Southern and No. 21 Texas Tech. Four other Southeastern Conference squads will compete in the event: Alabama, Arkansas, LSU and Mississippi. The rest of the field includes UAB, Baylor, College of Charleston, North Florida, Southern Methodist and Tulane.

Last season State placed 13th in the LSU/CC of Louisiana Intercollegiate. Jake Lambert led all Bulldogs in scoring with a three-round total of 219.

Play will begin at 8 a.m. on Monday with the second round taking place in the afternoon.

Source: MSU Media Relations

The win gave Auburn a weekend sweep of its two SEC road matches in Mississippi while the Bulldogs lost their third straight in league play.

State jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the opening game before Auburn recovered. A Bulldog service error, one of 11 on the afternoon, gave the Tigers a 15-14 lead and the visitors, who had but two hitting errors in the opening frame, never trailed the rest of the game.

The Bulldogs out-hit the Tigers .219 to .172 and held a 13-12 edge in kills in game two. But a Mississippi State strength this season, solid serving, became a telling weakness in the second set as Auburn parlayed six aces and five Bulldog service errors into a nine-point swing at the service line and a 30-22 win.

State stepped up its play in the third game, hitting at a match-best .389 clip and battling Auburn on near-even terms throughout the first half of the final stanza. Rachel Cooper had six kills and Jamie Joyner four as MSU rallied to cut the Auburn lead to a point at 29-28. But it was too little and too late for State, as Amobi delivered a game-winning kill to end the match.

Cooper had 14 kills and Joyner added 12 for State. Megan Lukasek had a match-high 15 digs and Julie Hamilton paced State at the net with three blocks.

Mississippi State continues SEC play at the Newell-Grissom Building this weekend, closing out a four-match SEC homestand with a Friday match against Georgia (7 p.m.) and a Sunday match against SEC-leading Florida (2 p.m.)

AUBURN 3, MISSISSIPPI STATE 0
AUB (8-10, 3-7 SEC) 30 30 30
MSU (12-12, 3-7 SEC) 22 22 28

Source: MSU Media Relations

Janet Dyer led the Lady Bulldogs the entire tournament, recording a 75 in the final 18 holes. Dyer finished tied for 31st. Sophomore Amanda Mathis and senior Beth Irwin both finished the tournament tied for 49th with an event total of 227. Mathis recorded a 76 on day three, and Irwin a 74, her tournament low. Ending tied for 58th, Stephanie Godare and Ashleigh Korzack both shot a 229 in the squad's third tournament of the fall.

Host Furman pulled out a team win, firing a 292 in the final round, one stroke better than runner-up and 2003 defending champion Georgia. Furman's Monique Gesualdi won the individual medallist honors with her three-under par total, pacing the field throughout the three-day event.

Next, the Lady Bulldogs travel to Sandestin, Fla., for the ACC/SEC Challenge on Friday, Oct. 29. The Florida State hosted event will be held at the Raven Golf Club at the Sandestin Resort.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Tarryn Rudman defeated 121st-ranked Miami's Melissa Applebaum, 6-3. 7-6, in the quarterfinals of Draw A Consolation. To advance to the championship match, she won a three-set match, 6-4, 0-6, 10-6, against Dijana Stanic of South Alabama in the semis. Rudman faces Virginia Tomatis of Ole Miss in the finals. Also in Draw A Consolation, Anastasia Kugakolova dropped her match to Tomatis, 6-3, 6-1, in the quarterfinals.

Zsuzsanna Fodor fell, 6-1, 6-4, to 23rd-ranked Shadisha Robinson of Georgia in the quarterfinals of Draw A.

In Draw B, Renee Joseph defeated Florida State's Tapiwa Marobela, seeded third in the tournament, 7-6, 6-2, in the quarterfinals and Desanka Jovanovic of Florida International by default in the semis to advance to the championship match. Joseph is scheduled to play top seeded Ana Rupic of South Alabama in the match. Hayley Rudman fell in the quarterfinals to Rupic in a 6-2, 6-3 decision.

Magdi Rekasi, in Draw B Consolation, was victorious in her semifinal match with Georgia Southern's Simona Foltyn, 6-2, 6-1. Rekasi faces UAB¹s Nischa Maier-Knapp in the finals.

State's tandem of Joseph and Kugakolova defeated Florida International's duo of D'Armas and Cutuk, 8-1, to move on to the finals to take on South Alabama's Nemcovicova and Stanic.

All finals matches will be played on Monday, beginning with doubles.

Source: MSU Media Relations

From deep in the left flank, MSU’s Betty Ann Casey struck a diagonal pass toward the goal from that eluded the UK backfield. The Bulldogs' Suh outraced Kentucky goalkeeper Liz Butler to the loose ball and buried it from 10 yards out for the only goal Mississippi State would need.

Kentucky had plenty of scoring opportunities, as evidenced by its 15 shots and seven on goal, but the Cats failed to dent the net. UK also generated seven corner kicks to none for the Bulldogs. Kentucky's Erin Witchey got a head on a 79th-minute Ashley Janning corner kick, but MSU goalkeeper Emily Meyers recorded the save. An 82nd-minute Callie Lanphier shot rolled just wide of the right post, and moments later, Lanphier had the ball and a clear shot to the goal from eight yards but lost control of the ball when preparing for the shot.

A Wildcat victory next Friday against Vanderbilt would give Kentucky the eighth and final seed in the conference tournament, set to begin Nov. 4 at Auburn. Should Kentucky lose to Vanderbilt, UK could still qualify for the tournament with a Georgia loss Friday at Tennessee and ties or losses from Arkansas and South Carolina. Kentucky is the only SEC school to qualify for all 11 conference tournaments.

Mississippi State will return to action on Friday when the Bulldogs begin a regular season-ending two-game homestand against cross-state nemesis Ole Miss at the MSU Soccer Field. The game has been slated for a 7 p.m. start time and the Bulldogs' six-member senior class will be honored in a pre-game ceremony prior to kick off.

10/23/04
Soccer
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Vanderbilt overcame a myriad of first half shots by homestanding Mississippi State with three second half scores of their own to spoil State's first home outing in more than two weeks with a 4-1 triumph Friday evening at the Mississippi State Soccer Field.

MSU (6-8-3, 3-5-1) freshman Kevyn Shelledy punched in her second goal of the campaign off fellow freshman Brandi Parker's second assist to spoil a Commodore (5-6-4, 4-2-3 SEC) shutout with just more than two minutes remaining. Vanderbilt got a goal and an assist from Amy Baumann in the victory.

Although dropping the contest, State fell just one spot in the overall SEC standings and remains tied with Kentucky for seventh place. The Maroon and White are three points (one win) shy of sixth place Ole Miss and two points ahead of both Arkansas and Georgia. Having played all 90 minutes in the contest, senior defender Morgan McDonald surpassed the 7,000 minute mark in the game and upped her MSU career-leading tally to more than 7,070 ticks.

"Vanderbilt is a very good program and they got most of the play tonight," said Mississippi State head coach Neil Macdonald. "We looked flat and tired throughout the game and I'm not sure why because we got a couple days of rest earlier this week and two fairly good training sessions. At this stage in the season, a lot of it is mental and you have to keep pushing yourself through. Vanderbilt obviously did a better job of that tonight."

State threatened to take an early lead and found eight of the first nine shots of the opening period, but could not put the ball between the posts, despite close range shots. Vanderbilt grabbed the early advantage when Hegg's 10-yard through ball somehow found its way through the Maroon and White defense to where Lauren Mitchell finished with a one-timer to the far post. The Bulldogs got their best chance of the stanza a short time later, but Commodore netminder Tyler Griffin proved up to the task on Ngum Suh's eight-yard header, leaving her feet to corral a ball that nearly found its way over the endline.

Facing an 8-4 shot disparity at the intermission, the Commodores came out of the halftime gates with a purpose and quickly padded their lead out to 2-0 when Lea Lafield made good on a bad shot angle and beat a diving Emily Meyers in the 53rd minute. The Black & Gold would push their advantage out to 3-0 on Amy Baumann's one-timer in the 78th minute, before the Bulldogs would turn up the juice over the next 10 minutes of play before getting a score from Shelledy. The Commodores would add an insurance goal just less than two minutes later when Baumann's service into the box found its way over the hands of a leaping Meyers and into the abdomen of Brette Healy. The deflection off the freshman would inevitably bounce over the endline and into the back of the net.

Mississippi State will return to action on Sunday when the Bulldogs close out the road portion of its 2004 regular season schedule with an afternoon date at Kentucky (6-9-1, 3-5-1). Kickoff has been set for 2 p.m. EST at the 1,500-seat UK Soccer Complex. The Wildcats dropped a 5-1 decision at Ole Miss on Friday in Oxford.

Source: MSU Media Relations

The Lady Bulldogs won the team title with a score of 25. Conference rival Alabama and in-state foe Southern Miss tied for second with 50 points each. Jacksonville State finished fourth with 103 points.

The win over Alabama marked the sixth time on the year that MSU has finished ahead of a conference rival. Heading into the SEC Championship, the Lady Bulldogs own a 6-1 mark over SEC opponents faced on the year.

Junior Zita Magloire, who finished in 10:26.18, beat out teammates Jennifer McPherson and Meggan Hodge to capture the wome's title.

"We all did really good today," Magloire said. "We worked hard and ran as a team."

McPherson's second place time of 10:26.75 capped off a stellar regular season for the junior. It marked the third time this season the junior finished in the top 10. Senior Meggan Hodge came in third at 10:30.71.

Sophomore Joy Griffith (10:55.45) finished eighth to close out the top 10 for MSU. Other MSU runners that completed the race were Mina Thorstenson (11th, 11:03.96), Jackie Rentschler (18th, 11:32.00), Jacqui Aubert (20th, 11:41.84), and Anne Fyfe (25th, 12:41.46).

"This was a good race," said women's coach Al Schmidt. "The three of them (Hodge, Magloire, and McPherson) worked really well together. They ran well together. We just need to finish stronger with our fourth and fifth runners."

Sophomore Ryan Irwin posted a career best finish by capturing the men's 6K title. Irwin's time of 19:35.37 marked the first time in his career that he led the team in standings.

Freshman Will McGee finished fifth in 20:09.98. It was McGee's best finish of the year. Sophomore Kevin Coch also marked the best finish of the year with a time of 20:24.29 (eighth place). Freshmen Padd Judd and Paul Bahamondes finished 10th and 11th respectively. Sophomore Shelby Nousain (14th, 21:25.18) and junior Matt Martin (15th, 21:58.04) also competed for the Bulldogs.

Jacksonville State edged MSU 16-20 to take the team 6K title.

In the men's 5K race, conference rival Alabama took top team honors with 18 points. Jacksonville State came in second with 26 points, followed by MSU with 34.

The Bulldogs' top finisher was senior Gedamu Ege. Ege's time of 15:24.78 was good enough for fifth place overall. Teammate Phillip Moore finished 20 seconds behind Ege in sixth place.

MSU's five other runners finished together. John Brigham (15:38.43) finished in 11th place ahead of fellow freshman Robert Scribner (15:46.51) in the 12th spot. The sophomore trio of Travis McKay (15:48.87), Brandon Smith (16:08.87), and Dustin Fier (16:24.23) finished 13th, 14th, and 15th, respectively.

"I tried to position our guys to win," said men's head coach Steve Dudley. "I’m very happy for Ryan. We also have two guys crack JSU and Alabama's top four and that hasn't happened all year."

MSU will travel to the SEC Championships on Oct. 30, in Fayetteville, Ark.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Senior Janet Dyer and junior Ashleigh Korzack are tied in 35th-place, both firing an 18-hole total of 75. Korzack recorded her lowest round of the season with her score of 75. Picayune, Miss., native Amanda Mathis and Germantown, Tenn., native Beth Irwin are each tied in 49th place with a score of 76. Junior Stephanie Godare shot a 77, tying her in 61st place.

Host Furman is leading the tournament after day one with a one-under par total of 287. Furman's Jenny Suh and Monique Gesualdi are in first place entering the second round of competition, both shooting a three-under par 69.

Round two is scheduled to begin at 8:20 a.m. on Saturday.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Fodor defeated Auburn's Ashley Cowart in her opening match of the tournament in a 6-0, 6-4 decision in Draw A. She then faced Miami's Emily Mowery in the round of 32, winning 6-2, 6-0, to advance. Also in Draw A, Anastasia Kugakolova fell, 6-4, 6-1, to Georgia Tech's preseason 55th-ranked Kelly Anderson in the first round. Randpark, South Africa, native Tarryn Rudman dropped her Draw A match to Kristi Miller of Georgia Tech, 6-3, 6-2.

In Draw B singles, Hayley Rudman was victorious over UAB's Jana Wild, 1-6, 6-1, 7-5, advancing to the round of 32. Rudman then defeated Auburn's Sarah Suitor, 7-5, 6-1, to move onto day two. Renee Joseph, Polina Kokoulina and second-seeded Magdi Rekasi all received byes in the opening round of Draw B singles. Kokoulina won her round of 32 match with Kiera Strickland of Georgia Southern in a 6-2, 6-1 decision to advance to the round of 16. Joseph defeated Samrin Tanzeem of UAB, 6-1, 6-1, to move ahead in the bracket. Rekasi fell, 6-1, 7-6, to Florida State's Alina Mihailescu.

In doubles action, MSU's duo of Fodor and Rekasi fell in a hard fought match, 9-8, to Frazier and Robinson of Georgia in Draw A. Lady Bulldog tandem Rudman and Rudman and duo Joseph and Kugakolova both received byes to the second round of competition in Draw B on Saturday.

The third round of singles and second and third rounds of doubles are scheduled to be played on Saturday, with doubles matches starting at 8 a.m.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/22/04
Volleyball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State opens the second half of the 2004 SEC volleyball season and a four-match league homestand this weekend entertaining a pair of long-time SEC Western Division rivals.

The Volleyball Bulldogs (12-10, 3-5 SEC) welcome Alabama (14-5, 4-4 SEC) to the Newell-Grissom Building Friday at 7 p.m. and Auburn (6-10, 1-7 SEC) Sunday at 2 p.m. It's the first of two meetings this season with both teams for MSU, which in two weeks travels to Auburn (Nov. 5) and Alabama (Nov. 7).

MSU, ranked No. 100 in the latest RichKern.com volleyball computer ratings, is riding a modest season-longest two-match winning streak after topped Troy University 3-1 Sunday and downing Southern Miss 3-0 Tuesday night in Hattiesburg.

MSU's season-longest homestand continues next weekend when State entertains SEC East powers Georgia (Oct. 29) and Florida (Oct. 31).

Alabama is second in the SEC West and tied for fifth in the overall conference standings and opens a four-match SEC road run with Friday's match at the Newell-Grissom Building. The Crimson Tide has claimed the last 10 series meetings, including a pair of 3-0 wins last season.

Source: MSU Media Relations

"We have had a couple weeks of good practice sessions and look forward to getting back into competition," said head coach Christi Sanders. "The key to our success right now is consistency. The team is focused and up to the challenge of the strong field of competition in this tournament."

Sanders is sending Amanda Mathis, Stephanie Godare, Janet Dyer, Beth Irwin and Ashleigh Korzack to the links for the Maroon and White. Mathis is currently ranked 25th in the nation, and the team is 23rd in the nation, both rankings by Golfstat.com.

The 23 team field includes #5 Auburn, #6 Georgia, #18 Florida, #19 Furman, #35 Michigan State, #40 Northwestern, #52 TCU, #54 Mississippi, #56 UNC Wilmington, #57 College of Charleston, #58 Miami, #60 East Carolina, #63 Coastal Carolina, #67 Louisville, #87 Florida State, #94 Minnesota, Appalachian State, Florida International, Memphis, South Florida, UNC Greensboro and Winthrop.

State did not compete in this tournament last season. The 2003 champion was Georgia with a score of 866, setting a new single-round record with a 283 on day two and a new three-round total record. Back to defend her title, Georgia's Natalia Nichols was the individual medallist with a three-round total of 215 in 2003.

The 54-hole tournament will begin at 8:20 a.m. on Friday with rounds two and three slated for an 8:20 a.m. start on Saturday and a 9:30 a.m. shotgun start on Sunday.

Source: MSU Media Relations

State has three singles players and two doubles teams seeded in the tournament. Newcomer Zsuzsanna Fodor, who has won two of the three tournament top draws she has competed in, is seeded sixth in the A singles. Fodor has a 12-1 singles record this fall with a four-match win streak. Senior Magdi Rekasi and freshman Renee Joseph are seeded second and sixth, respectively, in the B singles draw. Rekasi boasts a .667 winning percentage so far this fall, and Joseph has recorded a 5-3 singles record. In B doubles, MSU's duo of Hayley Rudman and Tarryn Rudman are seeded second, and Anastasia Kugakolova and Polina Kokoulina are seeded sixth.

The singles finalists and doubles champion from this prestigious event will be rewarded with invitations to the ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships at the University of Michigan, to be held Nov. 4-7. The Indoor Championships are the second of three national championship events held during the season. Players representing 21 schools from four states will compete the event. The Championships will also feature eight of the nation's top 50 collegiate singles players as well as several of the nation's premier doubles teams.

Play will begin Friday morning at 8 a.m. There will be an A and B draw for both singles and doubles.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Four races are scheduled for Friday afternoon. The women's 3K race will start the action at 2:30 p.m., and the women's 4K will follow at 3 p.m. The men will start with a 5K run at 3:30 p.m., and the final race of the day will be the men's 6K at 4 p.m.

On the men's side, head coach Steve Dudley hopes his team will have a strong showing on their home course.

"We look forward in being able to compete at home this weekend, especially with SEC teams such as Alabama and Auburn coming to town," Dudley said. "Jacksonville State is ranked in the top seven of the South region so it should give our guys a great opportunity to get sharp for the upcoming SEC Championship."

The Bulldogs are coming off a sixth place finish at the Auburn Invitational on Oct. 11. MSU's top finisher was sophomore Travis McKay, who finished 30th with a time of 26:19.16.

On the women's side, head coach Al Schmidt's team looks to improve on their record against conference opponents. Currently, the Lady Bulldogs have posted a 5-1 record versus SEC schools. With the SEC Championships approaching, Schmidt's squad hopes this meet will better prepare them.

"It's a good tune-up meet before the SEC's," Schmidt said. "The big week is next week."

On Oct. 11 at the Auburn Invitational, junior Jennifer McPherson led all Lady Bulldog runners with a fifth place finish. Overall, MSU finished in third place with 81 points.

Both MSU squads return to action on Oct. 30 at the SEC Championships in Fayetteville, Ark.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/21/04
Soccer
STARKVILLE, Miss. ­ Currently in a three-way tie for sixth place overall in the latest Southeastern Conference standings, the Mississippi State soccer team will return home for the first time in more than two weeks on Friday evening when the Bulldogs lace up to face SEC East foe Vanderbilt in a key inter-divisional clash at the Mississippi State Soccer Field.

With neither squad having the luxury of secured spots in the 2004 SEC Tournament in Auburn, Ala., both will look to gain a leg up in the race as teams across the league begin a weekend that has all 12 playing both home and away contests. Kickoff for State's (6-7-3, 3-4-1 SEC) game with the Commodores (4-6-4, 3-2-3) has been set for 7 p.m. and admission to all 2004 MSU Soccer home games is free. The Friday evening tilt can also be followed via a live stats link at the official Internet home for MSU athletics, MStateAthletics.com.

Vanderbilt will roll into Starkville fresh off a 1-1-0 weekend that saw it drop a 2-0 decision at No. 6 Tennessee, before rebounding with a come-from-behind triumph at divisional rival Georgia. The Bulldogs, likewise, split a pair of conference dates this past weekend, dropping a 4-1 decision at No. 23 Florida, then securing its third conference victory with a 3-2 comeback effort at South Carolina.

Although trailing its five-game series with the Commodores by a 4-1 count, State currently owns the winning trend in the series after capturing a 2-1 decision in Nashville, Tenn., on Oct. 18, 2002. In that contest, the Black & Gold outshot the Bulldogs by a 23-4 count, but State broke a 1-1 deadlock with an Ngum Suh goal in the 52nd minute of play. The Bulldogs are winless in three Starkville meetings, but scored their first two goals of the series in a 4-2 home loss to Vanderbilt in the last Starkville meeting in 2001.

"I think that these next three games are huge games for us, particularly this weekend's games," said Mississippi State head coach Neil Macdonald. "We¹ve always talked about racking up points every weekend and we need to keep doing what we are doing. We've gotten three points every weekend on a fairly consistent basis. I think that if we continue to do that, we're going to give ourselves a great opportunity to go to the SEC Tournament.

"If we can carry forward some momentum from last Sunday and try to finish the season up with some wins, we can really set ourselves up to do well."

Having gone winless in its first five games of the regular season, Vanderbilt has rebounded quite nicely to post a 4-2-3 clip over its last nine games, including a 1-1 tie with then-No. 14 Florida and then-No. 20 Auburn. The Commodores assumed a 1-0 lead on the Gators in the 15th minute, but Florida netted its Equalizer in the 70th minute. Against Auburn, Vanderbilt captured a lead in the 75th minute, but the Tigers eventually tied the score with a goal in the 88th minute.

The Commodores have gotten the bulk of their scoring from junior midfielder Meghan Habig who has contributed six goals and an assist on the season, including three of the Commodores' last seven scores. Of Habig's six goals, one has been of the gamewinning variety while two others have eventually been logged as game-tying scores.

However, Vanderbilt's success this season can be attributed to defensive personnel that has allowed less than one goal a game (0.99) in eight conference games, despite yielding an average of just more than 14 shots in those outings. Sophomore goalkeeper Tyler Griffin has gotten the bulk of the action in the nets for Vanderbilt, posting a 1.08 goals against average and a .838 save percentage in 10 appearances this season. Griffin has been notably strong in SEC play where the Providence transfer has produced a 0.86 GAA and a .865 save percentage.

"Vanderbilt is a very well-organized team and their transition on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball is excellent," Macdonald said. "They play a defensive game by the looks of things and look to capitalize on their counterattack. They are a very talented team and they will be a handful on Friday night. We just need to go out and play with the passion and commitment that we showed on Sunday."

On the other side of the ball, junior Betty Ann Casey has distanced herself from the rest of the pack as State's scoring leader, tallying four assists and a team-high four goals, including the Equalizer with just two minutes left in the Bulldogs' 3-2 victory over South Carolina in overtime on Sunday. However, MState has plenty of options all over the pitch with 11 of its last 12 goals coming from midfielders or defenders.

Sophomore midfielder Sara Moore, a converted defender, has punched in a pair of gamewinners for the Bulldogs this season, including Golden Goals against both Georgia and South Carolina.

Following Friday evening's matchup at home, the Maroon and White will hit the road for the last time on Sunday when the squad travels to Lexington, Ky., for a major league contest with the Kentucky Wildcats (6-8-1, 3-4-1). Kickoff for that contest has been slated for 2 p.m. EST at the 1,500-seat UK Soccer Complex. Sunday's outing can also be followed via a live stats on Mississippi State's official athletic website.

Source: MSU Media Relations

A pitching and catching clinic, as well as a hitting clinic, will be the focus of two separate sessions on Jan. 2. The winter clinics will conclude on Jan. 29, 2005, with an all-skills session.

The coaches clinic, to be offered on Jan. 28, 2005, will cover five different aspects of coaching the athlete. Hitting and defensive skills and drills, as well as the fundamentals of the fastpitch softball pitcher, will entail the first part of the session. Offensive and defensive strategy, practice planning and organization and strength and conditioning for the softball player will also be covered in the eight-hour session.

The pitching and catching clinic is designed to provide in-depth instruction into both pitching and catching and participants will learn all the basic fundamentals of both positions. Participants will also have the opportunity to learn advanced skills and drills for both the pitcher and catcher. The camp will help both the athlete just learning the skills, as well as the advanced softball player.

The pitching and catching clinic is designed to provide in-depth instruction into both pitching and catching and participants will learn all the basic fundamentals of both positions. Participants will also have the opportunity to learn advanced skills and drills for both the pitcher and catcher. The camp will help both the athlete just learning the skills, as well as the advanced softball player.

Miller, who will be entering his third season at the helm of the Bulldogs after helping to lead State to its third-straight NCAA Regional appearance, is a leading authority on softball technology, having written more than 30 articles for professional publication. He most recently authored a chapter entitled "Offensive Strategy" for The Softball Coaching Bible, published by Human Kinetics Press in 2002.

In addition, he has developed four softball skills videotapes currently marketed internationally. He is also considered one of the top softball clinicians in the world, having conducted more than 100 camps and clinics in the United States, Netherlands Antilles, Italy, Czech Republic, Holland, France and Malaysia.

For more information on the MSU Softball winter clinics, or to obtain an application, please contact camp administrators at (662) 325-0572. Applications for the clinics can also be obtained by logging on to Mississippi State's official athletic department website, www.MStateAthletics.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/15/04
Men's Tennis
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - With a pair of qualifying draw triumphs Thursday, MSU junior Florent Girod has moved into main draw singles action at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Southeast Region Indoor Championships, being held at the Racquet Club of Memphis. The event is the qualifying tournament for the ITA National Indoor Championships, to be held in early November in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Girod lost only seven games in his two matches on the day. In round one, he downed LSU's Jonathan Howard 6-3, 6-3. He followed that with a near-shutout of Austin Peay's Andrew Naidu 6-1, 6-0. Those wins earn him a spot in the main draw, which begins Friday morning.

In other action Thursday, sophomore Arnaud Roussel, who had not played yet this fall due to a hamstring injury, opened the day with a solid 6-2, 6-0 victory over Austin Peay's Jon Brown. He then dropped a 6-3, 6-3 decision to Kentucky's Jason Mallaiah in the second round.

Also on the court Thursday were MSU newcomers Josh Irey and Jordan Jones, who each dropped their first-round matches. Irey was a 6-1, 6-3 victim of LSU's Kevin Dessauer, while Jones dropped a 6-3, 6-0 decision to Danny McGuire of Tennessee-Martin.

State junior Jose-Carlos Pinto, ranked 110th nationally, was already entered into the main draw. He will receive a first-round bye Friday morning and play his first match at 1:30 p.m. Friday afternoon.

In doubles, MSU will have one entry in the main draw field, as Girod and Irey will pair up for the Bulldogs, scheduled to play their first match Friday at 5 p.m. MSU's 13th-ranked team of Luiz Carvalho and Pinto, who were to have been the No. 2 seed in this weekend's tournament, pulled out of the draw due to an elbow injury to Carvalho that was aggravated at last week's ITA All-American Championships in Chattanooga, Tenn. Carvalho and Pinto reached the semifinals of the All-American, automatically qualifying the duo for November's ITA National Indoors.

Source: MSU Media Relations

"We are really excited to be traveling to NC State," said head coach Tracy Lane. "All the teams that are involved in this tournament are new to us, so we will be getting the opportunity to compete against different conference teams. Our goals are to continue developing to the best of our ability, so we can have a successful spring season."

The Lady Bulldogs have four seeded players in the tournament brackets. In Singles Draw A1, MSU's Zsuzsanna Fodor is the second seeded, and Tarryn Rudman is third. Fodor is set to face Hess of UNC-Wilmington in a 12:15 p.m. match on Friday. Tarryn Rudman will play UNC-Charlotte's Friedman at noon. Also in the Singles Draw A1 bracket is Anastasia Kugakolova, who takes on Matrka of Coastal Carolina.

In Singles Draw A2, Magdi Rekasi is the second-seeded player in the draw. She will face Watkins of Marquette. Renee Joseph and Hayley Rudman are seeded third and fourth, respectively, in the Singles Draw B1. Joseph will play Dinh of Coastal Carolina, and Rudman faces Surviladze of Campbell. Top-seeded Polina Kokoulina plays Placente of UNC-Charlotte in the Singles Draw B2.

In doubles action, Fodor and Tarryn Rudman are the top-seeded tandem in the Doubles Draw A1. MSU's duo will play Hess and Kisser of UNC-Wilmington. Hayley Rudman and Kokoulina are also in the Doubles Draw A1 bracket and will face Matrka and Pinh of Coastal Carolina. Rekasi and Kugakolova are the second seeded tandem in the Doubles Draw A2. They will take on Randolph and Hanusz of Liberty in their first match.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/14/05
Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State's men's tennis team continues its fall schedule this weekend (Oct. 14-18), when the Bulldogs compete in the ITA Southeast Region Indoor Championships in Memphis, Tenn. Action gets underway Thursday at the Racquet Club of Memphis.

Competing for MSU in singles this weekend will be Jose-Carlos Pinto, Florent Girod, Arnaud Roussel, Josh Irey and Jordan Jones. All Bulldogs but Pinto will begin action in the qualifying draw. Those four players must win two matches to advance to the main draw of the tournament. Pinto, ranked 110th nationally, is automatically entered into the main draw based on his ranking.

In doubles, Pinto will team with Luiz Carvalho. Girod and Irey will also form a pair for MSU. Jones and Roussel are currently on the alternate list for the doubles field.

This weekend's tournament is the qualifying event for the ITA National Indoor Championships, college's second major, to be held in early November in Ann Arbor, Mich. Carvalho and Pinto are already entered into the 16-team doubles draw at that event due to their performance at last week's ITA All-American Championships in Chattanooga, Tenn. Ranked 13th nationally as a duo, Carvalho and Pinto reached the semifinals of the All-American, which is the first major of the year.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Live statistics, as well as live audio and live streaming video, will be available for the contest via links at the official Internet home of Mississippi State Athletics, www.MStateAthletics.com. Streaming video of the game, also known as Gatorvision Online, offers high quality streaming video at both dial-up and DSL/Cable speed. GatorVision Online is $6.00 for a single event. It is recommended that users have the latest version of Windows Media Player to ensure the best quality.

With the momentum of a moderatly successful weekend behind them, State (5-6-3, 2-3-1 SEC) will battle the nationally ranked Gators (9-3-2, 3-2-1) amidst a sea of Orange and Blue supporters after upending then-No. 6 ranked Florida by a 1-0 count last season in Starkville. Florida is coming off a somewhat successful weekend as well with a 3-0 victory at Kentucky, as well as a 1-1 draw with Vanderbilt in Nashville.

In addition to capturing its first victory in the now-five-game-old series, the Maroon and White netted their first score in a matchup that had previously been dominated by UF. Florida leads its overall series with MSU by a 4-1 count and has outscored MState by a 26-1 count in the series.

In State's Senior Night outing against UF last season, the Maroon and White got a 65th minute goal from Sara Moore then bunkered down on defense the rest of the way to turn back the Gators at the MSU Soccer Field.

"Florida is a very good team with lots of pace on the outside," said Mississippi State head coach Neil Macdonald. "For us to have success against them, we will have to defend them very well. Not only will our back four have to have a good game, but our goalkeeper will have to have a phenomenal game as well. They have skill at every position and all of their players have the ability to take over a game at any given time.

"We need to continue to have belief in our system and keep people in front of us and try to frustrate them, then rely on the counterattack. That is what will give us success."

Although getting phenomenal support from a defensive unit that has surrendered just less than one goal a game through 14 outings this season, the Gators possess a very strong offensive front as well which has been led by the antics of senior midfielder Stephanie Freeman. With 11 goals and a pair of assists on the season already, Freeman looks to have a lock on the season points lead, but has been well supported by at least two others as well. Freeman and two others in her supporting cast ­ fellow seniors Ashley Kellgren (5G, 7A) and Christine Johnson (4G, 2A) ­have combined to score seven of the Gators' nine gamewinning goals this season.

With seven starts in eight appearances this season, converted defender Jen Gardner has gotten much of the action in the nets for Florida this season, tallying a 0.48 goals against average and 20 saves. As a defensive unit, UF has limited its opponents to a 0.96 goals against average and has yielded just more than seven shots per game.

Although paced by a pair of forwards in the scoring column, State has gotten an abundance of its scoring over the last nine outings from its midfield and defense. Senior midfielder Kristin Peterson has netted both of her goals on the season during that time frame, including Sunday's gamewinner against the Crimson Tide.

Following Friday evening's matchup in Gainesville, Mississippi State will close out its four-game trip on Sunday afternoon in Columbia, S.C., when the Bulldogs face the South Carolina Gamecocks (6-7-2, 0-4-2) in a 1 p.m. contest at USC's 5,700-seat Eugene E. Stone III Stadium. Sunday's game can be followed via a live stats link at MStateAthletics.com as well.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/13/04
Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. ­ The Mississippi State softball team sent six student-athletes to National Fastpitch Coaches Association academic all-American accolades, while the team itself finished with the 16th-best GPA among 79 Division I institutions nationwide, the organization announced Friday afternoon.

Kate Jaspers, Jennifer Jessup, Lindsay Nelson, Meagan O'Nan, Krystal Tillman and Callye Williams were all named to the NFCA scholar-athlete list. It was the third such honor for Nelson and Tillman, and the second consecutive accolade for Jaspers and Jessup.

The Bulldogs finished with an SEC-best 3.316 cumulative GPA that included 14 athletes that posted a 3.0 GPAs or better in the 2003-04 academic year. The GPA was the highest of any of the 10 other softball-playing institutions. Florida was the only other SEC institution listed in the top 50 as the Gators checked in at No. 21 with a 3.282 overall team GPA. Southern Miss was 52nd with a 3.130 mark.

"If you look over the last few years, no other team in the SEC has had the number of academic all-Americans that we have had," said MState head coach Jay Miller. "There is no other team that has had the grade point average that we have had here at Mississippi State either.

"That can be attributed to the hard work and effort our kids put forth in the classroom, as well as the commitment that Mississippi State has to recruiting outstanding student-athletes, rather than just athletes. It also shows their commitment to the overall success of our program here at Mississippi State."

The honors marked the third consecutive year that at least five MSU softball players have been decorated with the honor. The Bulldogs sent a league-high 13 athletes to academic all-conference honors in June marking the fourth time since 1997 that the Maroon and White has accomplished that feat.

In addition, a pair of Bulldogs ­ Jaspers and Iyhia McMichael ­ earned CoSIDA academic all-American honors, with Jaspers being named CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year.

Over the past seven academic seasons, the MSU softball team stands alone as the leader of academic all-SEC honorees since the sport's inception in 1997. The conference has decorated 70 MSU softball players with SEC academic honor roll honors since 1998, an average of 10 per year.

Source: MSU Media Relations

"We've got to put those two weekend matches behind us and get ready for a stiff challenge from Ole Miss," said first-year MSU head volleyball coach Tina Seals. "This was a heated rivalry when I was a player at Mississippi State and I'm sure it still is today."

The Rebels have reeled off five consecutive wins in the series, with State last besting UM 3-1 at the Newell-Grissom Building in the first of two meetings in 2001.

With her match-leading 12 kills Sunday against South Carolina, Bulldog junior outside hitter Rachel Cooper climbed into MSU's career top 10 list. Cooper has 845 career kills and needs six more to climb to the ninth position on MSU's all-time leaders list. Cooper is also four digs away from the 700-dig milestone for her career.

Mississippi State continues to pace the Southeastern Conference in service aces with 143, 31 by Andrea Mead, 26 by Christa Fulenwider and 24 by Orshi Kriegel.

MSU travels to Lexington, Ky., for a regionally-televised SEC match with the Kentucky Wildcats Friday. The 7:30 p.m. (EDT) match in Memorial Gymnasium is the season-opening telecast of SEC-TV's Volleyball Match of the Week series shown on FOX SportsNet South.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Samford captured the women’s 5K race with 50 points. They were followed by SEC foe Auburn (78 points). MSU finished three points behind Auburn with 81.

A trio of MSU runners finished in the top 10. Junior Jennifer McPherson finished fifth with a time of 18:29.44. It was her second top 10 finish of the year and just the third of her career.

Junior Zita Magliore finished amongst the top 10 for the second time this season. Her time of 18:39.00 captured seventh place. Rounding out the top three for MSU was senior Meggan Hodge, who finished in ninth place (18:45.00).

Three other Lady Bulldogs finished in the top 50. Sophomore Joy Griffith (19:32.88) notched a 28th place collegiate finish. Junior Mina Thorstenson finished just over 10 second behind Griffith. Her time of 19:42.22 captured a 32nd place collegiate finish. Newcomer Annie Falor finished in 41st place with a time of 19:56.89.

"It was a good race," said women’s head coach Al Schmidt. " I was real pleased that we finished ahead of three SEC teams. Joy (Griffith) and Mina (Thorstenson) are getting back to where they were, but we have a long way to go."

In the men’s 8K race, MSU finished with 189 points (6th place). Portland captured meet honors with a score of 36. Meet host Auburn finished second with 74. LSU and Alabama notched third and fourth place finishes at 124 and 142, respectively. Closing out the top five was regional foe Florida State (160).

Leading the way for the Bulldogs was sophomore Travis McKay. McKay’s time of 26:19.16 captured a 30th place collegiate finish. Freshman Robert Scribner in only his third race of the season, came in second for MSU finishing 37th amongst collegiate runners with a time of 26:26.00.

Sophomore Phillip Moore finished in 26:31.12 (41st place, collegiate). Rounding out the top 50 finishers for MSU was senior Gedamu Ege (49th collegiate place, 26:55.25).

"We’re still really young," men’s head coach Steve Dudley said. "We haven’t developed into collegiate runners just yet. They’re still learning to run at this level. When they do come full circle, they’ll be good."

MSU will host its Short Course Invite on Oct. 22 at the MSU Cross Country Course.

Source: MSU Media Relations

10/08/04
Softball
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. ­ Mississippi State softball coach Jay Miller will head the USA Softball coaching staff at the first World University Games for Softball, the Amateur Softball Association announced Wednesday afternoon. The games will be held in Plant City, Fla., Oct. 26-31, at Plant City Stadium and the Randy L. Larson Softball Fourplex.

Miller, who will coach his third MSU squad in 2005, will instruct some of the top collegiate softball players across the county, including a pair of SEC athletes in Tennessee staff ace Monica Abbott and Auburn catcher Sara Dean, in Plant City. The 16-member roster for the games, which was also announced Wednesday by the ASA, consists of players from eight different collegiate institutions and four separate conferences.

Miller, who led the USA Elite team to a combined 13-5 clip this past summer at both the Canada Cup and Champions Cup, will be joined on the coaching staff by assistants Michelle Gromacki and Kirk Walker who currently serve as head coaches at Cal State-Fullerton and Oregon State, respectively.

A field of 10 countries including Australia, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei, Guatemala, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, Uganda, and the USA will compete in the five day event. The championship will be jointly organized by the United States Collegiate Sports Council and the International Softball Federation and will be ran in accordance with the most recent technical regulations of FISU and the International Softball Federation (ISF).

Australia finished as the silver medalist in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. Guatemala, the Netherlands, Russia and Uganda were the only countries out of the participants in the World University Games for Softball that did not send its contingent to Greece.

Miller was appointed to his first stint with USA Softball from 1992-96, serving on the national team selection committee that would, ultimately, be in charge of choosing the inaugural USA Softball team to compete at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Since then, he has served in various capacities with the organization, including head coaching stints of the USA Red squad that captured Gold in the 2001 US Cup, and the USA Elite team that took home runner-up honors at the 2002 Canada Cup before running the table at the 2003 edition of the tournament.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Mississisippi State (4-5-3, 1-2-1 SEC) and No. 24 Auburn (8-2-1, 3-0-1) will play the 10th game of a very tightly-contested series on Friday at 7 p.m. inside the confines of the Auburn Soccer Complex ­ a venue which has been very unkind to AU opponents over the course of the last three seasons. The Tigers lead its set with Mississippi State by a 5-3-1 tally and boast one of the nation's best records at home since 2001 at 24-3-2.

The Tigers have taken both of the last two meetings in the series by a 2-0 and 1-0 count, respectively. State's last win in the series came in 2001 when the Bulldogs nipped the Tigers at home in overtime, 2-1, on their way to sharing the SEC West title that year with Auburn. The Bulldogs will look for their first win at the Auburn Soccer Complex on Friday as well.

State enters the tilt in Auburn fresh off its fourth-straight overtime, this time drawing even with the Bayou Bengals of LSU, 0-0. The tie capped off a 0-1-1 weekend for the Maroon and White that also saw them drop a tough game with Arkansas on Friday evening despite having dominated much of the outing. The Tigers will roll into the contest on a four-game unbeaten streak that has them downing then-No. 4 Florida, then coming away with a 1-1 tie at Vanderbilt. Prior to the current string, Auburn had its 23-game home unbeaten streak snapped with a double overtime loss to then-No. 6 Kansas.

"We have had a good week of practice and the girls know the task they have ahead of them," said Mississippi State head coach Neil Macdonald. "Auburn is a very good team that is well-coached. They are very tough to beat at home, so we know what has been presented to us.

"Every game, from here on out, is very important to the goals we set for ourselves at the beginning of the season. I am very confident in our defensive effort right now and am just as confident that we are improving each and every game on the offensive side of the ball."

Chrissy Culver will lead a two-pronged attack for Auburn after scoring her fourth and fifth goals of the season this past weekend on the Tigers' road trip to Vanderbilt and Kentucky. Culver, who leads the team with five goals and two assists, is joined on the attack by fellow senior Sarah Steinmann who is nipping on Culver's heels with four goals and three assists. Three-time all-American goalkeeper Megan Rivera, like always, has been solid in the nets for Auburn, recording a 0.53 goals against average and 40 saves. Rivera has also added five shutouts on the season while tallying a .870 save percentage.

Having scored just three goals in its last five games, State has attributed much of its current success to its defensive unit which is held down by a trio of veterans, as well as rookie Jessica Davis. The Bulldogs' stalwart of a back line has surrendered just three goals over the last five games and has limited each of its last two opponents to a combined five first half shots. Junior netminder Emily Meyers has been more than solid in goal for the Maroons, recording a 1.15 GAA and 42 saves, while also producing a .875 save percentage.

Following Friday evening's matchup on the plains of Auburn, State will head to Tuscaloosa for a Sunday afternoon date with the Alabama Crimson Tide . Kickoff for that game has been set for 1 p.m. at the Alabama Soccer Complex.

Source: MSU Media Relations

In the first round of main draw doubles action, the 13th-ranked MSU duo fought tooth and nail with Boise State's 58th-ranked team of Thomas Schoeck and Luke Shields, as the teams went to a tiebreaker to decide the match. But the Bulldog duo would have no part of a loss, shutting out the Bronco tandem in the breaker to win the match 9-8(0).

Carvalho and Pinto will meet Tennessee's upstart team of Ockie Oosthuizen and Ben Rogers Friday at 2 p.m. ET in the round of 16. The UT pair upset Oregon's ninth-ranked team of Aaron Spencer and Sven Swinnen, a 5-8 seed, 8-2 Thursday. The MSU and UT teams actually met just two weeks ago in the quarterfinals of the Southern Intercollegiate Championships in Athens, Ga., with the UT duo taking a tight 8-6 triumph.

The senior Carvalho began Thursday not even knowing he would play in the singles consolation draw. The Intercollegiate Tennis Association instituted a new system this year which allows for ³lucky losers² from the qualifying rounds (played earlier in the week) to be entered into the consolation field of the main draw due to other withdrawals.

Carvalho took full advantage of the opportunity, registering the highest-ranked win of his MSU career by downing 45th-ranked David Canudas of in-state rival Southern Miss 6-4, 6-3 in the first round of singles consolation. Though it was the biggest victory of Carvalho's career in terms of rankings, it was not his first over Canudas. In fact, Carvalho moved to 2-0 over the USM senior, having also beaten him in 2002 when the players were playing #5 singles in the schools' dual match that season in Starkville.

The unranked Carvalho will meet 52nd-ranked Kris Kwinta of UCLA in Friday's consolation round of 16 at 9:30 a.m. ET.

Source: MSU Media Relations