4/30/05
Women's Golf
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State sophomore women's golfer Amanda Mathis was named to the all-SEC team announced by the league office on Wednesday. Mathis, a native of Picayune, Miss., was the first Lady Bulldog golfer to be named an All-SEC player since Sofie Andersson was tabbed to the second team in 2003.

Mathis, in her second season with State, is currently 15th in the league in stroke average with a 75.46. In the second round of the 2005 LSU/Cleveland Golf Invitational, she shot a career best five-under (67) which is tied for the second best round by an SEC player this year.

Mathis currently leads the Lady Bulldog golfers this season in stroke average(75.46), top-10 finishes(5), stroke differential(11.22), and won the individual title at the Wildcat Invitational last fall. The Bulldogs also captured the team title in that event. Mathis also paces the Lady Bulldog squad with four rounds of par and one round under par this season.

She will lead the Lady Bulldogs into next week's NCAA East Regional ranked 88th nationally by Golfweek.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Former Mississippi State University track and field standout Tiffany McWilliams will compete in the Olympic Development Mile on Saturday at the 111th Penn Relay Carnival in Philadelphia, Pa. The event is scheduled for 3:40 p.m. CDT at Franklin Field on the University of Pennsylvania campus.

"Penn’s going to kickoff her outdoor season," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt, who has continued to coach McWilliams throughout her professional career. "Hopefully this is the start of a season that will last through mid-August or later."

As a junior at MSU a year ago, McWilliams won the Olympic Development Mile in 4:31.31, the second fastest time posted at the Penn Relays in the event.

In three seasons at State, McWilliams captured three NCAA individual titles: two in the outdoor 800-meter run (2003 & 2004) and the indoor mile (2004).The four-time all-American and seven-time Southeastern Conference champion was named the 2004 SEC Female Runner of the Year. For her efforts in the classroom, she was named to the 2004 SEC Academic Honor Roll and 2003 National Collegiate Division I Track Coaches Association all-Academic Team.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/29/05
Track & Field
PHILADELPHIA - The Mississippi State University women’s outdoor track and field squad opened the 111th Penn Relay Carnival on Thursday with four top 10 finishes and senior Crystal Averitt meeting a regional qualifying mark in the discus. The event is being held at Franklin Field on the University of Pennsylvania campus.

Averitt took eighth with a regional qualifying throw of 156-8 in the discus. In a tie for eighth place, junior high jumper Jasmine Walls cleared 5-7, meeting her personal best and second best mark in school history. Sophomore Nicola Wilson took ninth place in the shot put with a throw of 42-11 3/4.

On the track, junior Zita Magloire placed ninth in the 3000-meter run with a personal best 10:03.36. Junior Meggan Hodge finished the combined college and Olympic Development 3000-meter steeplechase in 11:05.13. Dominique Rogers competed in the 400-meter hurdles, finishing in 1:03.61.

On the men’s side, freshman John Brigham finished the 5000-meter championship with a personal best 14:30.04, the fifth fastest time in school history. Freshman Robert Scribner ran the 10,000-meter run in a personal best 31:30.41. Sophomore Travis McKay completed the 3000-meter steeplechase championship in 9:12.24.

Collegiate action resumes Friday at 9 a.m. Live results are available via a link at www.mstateathletics.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/28/05
Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State University head track and field coach Al Schmidt has announced the signing of Memphis Central High School’s Marrissa Harris to a national letter-of-intent. Harris will begin competing for the Lady Bulldogs during the 2005-06 season.

As a multi-event athlete, Harris will work closely with assistant coach Karen Rademeyer.

"Marrissa is a versatile athlete who will contribute to our team on a number of levels," Rademeyer said. "She is not only one of the top multi-event athletes in the country, but proficient in the hurdles and high jump as well."

A three-time state champion in the 300-meter hurdles, Harris brings a long list of accomplishments to Starkville. In addition to her three state titles, she has been an all-State selection in the 100- and 300-meter hurdles, high jump and pentathlon. Her personal bests include 14.26 in the 100-meter hurdles, 43.02 in the 300-meter hurdles, 1:01.03 in the 400-meter hurdles, 5-3 in the high jump, 18-0 in the long jump and 4,684 points in the heptathlon.

Since arriving at CHS as a ninth grader, Harris has been the school’s track and field nominee for the Best of Prep award, given annually to each top overall athlete in their respective sport within the Memphis area. She has also been named her team’s Most Valuable Player.

During the summer of 2004, Harris was ranked fifth in nation in the heptathlon and seventh in the 100-meter hurdles. She competed at the Junior National Championships, placing fifth in the heptathlon, earning her Verizon Junior all-American accolades. In 2003, she was ranked second in the country in the heptathlon, third in the 400-meter hurdles and fifth in the 100-meter hurdles.

"I feel like I am going to do well at MSU," Harris said. "I really don’t feel any pressure. The coaching staff at State is very caring. I’m ready to go. I’m happy to be coming to Starkville."

In addition to track, Harris qualified for the city finals in cross country and was a member of the Warriors’ basketball team. She garnered Best Defensive Player and Best Newcomer honors during her sophomore campaign and was most recently awarded as the Scholastic Athlete.

Outside of athletics, Harris is a member of the National Honor Society, the National Honor Roll and has been a William A. Sweet award nominee. She was elected Most Athletic in her class and is a member of the Lampin Club and African American Studies Club.

Harris is an active volunteer in the Memphis community, working with the Enchanted Forest, various tutoring services, contributing to the Hope House and working at area soup kitchens.

The daughter of Mary and Morris Harris is undecided on her major.

Source: MSU Media Relations

STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Mississippi State University track and field squads travel to Philadelphia, Pa. Thursday through Saturday for the 111th running of the Penn Relay Carnival. The event is being held at Franklin Field on the University of Pennsylvania campus.

"We’re going to try to win the Championship of America," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt. "We’ve won two in the last two years, so we hope to continue that success."

Collegiate individual events begin Thursday morning at 9 a.m. CT and go through Saturday at 5 p.m. CT.

At last year’s Relays, Tiffany McWilliams won the Olympic Development Mile in a regional qualifying time of 4:31.31, the second fastest time ever run at the Penn Relays.

MSU won the 4x200-meter Championship of America relay with a 1:22.53 performance. The 4x400-meter relay team of Jamel Ashley, LaChristopher Lewis, Arthur Davis and Keston Nelson finished fifth in the race with a 3:05.36.

Travis McKay recorded time of 9:06.75 in the 3000-meter steeplechase championship race. In the hammer throw, Matt Holcomb took seventh with a distance of 184-6, while Matt Whalen finished 10th with a throw of 181-8. In the men's shot put, Whalen threw a 51-9 1/4 for ninth place, and J.D. Erickson took 12th with a distance of 50-11.

On the women's side, Kia James, Nicole Dunn, Zita Magloire and Jennifer McPherson took 10th in the sprint medley relay Championship of America race with a 3:58.58.

Nicola Wilson took seventh in the shot put with a throw of 45-10 3/4, while Crystal Averitt recorded a 146-1 in the discus throw and a 163-2 in the hammer.

The distance medley team of McPherson, Dunn, Magloire and McWilliams took seventh with a time of 11:17.46. Joy Griffith improved her time in the 5000-meter run by 19 seconds with her 17:26.10 performance.

According to the university, the annual Penn Relays has not only been America’s largest track meet, but the world’s first and most recognized relay meet. The presence and prestige of the Relays is extremely significant. Every April, the Penn Relays draw many of the nation’s - and the world’s - top track athletes to Franklin Field. Relays participants have won gold medals in every modern (summer) Olympic Games except the 1980 Moscow games, which the United States boycotted.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/27/05
Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State University head track and field coach Al Schmidt has announced the signing of Vancleave (Miss.) High School’s Darryl Brady to a national letter-of-intent. Brady will begin competing for the Bulldogs during the 2005-06 season.

Brady will work closely with assistant coach Mike Cunningham, who oversees jumps.

"Darryl is an exciting young man to have on the Bulldog team," Cunningham said. "He will help us out in the high jump and learn the decathlon. I'm proud to have the Bradys a part of the Bulldog family and look forward to the next four years coaching Darryl."

The two-time 8-4A district champion in the high jump boasts personal records of 6-6 in the high jump and 52.00 in the 400-meter dash. For the past two seasons, he has placed second in the high jump at the South State meet and in 2004 was fifth at the Class 4A state meet. As a team, Vancleave finished second at the district meet a year ago.

"I'm hoping Coach Cunningham gets all he can out of me," Brady said. "I would love the chance to help out the MSU track and field team. His personality is what I like about him. He told me that I looked like an athlete and someone he could help. I can't wait to get there. It's been a dream of mine to compete in the SEC."

A multi-sport athlete, Brady was an all-Region tight end for the Vancleave football team and honorable mention all-Region in basketball and named Most Improved Player.

Brady is a member of the National Honor Society and Fellowship of Christian Athletes at VHS. He volunteered as a referee for the Upward Basketball program at his church, is actively involved in his church’s youth group and has posted over 12 hours of community service throughout the year.

The son of Dawn and Darryl Brady, Sr. intends to major in agriculture at State.

Source: MSU Media Relations

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State head track and field coach Al Schmidt has announced the signing of Arrowhead High School’s Abbey O’Connell of Hartland, Wis. to a national letter-of-intent. O’Connell will begin competing for the Lady Bulldogs during the 2005-06 season.

"We are really excited about signing Abbey," Schmidt said. "She will be a great addition to our team and our university. We feel that Abbey is going to be an important part of our cross country and track and field teams in the future. It is rare to find athletes that have both her kind of talent and work ethic. We couldn't be more excited about having Abbey become a Lady Bulldog."

O’Connell has been a three-time all State selection in cross country and two-time all-State selection in track for the 4x400- and 4x800-meter relays. Her personal bests include 2:17 in the 800-meter run, 5:10 in the 1600-meter run and 11:20 in the 3200-meter run.

"I’m really excited to be coming to MSU," O’Connell said. "I know the competition in the SEC is tough. I feel that Mississippi State is the place for me to be and feel I will do well there. I feel like the team will become a family to me since I’ll be away from home."

O’Connell is a member of the National Honor Society and participates in intramural sports at AHS.

The daughter of Julie and Tim O’Connell is expected to major in biological sciences at MSU.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/26/05
Women's Golf
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Mississippi State women's golf team is headed to the NCAA Regionals for the fourth time in the last six years under the guidance of head coach Christi Sanders. State was selected Monday as a 10-seed in the East Regional that will be played May 5-7 at the University of Florida Golf Course in Gainesville, Fla.

"The players deserve it because of their fine play throughout the entire year," said Sanders. "I'm so proud of the team for their hard work and accomplishments and look forward to coaching them into the national championship finals."

Mississippi State will be joined in the 21-team East Regional by top ranked and Atlantic Coast Conference Champions Duke. Three other Southeastern Conference teams will also make the trip to Gainesville next weekend to compete for the regional championship. Florida, South Carolina and Vanderbilt were a part of the nine teams from the SEC that received regional bids. Auburn is the one seed in the Central Regional while Georgia is a number two seed in the West Regional. Other SEC teams named to a regional include Tennessee, LSU, and Arkansas. The Bulldogs last apperance in NCAA Regional play was in 2003 when MSU finished 12 at the East Regionals in Clemmons, N.C.

The top eight teams and top two individuals from each of the three regionals will advance to play in the NCAA Championships on May 17-20 at the Sunriver Resort in Sunriver, Ore.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Having blanked its cross-state rival to tie the season set at one apiece on April 19 in Oxford, the Mississippi State softball team will head to Madison Tuesday evening as the Bulldogs square off with Ole Miss in the final leg of a disjoined season series at the third annual M&F Bank Fastpitch Classic.

State (31-24, 11-15 SEC) will renew their rivalry with the Rebels (26-25, 6-17) for the 31st time in a 6:30 p.m. first pitch at Madison’s Liberty Park. The game will be broadcast live by WMSV 91.1 FM with Anthony Craven handling all the play-by-play duties, while the match-up can also be followed in progress via a live stats link at the official Internet home of the Mississippi State athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com.

Both teams have taken very different paths since a 2-0 triumph by the Rebels in Starkville on April 14. Since that setback, State has churned out a 5-2 record, including a 4-0 shutout of the Rebels at the Ole Miss Softball Stadium, while the Rebels have taken a turn for the worse, dropping six of their last seven.

In terms of the race for the SEC Tournament, Ole Miss faces a must-win situation against the Maroon and White Tuesday evening, while an MSU win will clinch the Bulldogs’ eighth-straight appearance in the SEC postseason gala.

"The key is we have to play good sound defense, get good pitching and some timely hits," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "We are giving ourselves opportunities, but we still aren’t executing well. We need to do a better job in terms of that. If we can do the little things, I think we will do just fine."

In the series opener between the two ball clubs, Ole Miss plated a lone run in each of the first and seventh innings behind a solid four-hit shutout from staff ace Mary Jane Callahan en route to a 2-0 Rebel triumph. Mississippi State returned the favor five days later, scoring a pair of runs on two-out rallies in each of the fourth and sixth innings behind a dominating complete game blanking from righthander Kelli Miller en route to a 4-0 victory in Oxford.

Tuesday evening’s meeting will mark the first neutral site match-up in the history of the 31-game series between the two squads. State is 1-1 in the M&F Bank Fastpitch Classic, falling 8-5 to Southern Miss in the inaugural game in 2003, before rebounding in last season’s game with the Golden Eagles by a 6-3 count. The games have averaged more than 1,390 fans, including a crowd of 1,712 at Liberty Park in 2003.

"This game is good for the whole state of softball in Mississippi," Miller said. "I think this is a great opportunity for people to come out and watch some quality SEC softball."

Source: MSU Media Relations

Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State University associate head track and field coach Steve Dudley has announced the signing of Pace High School senior Zach Greene to a national letter-of-intent. Greene will begin competing for the Bulldogs during the 2005-06 season.

"Zach is a good addition to our men's cross country and track teams," Dudley said. "He brings a great work ethic and willingness to get the most out of his potential."

The Pensacola, Fla.-native’s personal bests include 2:00 in the 800-meter run, 4:36 in the mile, 9:57 in the two-mile run and 16:29 in the 5K. He has been named to the First Team all-District for track.

"I am glad to be running for a great school," Greene said. "I am looking forward to working with Coach Dudley and the rest of the team."

Greene is a member of the National Honor Society and Athletic Council at PHS. He was also a member of the soccer team. Greene is also actively involved with his local church.

Greene’s older brother, Alex, graduated from MSU last summer. The son of Caryl and Sonny Greene is expected to major in chemical engineering at State.

Source: MSU Media Relations

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State head track and field coach Al Schmidt has announced the signing of University Christian School’s Daniel Zabaldano to a national letter-of-intent. Zabaldano will begin competing for the Bulldogs during the 2005-06 season.

Zabaldano will work closely with assistant coach Karen Rademeyer, who oversees throws.

"We are excited about the physical attributes Daniel brings to the throws," Rademeyer said. "Along with his enthusiasm, willingness to train hard and compete, he will be successful."

The 6-7 thrower is currently the Mississippi Private School Association’s (MPSA) overall state champion in the discus, a title he won in 2004 and will attempt to defend on Saturday, April 30. Just this past Saturday, April 23, Zabaldano won the MPSA North State title with a personal best throw of 165-07, a MPSA North State record.

In addition to being a standout on the field, Zabaldano was also a standout on the court for the Flames. As a basketball player, he was named the team’s Most Valuable Player, an all-Conference selection and participated in the MPSA all-Star game, where he was named MVP.

"I hope I exercise the opportunity I’ve been given," Zabaldano said. "I’m pretty nervous about competing in the SEC. I think Coach Rademeyer is going to help me throw farther."

The Eagle Scout is also a member of the honor society at UCS. A native of Brandon, Miss., Zabaldano is the son of Paul Zabaldano and intends to major in mechanical engineering at MSU.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/25/04
Softball
(Game 3) GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Visiting Mississippi State hit three solo home runs, including a pair in the third inning, to shake off a rough outing on Saturday and key a 3-0 victory over 16th-ranked Florida that helped the Bulldogs salvage its weekend series with the Gators Sunday afternoon at the Florida Softball Field.

The trio of home runs marked the most for the Bulldogs (31-24, 11-15 SEC) since hitting the same amount in a 10-8 extra inning loss at Ole Miss on April 28, 2003 and brought the Maroon and White to within one four-bagger of matching the school record. Despite capturing its first series victory over the Bulldogs since 2001 with a doubleheader sweep on Saturday, Florida (36-13, 15-6) was unable to capture its first series sweep of the Bulldogs in school history.

Courtney Bures homered for the second time in as many days to highlight a 2-for-3 hitting line at the plate, but was joined by Katie Cooley (1-for-3) and Katie Johnson (2-for-4) in the home run column. Blair Geddings turned in a 2-for-3 day for MSU, while Callye Williams recorded two base knocks in four trips to the plate to extend her career-long hit streak out to nine games. Kristen Butler turned in a 2-for-3 hitting line to pace the Gators.

MSU starter Kelli Miller (12-9) produced her team-leading fourth shutout of the season after keeping the Gators off balance for much of the contest. Miller scattered eight hits and struck out two over her seventh complete game of the season in earning the decision. Florida ace Stacey Stevens (21-8), who earned both wins against MState on Saturday, took the loss in her second relief appearance of the weekend after being charged with three earned runs on five hits and a pair of walks in just three innings of action from the circle.

“I was very pleased with the way we came out and went at them today,” said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. “We didn’t get much out of our offense yesterday, so it was nice to see us do what we needed to do at the plate today. We got a fantastic performance from Kelli Miller and I thought that was a good sign. We didn’t help her out much, either offensively or defensively, yesterday so it was good that we gave her the run support she needed today to get the win.”

After stranding a pair of runners on the base paths in its half of the second, State used a leadoff home run by Cooley to take a 1-0 lead in the third, before Stevens recovered to record outs with State’s next two at-bats of the inning. However, Bures, who hit a mammoth shot to deep centerfield on Saturday against Stevens, ripped a 3-and-1 offering from Stevens just over the top of the fence line in centerfield to stretch the MSU advantage out to a pair.

After MSU flirted twice more with home run blasts that died on or just shy of the outfield warning track, Johnson added State’s third blast of the game with the leadoff at-bat in the top of the sixth that shadowed the left field foul line before clearing the fence. The Gators got their leadoff batter aboard in each of the second through fifth innings, but were unable to plate a single run in any of the four chances. The Bulldogs aided Miller with heads-up double plays in each of the second and fourth innings to protect the lead.

Mississippi State will return to action on Tuesday evening when the Bulldogs head to Madison, Miss., for the rubber game of its disjoined three-game series with cross-state rival Ole Miss. First pitch of the game, which is part of the third annual M&F Bank Fastpitch Classic, is set for 6:30 p.m. at Madison’s Liberty Park.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/24/05
Track & Field
BATON ROUGE, La. - Mississippi State University junior Steve Mullings clocked 20.45 seconds in the 200-meter dash to take the meet title at the LSU Alumni Gold meet on Saturday in Baton Rouge, La. The mark is a season best by a Bulldog, a personal best for the Perth Town, Jamaica native and the fourth fastest regional qualifying time posted in the event this season.

"This was a good tune-up meet for the Penn Relays," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt. "Steve (Mullings) put up a great performance. Zita (Magloire) ran well and overall it was a good average day for us. That’s what we wanted heading into next week."

In the 400-meter dash, the Bulldogs posted three regional qualifying marks with senior all-American LaChristopher Lewis finishing second in 46.53. He was followed by senior all-American Jamel Ashley in fourth (46.57) and sophomore all-American Arthur Davis in seventh (47.07).

The Bulldogs set a bevy of personal records at the meet, including freshman Chris Woods running a season best 1:52.90 in the 800-meter run. In the 1500-meter run, junior Matt Martin (4:10.81) and freshman Robert Scribner (4:15.15) set personal best in the event. Joseph Queen cleared a season and personal best 14-9 in the pole vault and Austin Golding set a PR in the javelin (166-09).

On the women’s side, senior Jennifer Johnstone set a personal best in the hammer with a throw of 172-04. The mark ranks second on MSU’s all-Time Superlatives list.

In the 800-meter run, junior Zita Magloire was the third collegiate finisher, seventh overall, in 2:13.76. Magloire also finished seventh, fourth among collegiate competitors, in the 1500-meter run with a personal best 4:34.49.

Angelica Phillips and Annie Falor set personal best in the 200-meter dash and 800-meter run, respectively.

State returns to action Thursday through Saturday at the 111th running of the Penn Relay Carnival in Philadelphia, Pa.

Source: MSU Media Relations

BATON ROUGE, La. - Former Mississippi State University track and field standout Tiffany McWilliams opened her 2005 outdoor campaign with two wins at the LSU Alumni Gold meet on Saturday. The event was held at the Bernie Moore Track Stadium in Baton Rouge, La.

"This was her first race of the outdoor season," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt, who has continued to coach McWilliams throughout her professional career. "It was really more of a training session for her."

McWilliams won the 800-meter run in 2 minutes, 6.21 seconds and the 1500-meter run in 4:17.97.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
(Game 2) GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Sixteenth-ranked Florida erupted for three multi-run innings, including a pair of four spots, and got an efficient outing from a pair of its pitchers to hand Mississippi State a 12-4 defeat in abbreviated innings in the back half of a series-opening doubleheader Saturday evening at the Florida Softball Field.

The loss was State’s (30-24, 10-15 SEC) worst loss to the Gators (36-12, 15-5) since an equally as damaging 11-3 setback on April 28, 2000. Florida also clinched its first series victory against the Bulldogs since a Gainesville series victory during the 2001 season. Despite falling victim in the doubleheader sweep, State still maintained its stranglehold on sixth place in the overall SEC standings.

Courtney Bures recorded four RBI on a 2-for-3 night at the plate that included her freshman record-breaking 14th home run of the season, while the Bulldogs also got a 1-for-3 tally from Callye Williams that extended the Katy, Texas, native’s career-long hitting streak out to eight games. Melissa Zick crossed the plate three times and drove in five runs on a 3-for-3 night for the Gators.

MSU starter Stephanie Comeaux (9-7) suffered through her worst outing of the season, allowing six earned runs on six hits in just three innings of work from the circle to take the loss for the Bulldogs. Reliever Sara Hickerson allowed six earned runs on five hits and a trio of walks but got the no decision. Stacey Stevens (21-6) allowed a pair of earned runs in two and one-thirds innings of relief to pick up the win for the Gators.

"We did a better job offensively in the second game, but we didn’t get any pitching at all," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "We came back to tie it up and I thought that we were in pretty good shape, but Stephanie didn’t have much and got hit hard and Sara was kind of in the same situation."

Florida used a pair of hits, including a Ma ndy Schuerman RBI double, in the bottom of the first to take a quick 2-0 lead, but MSU plated two of its own on a two-run, bases loaded double by Bures in the top of the third to tie the game back up. However, the Gators would send eight batters to the plate in scoring four runs in the bottom of the frame, then sent nine batters to the plate in the fourth to take a 10-2 lead into the fifth.

Lindsay Hunley was given a one-out free pass in the fifth to set the table for Bures’ bomb that cut the UF lead to just six, 10-4, but Florida needed just four at-bats in its half of the inning to invoke the mercy rule that was capped on a two-run home run by Zick.

Mississippi State will look to salvage its series with the nationally ranked Gators when the two lock horns again on Sunday afternoon at the Florida Softball Field. First pitch of Sunday’s series finale has been slated for 1 p.m. EDT. Sunday’s series bookend will be broadcast live by WMSV 91.1 FM with Anthony Craven calling all the balls and strikes.

Source: MSU Media Relations

(Game 1) GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Sixteenth-ranked Florida plated single runs in each of the second and fourth innings behind a solid outing from staff ace Stacey Stevens to post its first win over visiting Mississippi State since 2003 on a 4-0 triumph over the Bulldogs in the series opener Saturday afternoon at the Florida Softball Field.

The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for the Bulldogs (30-23, 10-14 SEC) who was facing its 20th nationally ranked opponent of the season. With the outcome, the nationally ranked Gators (35-12, 14-5) tasted just its second victory in the last 11 series meetings with the Maroon and White.

Five different players recorded base hits for the Bulldogs, with Jennifer Jessup singling and walking to pace the offense. Callye Williams tallied a 1-for-3 hitting line to extend her hitting streak out to a career-long seven games. Shelley Stevens scored twice on a 3-for-3 day at the plate to pace the Gators.

MSU starter Kelli Miller (11-9) scattered seven hits over her seventh complete game of the season and saddled the loss for the Bulldogs after striking out a trio of Gators and allowing four runs (three earned). Stacey Stevens (20-6) recorded her 20th victory of the season for Florida striking out three and allowing just five hits over her 16th complete game of the campaign.

State got a double from McDonald to lead off the second inning, then put runners on the corners two batters later on a one-out single from Blair Geddings. But Stevens settled down, inducing a fielder’s choice groundout to record the second out of the inning on a play at the plate, and struck out Michelle Kinney to nix the MSU scoring threat.

The Gators answered with a scoring threat of its own in the bottom of the frame, capitalizing on a Schuerman single, as well as an MSU fielding error, to put a runner into position for Savana Kelly who ripped Miller’s first offering up the middle to give UF a 1-0 lead heading into the third.

The Gators put Shelley Stevens on with a leadoff single in the fourth and used its next at-bat to move the runner into scoring position for Kristen Butler. Butler hammered Miller’s first offering of the at-bat to plate the runner from second and pad the UF lead out to 2-0. Florida would use a pair of singles and a crucial MSU throwing error to plate a pair of unearned insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth and provide the final.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/23/05
Men's Tennis
ATHENS, Ga. - Facing a very tall task going into the day to begin with, Mississippi State's 20th-ranked men's tennis team ran into an inspired ninth-ranked Georgia squad Friday in the quarterfinals of the 2005 Southeastern Conference Championship at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex on the UGA campus, as the Bulldogs from Starkville fell to the Bulldogs from Athens 4-0. The loss dropped State's record to 12-9 overall. Georgia improved to 17-5.

Georgia established an early lead in the match by looking very strong in doubles play. UGA's third-ranked duo of John Isner and Antonio Ruiz cruised to an 8-1 win over Bulldogs Ivan Bjelica and Jose-Carlos Pinto at the No. 1 position. At No. 3, UGA's tandem of Ricardo Gonzalez and Matic Omerzel downed MSU's pair of Philippe Frayssinoux and Pierre Mouillon 8-3.

UGA gained a 2-0 advantage when the 17th-ranked Isner posted a 6-2, 6-4 victory over State's Bjelica at the top spot in the singles lineup. Georgia went up 3-0 with a 7-5, 6-3 triumph from Strahinja Bobusic, who downed MSU's Florent Girod at No. 5.

The final point would come at No. 3, where Georgia's 86th-ranked Omerzel outlasted the MSU rookie Mouillon in three sets 6-1, 3-6, 6-0. All remaining matches were suspended at that point. State had gained a one-set lead in two of them.

"We're disappointed that we lost, but we gave a good effort against a team that was really prepared to play us," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard said. "Georgia is always tough to beat in Athens and we did a good job to split with them here this year.

"Despite this loss, we have had a solid season that is far from over. We expect to make the NCAA field and look forward to preparing to compete for the national title."

State's fate for the 2005 NCAA Championship will be announced on Wednesday, May 4, when the 64-team NCAA field is released. The Bulldogs are virtually assured of receiving their 15th consecutive bid to the NCAAs . MSU is one of only seven schools in the country (Florida, Georgia, MSU, Southern Cal, Stanford, Texas Christian and UCLA) that have made 14 straight NCAA appearances. First-round play in the NCAAs begins May 13-15 at 16 sites around the country.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Tennis
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Mississippi State's eighth-seeded and 30th-ranked women's tennis team's (12-7, 5-6 SEC) bid for the school's first ever trip to the SEC Tournament semifinals fell short Friday morning as the Lady Bulldogs fell 4-1 to No. 1 seeded and third-ranked Kentucky. Despite the loss to UK, the SEC Western Division champion Lady Bulldogs still recorded the most overall wins since the 1989 campaign. With their 4-3 win Thursday over the LSU, Lane notched her 12th win of the season, surpassing her previous MSU all-time high of 11 victories set in 2000.

The Lady Bulldogs got off to a slow start in doubles as UK's 30th-ranked combo of Kim Coventry and Joelle Schwenk posted an 8-0 triumph over MSU's Magdi Rekasi and Haley Rudman at the second position. MSU's 21st-ranked tandem of Zsuzsanna Fodor and Anastasia Kugakolova upset Kentucky's sixth-ranked duo of Sarah Foster and Aibika Kalsarieva 8-5 at the first position to keep the Bulldogs alive. At the third position, Lady Bulldogs Tarryn Rudman and Polina Kokoulina came but one game short of claiming the doubles point, falling to UK's Emily Foster and Lara Maurer. UK's combo held a 7-5 lead, but State tied the score at 7-7 before Kentucky took an 8-7 lead. Rudman and Kokoulina tied the match at 8, forcing a tiebreaker, but ultimately dropped the match by a score of 9-8.

No. 3 Kentucky took a 2-0 lead in the match after Schwenk downed State's Renée Joseph 6-2, 6-0 in the first singles match at No. 4. MSU's Tarryn Rudman cut the lead in half at 2-1 as she upset the 54th-ranked Foster in straight sets 6-2, 6-3 at the third position. Rudman has won eight of her last nine singles matches against league competition. At the highly anticipated first position, SEC Player of the Year and the third-ranked Kalsarieva defeated State's 15th-ranked Fodor 6-1, 6-2, giving the Wildcats a 3-1 lead. UK's Danielle Petrisko clinched the match for the Wildcats when she knocked off Kokoulina 6-2, 6-4 at No. 6.

"We had some opportunities today, but it is hard to comeback after we lost the momentum after losing the close doubles point," Lane said. "They were very disciplined on the court and they took care of business. That's why they are No. 3 in the country."

The two remaining matches were cut short once the Wildcats had secured the match with their win at the sixth position. At the time the match was called, State's Kugakolova and Rekasi were both trailing one set to none.

The Lady Bulldogs next return to the court for first-round NCAA Regionals, May 13 and 14th. First-round match sites have yet to be determined. The finals will be played from May 19-28 at the University of Georgia's Dan Magill Complex on the UGA campus.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Having captured wins in five of its last six outings, the Mississippi State softball team will pack up its show and head to Gainesville, Fla., as the Bulldogs continue an eight-game season-ending road trip with a three-game set at 16th-ranked Florida on Saturday and Sunday at the Florida Softball Field.

MState (30-22, 10-13 SEC) and the streaking Gators (34-12, 13-5) will renew their series for the 23rd time with a 1 p.m. EDT Saturday afternoon doubleheader, before closing out the weekend with the Sunday afternoon series finale at 1 p.m. The game can be followed in progress via a live stats link at the official Internet home for the Mississippi State athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com. Sunday’s series bookend will also be broadcast live by WMSV 91.1 FM with Anthony Craven handling all the play-by-play duties.

Riding a wave of recent success in the series, the Maroon and White has captured victory in nine of the last 10 meetings with the Orange and Blue, including a two-game series sweep last season in Starkville. Florida’s lone win in that time span came in MSU’s last trip to Gainesville when the Gators salvaged its series with Mississippi State on a 6-1 triumph in the series finale. The squads have split 10 meetings in Gainesville right down the middle.

Picked to finish third in the SEC’s Eastern Division in a preseason poll of the league’s coaches, Florida has wreaked of success thus far into the campaign. On the shoulders of very strong upperclassmen, Florida posted victories in 13 of their first 15 match-ups in 2005 to burst onto the national scene.

The Gators have posted victories over seven nationally ranked squads this season, including both of the league’s divisional leaders (Alabama, Georgia), as well as a pair of victories this past weekend over then-No. 6 Tennessee at home.

A balanced team on both sides of the ball, Florida is led at the plate by junior Lindsey Cameron who has posted team-bests in both home runs (11) and RBI (39) while hovering right under the .400 plateau (.396). The Gators are littered with base-reaching talent and, when not scoring with power at the plate, will make things happen on the base paths where Florida currently sports a 79 percent (94-for-119) success rate stealing bases.

From the circle, Florida has gotten a bulk of the innings from a duo of pitchers since the start of conference play. Sophomore righthander and Gainesville native Stacey Stevens (19-7, 2.06 ERA) has posted eight of UF's 13 league victories, while senior Mandy Schuerman (10-4, 1.60) has won five others. The four-armed Gator staff has yielded just a .234 opponent batting average this season, while posting a strikeout-to-walk ratio of more than 3-to-1 (156-to-52).

Source: MSU Media Relations

Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Mississippi State track and field squads travel west to Baton Rouge, La. Saturday for the LSU Alumni Gold meet. Field events are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. with running events starting at 1:30 p.m. CT at the Bernie Moore Track Stadium on the LSU campus.

"LSU is a good team," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt. "Having them run in this meet gives us a chance to run fast. They’re a quality team. Since it’s not a team scoring event, we’re going to focus on improving individual times and getting some regional marks."

Other teams scheduled to compete include host LSU, Alabama, Houston, Louisiana Tech, McNeese State, Nicholls State, Rice, South Alabama, SE Louisiana, Southern Miss, Texas A&M, Troy, Tulane and UL-Lafayette.

Last weekend at the MSU-hosted Jace Lacoste Invitational, Jamel Ashley, a senior all-American, won the 400-meter dash in 45.69, the fastest time posted in the event in collegiate competition this season. The regional qualifying mark is a Jace Lacoste Invitational record.

Sophomore all-American Arthur Davis finished third in the event in 46.17, a regional qualifying mark and personal best. LaChristopher Lewis, also a senior all-American, finished fourth in a regional-qualifying 46.40.

Senior high jumper Matt Denton cleared 7-0 1/2 en route to taking top honors in the event. The leap is a regional-qualifying time and personal best for the Hurley, Miss.-native. Freshman Tim Williams finished second with a mark of 6-6 3/4.

Lewis won the 200-meter dash title in 21.06, a regional qualifying mark. He was followed by Davis in 21.23.

The 4x400-meter relay team of freshman Adian Sanderson, freshman Chris Woods, freshman Elzie Coleman and junior Kendall Pyant II won in with a 3:09.44 regional time.

The Bulldogs swept the top four spots in the 1500-meter run with Travis McKay (1st, 3:54.41), Brandon Smith (2nd, 3:59.60) and John Brigham (3rd, 3:59.74) all setting personal best marks. Sophomore Phillip Moore finished fourth.

On the women’s side, junior Meggan Hodge captured the 3000-meter steeplechase title with a Jace Lacoste Invitational record-time of 11:03.78.

Senior Crystal Averitt was a double winner at the meet, taking top billing in the discus and hammer. Averitt’s mark of 156-11 in the discus qualifies her for next month’s Mideast Regional in Bloomington, Ind. She won the hammer with a throw of 173-10.

Sophomore Nicola Wilson set a personal best with her winning 46-06 3/4 throw in the shot put. Sophomore Christina Hernandez finished fourth in the event.

Junior Zita Magloire set a personal best in her second-place 4:37.45 showing in the 1500-meter run. Junior Jasmine Walls cleared 5-07 in the high jump, a personal best.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/22/05
Men's Tennis
ATHENS, Ga. - Mississippi State's 20th-ranked men's tennis team started the 2005 Southeastern Conference Championship in excellent fashion Thursday, posting a 4-0 victory over No. 70 Arkansas at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex on the University of Georgia campus. State's win propels the sixth-seeded Bulldogs into Friday's quarterfinals, where they will meet third-seeded and ninth-ranked host Georgia at 3 p.m. ET.

MSU's win Thursday upped its record to 12-8 overall in 2005. Arkansas fell to 5-16. State now leads the series with the Razorbacks 18-5, 2-0 this year. Since the SEC tournament went to the team format in 1990, State has now reached at least the quarterfinals in 13 of those 16 years.

State came out strong in Thursday's contest, claiming the opening doubles point for the first time in seven matches. Grabbing MSU's first win of the day was the true freshman duo of Philippe Frayssinoux and Pierre Mouillon, who notched an 8-3 win over Razorbacks Michael Jung at Andrei Nicoara at the No. 3 position. The State tandem of Ivan Bjelica and Jose-Carlos Pinto soon followed with an 8-3 win of their own, upsetting UA's 57th-ranked team of Rohan Gajjar and Adrians Zguns at No. 1. The No. 2 match was suspended with MSU serving at 5-6.

MSU took a 2-0 advantage when junior Florent Girod took a quick 6-3, 6-1 victory from Nicoara at the No. 6 singles position. Girod improved his team-leading record in dual matches this season to 15-3 with that win. The Bulldogs went up 3-0 in the contest thanks to a 6-4, 6-2 victory from the senior Carvalho, who downed Ismail by that margin at the No. 5 spot.

The match-clincher would come from the rookie Mouillon. The holder of State's best SEC record this season, the native of Le Perreux, France, upped his dual match mark to 14-4, upending Arkansas' 97th-ranked Matt Roberts 6-2, 6-4 at No. 3.

The three remaining matches were suspended at that point. Arkansas held a one-set lead in each of those affairs.

"We came out strong today in doubles and then took care of business in singles," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard said. "This match would have been a lot closer had we not played well in doubles and taken those three singles matches in straight sets. The guys did a good job of closing out those wins.

"Now, we obviously have a tough challenge against Georgia tomorrow. They are never easy to beat in Athens anyhow, and it gets even tougher during tournament time. It will take another great effort from our team."

Georgia is 16-5 overall this season and went 8-3 in SEC play during the regular season. Its only home loss in 12 matches this year came to State on March 25, when MSU broke UGA's 21-match home winning streak in a 4-3 upset. The teams have met eight previous times in the SEC Championship, with Georgia owning a 6-2 edge in those contests. The only time the schools have met in the event in Athens was in 1993, with UGA claiming a 4-3 decision in the finals.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Tennis
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Mississippi State's eighth-seeded and 30th-ranked women's tennis team knocked off ninth-seeded and 42nd-ranked LSU 4-3 in the opening round of the 2005 SEC Tournament Thursday afternoon at the Alabama Tennis Complex on the University of Alabama campus. With the win, the SEC Western Division champion Lady Bulldogs improved to 12-6 on the campaign, the most wins since the 1989 season. It is also the most wins recorded by head coach Tracy Lane during her nine years at MSU.

The Lady Bulldogs took the early edge in doubles as State's 21st-ranked tandem of Zsuzsanna Fodor and Anastasia Kugakolova downed LSU's Lauren Seaman and Tiffany Tucker 8-2 at the first position. It was the ninth win for the two Lady Bulldogs in SEC play this season. At No. 2, LSU's Amanda Mang and Staten Spencer defeated Lady Bulldogs Magdi Rekasi and Haley Rudman 8-2, leaving the doubles point to be decided at No. 3. At that third position, MSU's Polina Kokoulina and Tarryn Rudman led the match 6-3, but Lady Tigers Marina Chiarelli and Camila Caliari stormed back to even the match at six games apiece. From that point, LSU's combo would go on to win three of the next four games, winning the match 9-7 and giving LSU the early 1-0 advantage.

As singles got underway, the 113th-ranked Kugakolova evened the match at one point apiece as she knocked off LSU's Seaman 6-4, 6-1 at No. 2. It was Kugakolova's first win in her last four singles matches. The Lady Bulldogs took a brief 2-1 lead when State's Tarryn Rudman ousted LSU's Spencer 6-1, 6-0 at the third position. Rudman improved to 8-4 in the SEC in singles matches and has now won eight of her last nine matches.

LSU tied the match at two points when Tucker upended Rekasi 6-2, 6-4 at the fifth position. State's 15th-ranked Fodor quickly gave the Lady Bulldogs a 3-2 lead, winning her match over Mang 6-3, 6-3. The SEC Freshman of the Year owns a team-best 9-3 mark against league competition. LSU's Caliari kept the Lady Tigers alive and evened the match at three as she defeated Kokoulina 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 at the sixth position. With only one match remaining and the Lady Bulldogs' tournament hopes on the line, freshman Renée Joseph clinched the match for State with her 3-6, 7-6, 7-5 win over the Lady Tigers' Chiarelli at No. 4. The former Rock Hill, S.C., native lost the first set 3-6, but battled back to win the final two sets, ultimately sending the Lady Bulldog into the second round.

"I can't say enough about the way Renée Joseph played for us today," Lane said. "Without a doubt, she was the reason we won the match. She lost her first set 6-3, but still managed to pull out a win for us. We couldn't have done it without her."

With the 4-3 win over western division rival LSU, the Lady Bulldogs will now face the University of Kentucky in the second round of the SEC Tournament. The Wildcats are ranked third in the country and post a 21-4 overall record this season, 10-1 in the league. UK was a perfect 10-0 in league competition until it dropped a 4-3 decision to Vanderbilt last weekend in Lexington. Earlier this season, the Wildcats defeated the Lady Bulldogs 7-0 in a March 4 match in Lexington. UK is led by SEC Coach of the Year Mark Guilbeau and SEC Player of the Year Aibika Kalsarieva.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Golf
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State men’s golf coach Clay Homan announced Thursday that Brian Mason of Dallas, Texas has signed a national letter-of-intent to play with the Bulldogs.

Mason’s golf credentials include winning the North Texas PGA 18 Invitational in his home state. He placed 19th with back-to-back rounds of 74 in the 2004 TaylorMade-Adidas Golf Junior at the par 72 Woodlands Course in Woodlands, Texas. He has lettered four seasons at Lake Highlands High School in Dallas, Texas, along with being team captain of the LHHS golf team. Mason is a two-time all-District team member and a 2004 all-City honoree. The soon-to-be Bulldog was named team MVP during his junior campaign and recently was given the same honor for his senior season.

"We are excited about Brian (Mason) joining our team next year," said MSU head coach Clay Homan. "He brings tremendous amount of leadership to the team."

An excellent student in the classroom as well, Mason is a member of the National Honors Society along with being a representative on the school’s Student Council.

"I am really excited about coming to MSU and playing in the Southeastern Conference," said Brian Mason. "I just loved the college-town atmosphere when I visited."

Born Dec. 22, 1986, he is the son of Wayne and Donna Mason. He plans on majoring in business next fall.

Mason joins Matt Fast and Noah Goldman in the 2005-2006 signing class. This past February Golfweek tabbed State’s incoming class among the top-10 in the nation.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/21/05
Women's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State's women's tennis team was well represented at this year's SEC Tournament awards banquet Wednesday night. The awards banquet is held one night prior to tournament competition to honor those individuals whose season performances were nothing short of outstanding.

State's Zsuzsanna Fodor took home first-team all-SEC accolades after an outstanding season in which she compiled a 34-7 record during both the fall and spring seasons. Just this spring, the former Budapest, Hungary product posted a 14-3 showing, 8-3 in the league and played an instrumental park in the Lady Bulldogs' march to the SEC Western Division championship.

"Zsuzsi is without a doubt one of the best players in the league and is extremely deserving of the awards she accomplished," head coach Tracy Lane said. "She has excelled on the court with such grace and has set such a fine example of what it takes to be among the best."

Next up for the first-year player was the SEC Freshman of the Year award. In just her first year in the SEC, Fodor was nationally ranked every week for 13 straight weeks, having been ranked no lower than 28th and as high as 15th, her current national ranking.

"It's an amazing feeling to win all those awards," Fodor said. "I never imagined I would win something. I couldn't have done it without my coaches and teammates because they always support me."

Fodor notched her third award of the night as she and fellow doubles teammate Anastasia Kugakolova were named to the second-team all-SEC doubles team. Having played at the No. 1 position in every doubles match this season, the duo finished the regular season with 13-3 showing, 8-3 in the league. The tandem has won eight of their last 10 conference matches and at one point had won seven consecutive matches within the league including an upset win over Georgia's seventh-ranked combo of Robinson and Basu.

"Nastja is also an individual who is deserving of being recognized within the league," Lane said. "Her performance and intensity on a daily basis warrants the award she received. She is a true team player and without a doubt leaves it all out on the court."

The Lady Bulldogs next set their sights on turning their SEC Western Division championship into an SEC Tournament championship as the 30th-ranked Lady Bulldogs return to the court Thursday morning to take on the 42nd-ranked LSU Lady Tigers in the first round of the SEC Tournament.

State earned the No. 8 seed after an outstanding season in which the Bulldogs posted an 11-6 overall record, the most wins for head coach Tracy Lane since the 2000 season. MSU finished 5-6 within the SEC, tying a school all-time high and the most conference wins for Lane during her stint at MSU. LSU finished the regular season with a 12-10 overall record, 4-7 in the league, resulting in the No. 9 seed for the tournament. The two SEC West rivals kickoff the 2005 tournament with their 9 a.m. match Thursday morning at the Alabama Tennis Complex on the University of Alabama campus in Tuscaloosa.

"We are really looking forward to the upcoming weekend," Lane said. "We start out with a really tough LSU team that we beat at their place, so I look for it to be another challenge for our players."

LSU owns a 24-7 all-time series advantage over MSU, but the Lady Bulldogs won the last meeting in impressive fashion. In that match, the Lady Bulldogs fell behind 3-2, but battled back to take the last two singles matches to garner the 4-3 come from behind win April 3 in Baton Rouge. In singles, the Lady Bulldog sophomore Fodor etched her name in the MSU record books as she record her 32nd singles win of the year, passing Andrea Lord's 31 for tops on the school's all-time singles wins in a season list. The former Budapest, Hungary, product has won her last two singles matches and in 14-3 in dual matches this season. The 15th-ranked Fodor posts an 8-3 record in the SEC with her three losses coming to fellow top 25 players.

State and LSU last met in the SEC Tournament during the 2001 season, the last time the tournament was held in Starkville on the MSU campus. In that match the Lady Bulldogs ousted the Lady Tigers 4-1 in the tournament's first round.

If the Lady Bulldogs advance past LSU, State will next play No. 1 seeded Kentucky on Friday morning at 9 a.m. The Wildcats are ranked third in the country and are 10-1 inside the SEC. UK was a perfect 10-0 until last weekend when Vanderbilt upset the Wildcats 4-3 in Lexington.

Source: MSU Media Relations

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State women's tennis player Haley Rudman has been named to the 2005 Southeastern Conference Women's Tennis Good Works Team, released by the SEC office Tuesday. The Good Works Team looks to highlight athletes from each SEC school who give back to their community in superior service efforts.

A member of the Mississippi State M-Club, Rudman has been involved in many community activities during her career with the Maroon and White. As a member of the M-Club, Rudman helped with the local Thanksgiving Food drive in November. The former Randpark, South Africa, product also visited Suddeth Elementary School in the Starkville Public School system where she played tennis and read books to the elementary students. The sophomore also donated clothing to victims of last December's tsunami.

On the court, Rudman has played an instrumental role in MSU's run to the 2005 SEC Western Division championship. In singles, Rudman has compiled a 15-3 record during both the fall and spring seasons, winning her last four matches. During the fall she began the year winning her first 10 matches of the season.

Playing doubles alongside her sister Tarryn, the Rudman duo finished the regular season with a 6-7 mark in dual matches, 3-7 in the league. Individually, Haley Rudman owns a 17-12 record in doubles matches this season.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/20/05
Softball
OXFORD, Miss. - Mississippi State scored a pair of runs on two out rallies in each of the fourth and sixth innings behind a dominating outing from righthander Kelli Miller as the Bulldogs evened up its season series with Ole Miss on a 4-0 blanking of the Rebels Tuesday evening in Oxford.

The win vaulted the Bulldogs (30-22, 10-13 SEC) to sixth place in the overall SEC standings, while stretching MSU’s winning streak out to four games. Ole Miss (25-23) suffered their fourth consecutive loss with the outcome and dropped the Rebels another half a game behind South Carolina for the eighth and final spot in the season-ending SEC Tournament.

Callye Williams drove in three runs on a 2-for-3 hitting line that stretched her career-long hitting streak out to six games, while fellow infielder Tanelda McDonald scored twice and tallied a RBI on a 2-for-2 night at the plate. Lindsay Hunley and Courtney Bures also crossed the plate once for MSU. Ole Miss got base knocks from four different players.

Miller (11-8), in perhaps her most dominant outing since throwing a no-hitter against Louisiana Tech on February 4, held the Rebels without a hit through the first 11 outs of the contest and finished her outing allowing only three base knocks in six innings from the circle. Stephanie Comeaux came on in relief of Miller in the seventh and struck out a pair to earn her second save of the campaign. Mary Jane Callahan (10-11) who pitched a four-hit shutout for the Rebels in their win in Starkville on Thursday, saddled the loss this time for Ole Miss after allowing four earned runs on six hits and a pair of walks.

"We didn’t get a lot of hits, but we got some timely hits," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "We got some key at-bats from Callye and Tanelda and Lindsay Hunley had a marathon at-bat that led to our first run. Our pitching was outstanding tonight and that was a good sign as we head down the final stretch of our season."

Both teams got early scoring chances, putting runners into scoring position in their second inning at-bats, but neither side was able to score. State got a leadoff double from McDonald to begin its half of the frame, but the Rebels used heads-up defense to erase the threat, turning an attempted sac bunt to their favor in throwing out the runner at third base.

Likewise, the Rebels put a runner into position in the bottom of the inning, utilizing a leadoff walk by Justice and a throwing error by the second baseman Williams to move a runner to second base, but Miller calmed down and retired the next two Rebels in order to nix the threat.

Hunley drew a one-out walk for the Bulldogs in the fourth and advanced into position on a groundout to the left side by Bures moments later. McDonald’s second hit of the night with the next Bulldog at-bat produced the first run of the game for either team when she laced a run-scoring single to left field that plated Hunley all the way from second. Williams’ seeing-eye single to left field a short time later stretched the MSU lead out to 2-0.

After Ole Miss used another MSU fielding error to put a runner on with two outs in their half of the frame, Kloezeman broke up Miller’s no-hit bid with a single to centerfield, but an alert Michelle Kinney picked up the ball and delivered a perfect strike to McDonald at third base to nix DeDe Justice from the base paths and get the Bulldogs out of the inning.

State put together another two-out rally in the sixth, getting a pair of free passes via a walk and a bean ball to set the table for Williams who smacked a double off the wall in left field to bring both runners racing home. The Bulldogs rallied one more time in the seventh, putting runners at the corners with one out, but Ole Miss settled down, getting a clutch out when Justice picked off pinch runner Nakita Boyce at third before Callahan got Katie Cooley on a swinging strikeout.

The Rebels singled in their first two at-bats in the bottom of the seventh to chase Miller from the circle and loaded the bases with a two-out single by Lauren Rowe, but Comeaux fanned Rebecca McIntire on a 2-and-2 count to end the game.

The Rebels and Bulldogs will wrap up their season series next Tuesday when the two meet in the series finale as part of the annual M&F Bank Fastpitch Classic in Madison. First pitch of the contest has been slated for 6:30 p.m. at Madison’s Liberty Park.

The Bulldogs will return to action this weekend when the Maroon and White heads to Gainesville, Fla., for a three-game set with the 15th-ranked Florida Gators (34-12, 13-5). State and the Gators will renew their rivalry for the 23rd time in a 1 p.m. EDT Saturday afternoon doubleheader before closing out the set on Sunday in the series finale which has also been tabbed with a 1 p.m. first pitch.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Mississippi State University men’s outdoor track and field team climbed one spot to 11th in this week’s Trackwire 25. Through April 17th, the Bulldogs have12 marks ranked among the top 20 in six events.

"We’re proud of the ranking," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt. "We’re close to the top 10, and we’re only going to get better. We’ll see where they put us after LSU and the Penn Relays."

At the MSU-hosted 10th annual Jace Lacoste Invitational this past weekend, Jamel Ashley, a senior all-American, won the 400-meter dash in 45.69, a regional qualifying mark and meet record. All-Americans sophomore Arthur Davis (3rd, 46.17) and senior LaChristopher Lewis (4th, 46.40) both met regional qualifying marks in the event, as well.

In addition, Lewis met a regional qualifying mark in the 200-meter dash, taking the meet title in 21.06. Davis finished second in the event (21.23). The 4x400-meter relay team of freshman Adian Sanderson, freshman Chris Woods, freshman Elzie Coleman and junior Kendall Pyant II met a regional mark, winning the race in 3:09.44.

State swept the top three spots in the 1500-meter run with sophomore Travis McKay (3:54.41) taking top honors. Sophomore Brandon Smith (3:59.60) and freshman John Brigham (3:59.74) were second and third, respectively. Senior Gedamu Ege won the 5000-meter run in 15:02.01, while freshman Robert Scribner was third (15:33.42).

Senior high jumper Matt Denton cleared a personal best 7-0 1/2 en route to winning the meet title.

The Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs return to action on Saturday at the LSU Alumni Gold meet in Baton Rouge, La.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Fresh off its 2005 SEC Western Division championship, the Mississippi State women's tennis team checks in at No. 30 in the latest poll released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. This week's ranking marks the 13th consecutive week the Lady Bulldogs have been ranked in the top 75 in the nation. It is also the fourth straight week State has appeared in the top 30.

Individually, MSU's Zsuzsanna Fodor jumped three spots in singles, checking in this week at No. 15. The Budapest, Hungary, native sported a 2-1 singles record since the last poll was released. The sophomore has won eight out of her last nine singles matches with her lone loss coming against sixth-ranked Jennifer Magley of Florida. Heading into this week's SEC Tournament, Fodor owns an impressive 14-3 overall record in dual singles matches, 8-3 in the league.

Joining Fodor in this week's rankings is Anastasia Kugakolova, making her second straight appearance in the rankings. The 113th-ranked junior finished the regular season with a 10-6 singles record, 5-6 within the SEC. Victorious in five of her last nine matches, the former St. Petersburg, Russia, product posted an 8-1 record at home with her only loss coming to Tennessee's Blakeley Griffith.

State's No. 1 doubles combo of Fodor and Kugakolova were also included in this week's rankings as the duo enters competition with a No. 21 ranking. Nationally ranked since the beginning of the season the tandem has found themselves ranked as high as No. 13 and no lower than No. 46. Playing at the No. 1 position in every doubles match the season, the duo has posted a 13-3 record with an 8-3 mark in the league. Their three losses have come to the sixth, 12th, and 38th-ranked doubles teams.

The Lady Bulldogs return to the court Thursday at 9 a.m. when they participate in the 2005 SEC Tournament in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The 8th-seeded Lady Bulldogs take on the 9th-seeded LSU Lady Tigers in Thursday's first opening round game.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State's Sylvain Guichard has been named the 2005 Southeastern Conference Men's Tennis Co-Coach of the Year, sharing the award with his former coach and mentor, current Florida head coach Andy Jackson. The honor, voted on by the league's coaches, was released by the SEC Tuesday evening.

Guichard has led the Bulldog netmen to an 11-8 overall record this season, including a 6-5 mark in league competition. The Bulldogs are the No. 6 seed in this weekend's SEC tournament in Athens, Ga., marking the team's highest seed in the event since 2000.

Under Guichard's leadership this year, MSU had the most improved SEC record of any team in the conference, going from 2-9 in 2004 to 6-5 this year. The 6-5 SEC record marks State's first winning league record in five years.

After tying for last in the SEC and in the Western Division last year, the Bulldogs finished tied for fourth overall and second in the West this season. The fourth place tie was MSU's best league finish since 1998 and second in the West was the Bulldogs' best since the league adopted divisions for men's tennis in 2002.

State also earned a top 15 ranking for the first time in three years, and the Bulldogs will finish 2005 with their first overall winning record since 2001. Three of MSU's five SEC losses this year have been by 4-3 scores. All five setbacks were to top 25 teams, three in the top 15.

Guichard becomes only the third Mississippi State tennis coach ever to earn SEC Coach of the Year accolades, joining Tom Sawyer (1967) and Jackson (1991). Sawyer led MSU to four top 16 NCAA finishes from 1965-68 and the SEC crown in '67, while Jackson guided the Bulldogs to 11 consecutive NCAAs from 1991-2001, including 10 "Sweet Sixteen" showings, the SEC title in 1993, and the SEC Tournament championship in '96. This season, Jackson led the No. 5 Gators (17-5, 10-1 SEC) to a share of the SEC title, the second time he has claimed the conference crown in his four seasons in Gainesville.

"I am very proud of what our team has been able to accomplish this season and I want to give our guys a tremendous of amount of credit for working hard all year," Guichard said. "It is a great honor to be named SEC Coach of the Year. It is even bigger for me, personally, that I am sharing it with the guy who taught me just about everything I know about coaching college tennis. This means a great deal to me."

Guichard spent two seasons under Jackson as a player in 1992-93, a year as a student assistant coach in 1994, and six seasons as his assistant coach from 1996-2001. In his first three seasons as State's head coach, the Grenoble, France, native has led MSU to three consecutive NCAA appearances and into position for a fourth this season. MSU is one of only seven teams in the nation to have received 14 straight bids to the NCAA field.

Source: MSU Media Relations

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State's men's tennis team, which remained ranked 20th nationally in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association poll released Tuesday, will open play in the 2005 Southeastern Conference Championship Thursday, meeting No. 70 Arkansas. The Bulldogs and Razorbacks will square off at 3 p.m. ET that afternoon at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex on the University of Georgia campus.

Sixth-seeded State enters the tournament 11-8 overall and 6-5 in the SEC. Arkansas, seeded 11th, is 5-15, 2-9. The Bulldogs finished in a tie for fourth overall in the league this season, second in the Western Division. The Hogs were 11th overall and fifth in the West.

MSU has dropped five of its last six matches, but all five losses have come to top 25 teams, three of them in the top 15. Arkansas has fallen in four of its last five, including its 5-2 loss to the Bulldogs in Fayetteville on April 1. With that win, State now owns a 17-5 series lead on UA. The teams have met only once before in the SEC Championship, with MSU taking a 4-0 win in the first round of the 2001 event in Lexington, Ky.

State is led by true freshman Pierre Mouillon, who posted the team's best record in SEC play this season at 9-2. He is 13-4 overall in dual matches. Junior Florent Girod owns the team's best dual mark at 14-3. He was 8-3 in conference affairs.

Arkansas has two players ranked in the top 100 nationally at present in Rohan Gajjar (55th) and Matt Roberts (97th). Gajjar and Adrians Zguns are 57th in the country in doubles.

"I said it when we went to Fayetteville and I will say it again -Arkansas is a dangerous, dangerous team," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard said. "They have lost some very close matches to some extremely good teams this year, most of them on the road. We cannot let our guard down against them at all."

The winner of Thursday's contest will advance to meet third-seeded host Georgia on Friday, also in a 3 p.m. start. The Athens-based Bulldogs are currently ranked ninth nationally.

MSU is 16-14, all-time in the SEC Championship and has reached at least the quarterfinals in 12 of the 15 tournaments since the team format was adopted in 1990.

Live scoring of this weekend's tournament will be available on UGA's official athletic site, georgiadogs.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State men's tennis player Luiz Carvalho has been named to the 2005 Southeastern Conference Men's Tennis Good Works Team, released by the SEC office Tuesday. It is the senior Bulldog's second appointment to the team in as many years.

Carvalho has been very involved in community activities during his career. He is member of the Mississippi State M-Club. As a part of that organization, he reads books for elementary students in the Starkville Public School system and is a Dr. Seuss Day participant. He picks up litter around the State campus and in the Starkville area. He is also a sponsor for a child in South America through the Children International adoption program.

The Sao Paulo, Brazil, native serves as the MSU athletic department's student-athlete representative for the SEC's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (2003-present). He has been the MSU SAAC Tennis Representative for three years and the group's Co-President this year. He also participated in the NCAA Regional Leadership Conference this past fall.

Carvalho has been very strong in the classroom as well. He is MSU's 2005 nominee for the SEC's H. Boyd McWhorter Male Scholar-Athlete award. He was an Intercollegiate Tennis Association Scholar-Athlete and Academic all-SEC selection in both 2003 and 2004. An MSU President's Scholar, he is a member of Lambda Pi Eta (communication honor society) and earned the Earl Love Guyton communication scholarship.

On the court, Carvalho has helped put MSU into position for a potential 15th straight NCAA Championship bid this season. Holding 120 career victories overall, he has been ranked in the top 10 nationally in doubles this year. He was named SEC Player of the Week once in 2004.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/19/05
Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - After dropping game one of its disjoined three-game set with Ole Miss on Thursday in Starkville, the Mississippi State softball team will pack up its show and head to Oxford Tuesday evening as the clubs continue their season series with a 6 p.m. match-up at the Ole Miss Softball Complex.

With Anthony Craven calling all the balls and strikes, WMSV 91.1 FM will broadcast the game live from Oxford. The game can also be followed in progress via a live statistics link at the official home for the Mississippi State athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com. For those wishing to make the trek to Oxford, admission to the game is free. The squads will complete their season series on April 26 in Madison, Miss., in the third annual M&F Bank Fastpitch Classic at Liberty Park.

Since Ole Miss’ 2-0 defeat of the Bulldogs on Thursday night, the squads have headed down different paths in the win-loss column. State (29-22, 9-13 SEC) finished off a series sweep of visiting Arkansas with a 2-1 triumph over the Lady ‘Backs Sunday afternoon. On the flip side, the Rebels (25-22, 5-14) dropped all three games of its weekend series at LSU, including a 4-2 loss to the Tigers in the series finale.

"Hopefully, you get a sweep and that will give you a little bit more confidence going down the stretch," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "We were able to move ahead of some people in the SEC standings and I think that is going to help us. But, obviously, it’s what you do from here on out that is going to make the difference. We still have two more games with Ole Miss and series at South Carolina and Florida. That is going to determine where finish at for the conference tournament and, again, give us an opportunity for an NCAA bid."

The Maroon and White lead the overall series with its intra-state rivals by a 19-10 count, while the squads have split 14 games in Oxford right down the middle. In the 2003 series in Oxford, MSU took a 14-0 victory in the opener, but dropped games two and three on walk-off home runs, 6-5 and 10-8.

In Thursday’s game, Ole Miss utilized a crucial Mississippi State error to plate a run in the first and rallied for an insurance score in the seventh behind a four-hit shutout from lefthander Mary Jane Callahan. Callahan also helped her own cause at the plate, scoring both runs on a 1-for-3 hitting line. The Muenster, Texas, native crossed the plate with the gamewinner after drawing a leadoff walk in the top half of the final frame.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - After finishing the regular season with an 11-6 overall record and 5-6 mark inside the Southeastern Conference, the 27th-ranked Mississippi State women's tennis team completed its 2005 campaign with an SEC West championship.

State's five wins in SEC play ties a school all-time high and is the most conference victories by head coach Tracy Lane during her stint at MSU. The last time the Lady Bulldogs posted five SEC wins was during the 1989 campaign.

Lane's 11 overall wins ties her all-time high set during the 2000 season. That season the Lady Bulldogs finished with an 11-11 mark, 3-8 in the league. That squad made their second consecutive appearance in NCAA Regionals and finished the season ranked 36th nationally.

"I am really excited with what we accomplished this year," Lane said. "We went from winning one match when I first got here to winning five matches and winning the SEC West. I am extremely excited about where we are at as a program."

The Lady Bulldogs next take part in the 2005 SEC Tournament in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on the University of Alabama campus. State earned the tournament's No. 8 seed and opens the tourney Thursday with a 9 a.m. match against the LSU Lady Tigers. MSU is 1-0 against LSU this year, having downed the Lady Tigers 4-3 on April 3 in Baton Rouge.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/18/05
Softball
(Game 3) STARKVILLE, Miss. - Courtney Bures hit her record-tying solo home run to break a 1-1 tie in the fourth and rookie Ragan Blake masterminded the Arkansas batting order in four and one-thirds innings of relief to help Mississippi State complete its weekend sweep of the Lady ‘Backs with a 2-1 comeback triumph in the series finale Sunday afternoon at the MSU Softball Field.

The win gave the Bulldogs (29-22, 9-13 SEC) its third league series sweep of the season and helped the Maroon and White keep secure its stranglehold on one of three positions still up for grabs in the 2005 SEC Tournament in Gainesville, Fla. Arkansas (15-34, 1-20) fell to 5-10 all-time against MState in one-run games with the Sunday setback.

Bures matched former all-American Kellie Wilkerson’s six-year freshman home run record with her 13th of the season to highlight a 2-for-3 hitting line, while junior Callye Williams extended her season-long hitting streak on a 2-for-3 day as well for the Bulldogs. Arkansas leadoff hitter Rachel LeMaster singled twice and scored once on three trips to the plate to lead the Lady ‘Backs.

For the second consecutive day, Blake (3-2) whizzed through the Arkansas offensive lineup in a relief role and earned her second-straight win after striking out four and allowing just three hits in a scoreless four and one-thirds innings of action from the circle. Arkansas starter Sarah Topham (1-5) suffered her second loss of the weekend despite allowing just a pair of runs (one earned) and four hits in three and one-thirds innings of work.

"I thought we got outstanding pitching this weekend," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "Ragan came on in tight situations and shut them down the rest of the way out. She did that all weekend after having some tough luck last week. To have her come out and finish all the game in this series and get two wins and a save, you can’t ask for much more than that."

Arkansas drew a walk and singled with two outs in the top of the third to put its first scoring chance together, then completed the play with its next at-bat on an Ashley Carter RBI single that gave the Lady ‘Backs a 1-0 lead. MSU answered in its half of the frame, however, utilizing a leadoff walk issued to Katie Johnson, as well as a clutch throwing error by Topham, to knot the score back up heading into the fourth.

After a relatively quiet fourth inning for the visitors, Bures smacked Lady ‘Back reliever Katy Henry’s first offering in the bottom of the inning over the fence in left centerfield to give the Maroon and White a 2-1 lead. With the game in hand, Blake faced just four batters in the fifth, retired the side in order in the sixth, and baffled the Lady ‘Backs in four at-bats in the seventh to secure the win.

Mississippi State will return to action on Monday when the Bulldogs begin a eight-game stretch away from home with a 6 p.m. twilight contest at Ole Miss (25-22, 5-14). State will hit the road again on Friday afternoon when it travels to Gainesville, Fla., for a weekend series at 15th-ranked Florida (34-12, 13-5).

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Golf
TUNICA, Miss. - The Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs shot a 305 on Sunday and finished the Southeastern Conference Championship in 11th place. The Bulldogs finished the three-round event, firing a 947 overall team score at the Tunica National Golf Course.

Beth Irwin was the highlight of the day for the Lady Bulldogs, carding an even-par 72 in the final round. The round by Irwin was the seventh best on the day and brought her up on the leaderboard to finish in a tie for 38th. Julia Huh shot a 77 on Sunday and was the top finisher for State. She ended the tournament in 37th place with a 235. Sophomore Amanda Mathis matched her second round score of 78 on day three and ended the tournament in a tie for 44th.

Stephanie Godare had her best round of the tournament Sunday, shooting a 78 and finishing with a 244. Aberystwyth, Wales native Janet Dyer shot a 79 and ended with a 243 to close out her showing in the 2005 SEC Championship.

Auburn and Georgia were tied after 54 holes of play, but Auburn won the team championship on the second hole of a playoff. Stacy Lewis of Arkansas shot a 5-under 67 on Sunday to finish the tournament at 2-under par and take home the individual title.

Mississippi State, ranked 30th by golfweek, will now await the announcement of the 2005 NCAA Championship field on April 25 to determine their postseason fate.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Golf
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. - Mississippi State’s men’s golf team concluded the 2005 Southeastern Conference Golf Championship with a final-round 310 on Sunday and slipped down two spots to 10th in the final standings at the par-70 Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club. The Maroon and White finished one-shot better of in-state rival Mississippi and three shots ahead of Vanderbilt.

MSU was led by sophomore Josh Oller’s round of 76. The Brandon, Miss. product finished tied for 25th with teammate Joe Deraney, who closed out the 54-hole event with a final-round 79. Freshman Michael Knight registered a 77 and posted a 37th-place finish. Knight closed out his round with two birdies in the final four holes. He led State in the birdie department with three. Senior Tim Satow closed out his Bulldog career with a 78, placing 47th in the field. The Durbin, South Africa native recorded back-to-back birdies on No. 7 and No. 8. Sophomore Jake Lambert posted a score of 79 to close out the MSU scorecard.

Kentucky picked up its first SEC Golf Championship with a final round 283 beating out Auburn by two strokes. The Wildcats moved from third to first on closing day. The Bulldogs of Georgia placed third, while Florida and Tennessee rounded out the top-five teams.

Tennessee’s David Skinns won the individual championship with a final round two-under par 68 to post an even-par score for the tournament. He edged out UGA’s Scott Richard by a stroke.

The Bulldogs finish the season placing in the top-10 in nine of the 11 tournaments in 2004-05. State captured its first team title since 1999 this season at the Homewood Suites Invitational in Mobile, Ala. Senior Joe Deraney took home medalists honors at the event as well.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/17/05
Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State University’s track and field squads wrapped up the 10th annual Jace Lacoste Invitational on Saturday afternoon with a total of seven regional qualifying marks being met. The Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs came away with wins in 10 events.

"It was a good win on the men’s side," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt. "We held a lot of our big guys out, and it’s a good thing when you can leave your big guys on the bench and still win. The 400-meter guys were phemnominal. Matt’s (Denton) regional qualifying mark was great. Our throws women came through. Jasmine (Walls) came close to a regional mark in the high jump. It’s a long season. Every week we go out there and battle."

The Bulldogs took overall team honors with 165 1/2 points.

Jamel Ashley, a senior all-American, won the 400-meter dash in 45.69, the fastest time posted in the event in collegiate competition this season. The regional qualifying mark is a Jace Lacoste Invitational record.

Sophomore all-American Arthur Davis finished third in the event in 46.17, a regional qualifying mark and personal best. LaChristopher Lewis, also a senior all-American, finished fourth in a regional-qualifying 46.40.

Senior high jumper Matt Denton cleared 7-0 1/2 en route to taking top honors in the event. The leap is a regional-qualifying time and personal best for the Hurley, Miss.-native. Freshman Tim Williams finished second with a mark of 6-6 3/4.

Lewis won the 200-meter dash title in 21.06, a regional qualifying mark. He was followed by Davis in 21.23.

The 4x400-meter relay team of freshman Adian Sanderson, freshman Chris Woods, freshman Elzie Coleman and junior Kendall Pyant II won in with a 3:09.44 regional time.

The Bulldogs swept the top four spots in the 1500-meter run with Travis McKay (1st, 3:54.41), Brandon Smith (2nd, 3:59.60) and John Brigham (3rd, 3:59.74) all setting personal best marks. Sophomore Phillip Moore finished fourth.

In the 5000-meter run, senior Gedamu Ege, won with a time of 15:02.01. Freshman Robert Scribner came in third in the race.

Freshman Joseph Queen cleared 14-06 in the pole vault to finish second, while freshman Austin Golding set a personal best in the event.

On the women’s side, the Lady Bulldogs finished in second with 129 1/2 points. Junior Meggan Hodge captured the 3000-meter steeplechase title with a Jace Lacoste Invitational record-time of 11:03.78.

Senior Crystal Averitt was a double winner at the meet, taking top billing in the discus and hammer. Averitt’s mark of 156-11 in the discus qualifies her for next month’s Mideast Regional in Bloomington, Ind. She won the hammer with a throw of 173-10.

Sophomore Nicola Wilson set a personal best with her winning 46-06 3/4 throw in the shot put. Sophomore Christina Hernandez finished fourth in the event.

Junior Zita Magloire set a personal best in her second-place 4:37.45 showing in the 1500-meter run. Junior Jasmine Walls cleared 5-07 in the high jump, a personal best.

Hernandez finished second in the discus, while senior Jennifer Johnstone and Wilson placed fourth and fifth respectively. Johnstone took second in the hammer throw, while Hernandez was fourth and Wilson set a personal record with her fifth-place finish.

Both MSU track squads return to action on Saturday, April 23, at the LSU Alumni Gold meet in Baton Rouge, La.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - In spite of a furious rally effort in singles, Mississippi State's 20th-ranked men's tennis team ultimately dropped a 4-3 decision to third-ranked, arch-rival Mississippi Saturday at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre on campus.

With the setback, State dropped to 11-7 overall and finished second in the Southeastern Conference's Western Division at 6-5, its first winning mark in the league since 2000. UM grabbed its 20th win of the season (now 20-2), and claimed a share of the SEC crown, tying Florida at 10-1. The Rebels won their 15th straight over the Bulldogs.

UM got on the board first in the match by claiming the opening doubles point with identical 8-3 wins at the No. 1 and 2 positions. But in singles, State would claim the first set in four of the six contests to try and get back in the match.

State tied the score at 1-1 when junior Florent Girod improved to 14-3 in dual matches this season, upsetting 109th-ranked Rebel Karim Alayli at the No. 6 position. The Rebels went back on top when Catalin Gard, ranked sixth nationally in singles, completed a 6-3, 6-3 decision over Bulldog Ivan Bjelica at No. 1.

The turning point in the match came at the No. 2 spot. It was there that Rebel Eric Claesson overcame dropping the first set 6-1 to Bulldog true freshman Pierre Mouillon to win 1-6, 6-1, 6-0. That swing point put the Rebels up 3-1, needing only one more point for the win. The rookie Mouillon, who was 13-3 in dual matches and 9-1 in the SEC coming into the day, was playing his first career match at No. 2.

The point UM needed would come at the No. 4 spot, where Juan Pablo Di Cesare, down a break in the second set at 4-2, won the next four games to finish his victory over MSU's Luiz Carvalho 6-2, 6-4. Di Cesare is now 18-1 this season, 10-1 in SEC battles.

State would claim triumphs in the last two matches on court, both in three-set affairs. Junior Jose-Carlos Pinto notched a 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 win over Rebel Jakob Klaeson at No. 5, while MSU freshman Philippe Frayssinoux grabbed a 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 victory over UM's 102nd-ranked Erling Tveit at No. 3, marking only the second loss of the year for the Rebel rookie.

"I was extremely proud of our team's effort today. We were very prepared for this match," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard said. ³We knew losing the doubles wouldn't kill us and it didn't. It just came down to a couple of close matches that made the difference. That was a tough loss for Pierre at No. 2. He has been our best player in the SEC this season and he just hit the rookie wall a little today. But that's part of the game and he will be better in the future with that experience.

"We have no reason at all to hang our heads after this match, losing to a great Ole Miss team that hasn't lost to too many people anywhere this year. After the performance we gave today, I feel like we are moving in the right direction."

MSU will now compete in the 2005 SEC Championship to be held this week, April 21-24, in Athens, Ga. The draw and times for the weekend will be announced following this weekend's competition.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
(Game 2) STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State utilized a costly Arkansas error in the fourth inning to plate the game’s only run and reliever Ragan Blake held off a late charge by the visiting Lady ‘Backs to help the homestanding Bulldogs clinch the weekend series with a 1-0 triumph in the second half of the series-opening doubleheader Saturday afternoon at the MSU Softball Field.

The win, coupled with a pair of losses by cross-state nemesis Ole Miss at LSU, catapulted the Bulldogs (28-22, 8-13 SEC) to a two-game lead over the Rebels for the eighth and final spot in the season-ending SEC Tournament in Gainesville, Fla. Arkansas (15-33, 1-18) lost its seventh league series of the season with the doubleheader sweep.

Callye Williams crossed the plate once on a 2-for-3 hitting line to pace the Bulldog offense, while Lindsay Hunley and Tanelda McDonald both added base knocks to the hit column on 1-for-2 and 1-for-3 tallies, respectively. Arkansas got a perfect 2-for-2 hitting line for Mindy O’Malley to highlight their offense.

MSU starter Kelli Miller (10-8) surrendered six hits and struck out three batters over six strong innings to snap a personal three-game winning streak. Blake, who earned the win in game one of the doubleheader, struck out one and allowed one hit in a scoreless seventh inning to earn her sixth save of the season. Arkansas starter Sarah Topham took the tough-luck loss for the Lady ‘Backs despite allowing four hits and an unearned run in five innings of work.

"We need to score more runs," said an elated, but unsatisfied, Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller following the game. "We had the people up that we wanted to have up with runners in scoring position. We need to be putting more than four hits up on the board and generating a lot more offense. We got a whale of a game from Kelli who was sick as a dog today and it was nice to see Ragan come in and pick up the win in the first game and then finish them off in the second game."

After four relatively uneventful innings, State scraped together a scoring chance in the fifth, getting a leadoff single from Williams, then using its short game, as well as the Lady ‘Back error, to move a runner to third. Katie Johnson delivered a hard grounder to the left side with the next at-bat to score Williams and give the Bulldogs a lead they would never relinquish.

Arkansas had its best chance to score go sour in the seventh when, after the visitors loaded the bases with their first four at-bats of the frame, Blake struck out Zenobia Davison, then induced a foul fly to first baseman Lindsay Hunley to end the game.

Mississippi State will close out its weekend series with Arkansas on Sunday afternoon when the two squads lock horns with one another in the series finale at 1 p.m. The game can be heard live on WMSV 91.1 FM with Anthony Craven calling all the balls and strikes. Sunday’s series bookend will be preceded by Senior Day festivities as State’s Class of 2005 * Jennifer Jessup, Melissa Massey and Tanelda McDonald * will be honored in a ceremony prior to first pitch.

Source: MSU Media Relations

(Game 1) STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State sent 10 batters to the plate in a four-run fourth inning that helped the Bulldogs erase a 3-0 Arkansas lead in the top of the inning en route to a 5-4 victory over the visiting Lady ‘Backs Saturday afternoon in the series opener at the MSU Softball Field.

The win snapped a four-game SEC losing streak for the Bulldogs (27-22, 7-13 SEC) and kept the Maroon and White in the thick of the hunt for one of the final three berths into the season-ending SEC Tournament. Arkansas (15-32, 1-17) suffered their third consecutive SEC loss with the setback.

The Bulldogs got multi hits from three different players, including Lindsay Hunley who drove in a pair of runs on a 2-for-3 hitting line. Katie Johnson scored twice on a 2-for-3 plate tally, while Courtney Bures recorded two base knocks in three trips to the plate. Ashley Carter hit a solo home run to highlight a 2-for-3 day at the plate that led Arkansas.

MSU starter Stephanie Comeaux exited the game down 3-0 in the fourth before freshman Ragan Blake shut down the Lady ‘Backs to keep MSU within striking distance. Blake (2-2) scattered three hits and struck out a trio of Arkansas batters to pick up her first win since February 26. Arkansas starter Valanna Lyons saddled the loss for the Lady ‘Backs, surrendering four unearned runs on five hits and as many walks in three and two-thirds innings from the circle.

Via a one-out single by Rachel LeMaster, as well as a two-out walk delivered by Comeaux, Arkansas put a pair of runners on with two outs in the third to set the table for Easley who doubled to the gap in left field to give the Lady ‘Backs a quick 2-0 lead. The Lady ‘Backs would pad their lead in the third, using a pair of singles and a sac hit to get runners to second and third and chase Comeaux from the circle. With Blake on in relief, the visitors used a deep fly ball to centerfield from Sarah Topham to push the lead out to 3-0.

State got some help from a clutch fielding error by Arkansas with the leadoff at-bat in the bottom of the frame. The ‘Dogs would capitalize, highlighting the next six at-bats with a two-run double by Hunley and a sac fly from Kinney, to tie the score at three apiece. MState would load the bases with its eighth at-bat of the frame - an intentional free pass delivered to Bures - before tacking another run on the board when McDonald walked on a full-count walk moments later.

The Bulldogs got another sac fly from Kinney in the fifth to bring Katie Johnson racing home from third, but Arkansas cut the lead back to one on Carter’s solo homer in the seventh.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Golf
TUNICA, Miss. - The Mississippi State women's golf team moved up to 11th after the second round of the Southeastern Conference Championship on Saturday. The Lady Bulldogs fired a 312, an improvement of 18 strokes from the first round on Friday.

All five players from MSU improved their scores on the second day of play . Julia Huh shot a 4-over par 76 to lead all State players in the second round. She is currently in a tie for 36th with a two round total of 158. Amanda Mathis shot a 78 on day two and moved from 48th to 39th. Janet Dyer and Beth Irwin are in a tie for 55th with a two day total of 164. Dyer shot a 77 and Irwin an 81 in the second round. Stephanie Godare is only two strokes back of Dyer and Irwin after firing an 82 on Saturday and stands in 57th.

Nicole Hage of Auburn and Jessica Shepley of Tennessee are in a tie on top of the leaderboard at 1-over par. Auburn remains the team leader after the second round but their lead was cut to three stokes by LSU who shot a 293 on day two and stand in a close second.

Mississippi State will begin the third and final round tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. at the Tunica National Golf Course. Live statistics of the tournament are available at www.golfstat.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Golf
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. - Mississippi State’s men’s golf team tallied a team score of 301 in the second round of the 2005 Southeastern Conference Men’s Golf Championship to hold on to the eighth spot with the LSU Tigers in the team standings. The Maroon and White head into Sunday’s final round at the par-70 Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club 10 stokes out of the top-five in the standings.

MSU’s Joe Deraney stayed in contention with a second-round four-over par 74. The senior from Statesboro, Ga. heads into the final round six shots back of the leader. He finished Saturday on a high note with a birdie on the final hole to secure the 11th spot in the individual standings. Sophomore Josh Oller fired his second consecutive 75. The Brandon, Miss native carded 13 pars during the second round. Oller currently stands in 23rd-place after 36 holes. Freshman Michael Knight registered recorded his second-straight 76. Knight moved up a spot on the leaderboard from 32nd to 31st. Senior Tim Satow closed out the Bulldogs scorecard with a 79.

Low scores were hard to come by with windy conditions on the course. The winds were blowing 15 to 25 mph. Only three players posted rounds of par on Saturday. Florida’s Brett Steigmaier, Tennessee’s David Skinns and Vanderbilt’s Luke List all posted even-par 70s.

The Gators of Florida moved to the top-spot on the team leaderboard after carding a 292. First round leader Kentucky slipped two spots to third with a 302, while Auburn is four shots behind UF heading into the final 18 holes. The Crimson Tide of Alabama and Georgia round out the top-five squads.

UGA’s Scott Richard leads all individuals at one-over par after 36 holes. Richard fired a 73 on Saturday after his round of 68 on Friday. He takes a one-shot lead over UT’s Skinns and Alabama’s Gator Todd.

MSU will conclude the SEC Championship on Sunday, teeing off at 8 a.m. ET with South Carolina and LSU.

Live scoring of the tournament will be available at www.golfstat.com or secsports.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/16/05
Women's Tennis
OXFORD, Miss. - In the final match of the regular season, the 27th-ranked Mississippi State women's tennis dropped a 6-1 decision to in-state rival Mississippi Friday evening at Mississippi's Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center on the UM campus. Following the loss, the Lady Bulldogs finished the regular season with an 11-6 mark, 5-6 in the league. Mississippi improved to 12-8 and 5-6 within the SEC.

Mississippi grabbed the early 1-0 lead in the match as the Lady Rebels took all three doubles matches to garner the opening point. UM's tandem of Ilona Somers and Mimi Renaudin won the first match of the day, downing MSU's combo of Magdi Rekasi and Polina Kokoulina at the second position. Clinching the match for the Lady Rebels was Nika Koukhartchouk and Preethi Subramanian as they defeated State's Haley and Tarryn Rudman at No. 3. In the final doubles match, UM's 38th-ranked duo of Chloe Carlotti and Virgina Tomatis upset 13th-ranked Zsuzsanna Fodor and Anastasia Kugakolova at No 1.

In singles, the Lady Bulldogs tied the match at one point apiece as the 18th-ranked Fodor knocked off UM's 43rd-ranked Carlotti 6-1, 6-2 at the No. 1 position. From there, Mississippi won the next five matches to take home the victory. The Lady Rebels Subramanian beat State's Kokoulina at the sixth position 6-4, 6-2 to give the homestanding Lady Rebels a 2-1 edge. At No. 3, Somers snapped MSU's Tarryn Rudman's seven-match winning streak as she defeated Rudman 6-3, 6-3. Renaudin clinched the match for Mississippi as she knocked off Magdi Rekasi 6-1, 6-1 at the fifth position.

In the final two singles matches of the evening, State's 93rd-ranked Kugakolova fell to UM's Koukhartchouk 6-4, 6-4. Tomatis defeated Reneé Joseph at the fourth position 6-4, 6-3 in the last match of the contest.

Despite the loss, the Lady Bulldogs earned a share of the SEC Western Division Title after posting a 5-6 mark in the league.

The Lady Bulldogs return to action on Thursday, April 21 when they take part in the 2005 SEC Tournament in Tuscaloosa, Ala. All seeding and match times will be announced following this weekend's competition.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Still clinging to the eighth and final spot in the race to the 2005 SEC Tournament, the Mississippi State softball team will close out its 2005 home schedule this weekend as the Maroon and White suits up to host SEC West rival Arkansas in a crucial three-game intra-divisional series at the MSU Softball Field.

The Bulldogs (26-22, 6-13 SEC) will lock horns with the Lady Razorbacks (15-31, 1-16) for the 32nd time in a 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon doubleheader to open the series, and the squads will close out their weekend set on Sunday in the series finale which has also been slated for a 1 p.m. start time. Sunday’s series bookend will be preceded by Senior Day festivities as MSU’s Class of 2005 - Jennifer Jessup, Tanelda McDonald and Melissa Massey - will be honored prior to first pitch.

All three games of the weekend set can be followed in progress via a live stats link at the official home for the Mississippi State athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com. Sunday’s finale has also been slated for a live broadcast on WMSV 91.1 FM with Anthony Craven handling all the play-by-play duties. Admission to all 2005 MSU Softball home games is free.

Reeling from a midweek loss to Ole Miss, State still find itself in the thick of the hunt for the final three spots in the SEC Tournament. Four teams - MSU, South Carolina, LSU and Ole Miss - are separated by a single game for those berths. LSU and Ole Miss will battle one another in Baton Rouge, La., this weekend, while South Carolina will take on SEC Western Division leader Alabama.

Skippered by first year head coach Jamie Pinkerton, Arkansas has seen its fair share of growing pains so far this season. Boasting the most arms of any pitching staff in the league, the six-armed Lady ‘Back bullpen currently totes an SEC-high 4.54 team ERA, but has given a handful of teams - including current SEC leader Georgia - fits down the stretch.

A bulk of the time from the circle has been seen by freshman Katy Henry (6-10, 4.21) and junior Valanna Lyons (6-14, 4.23 ERA), but three other pitchers have shared eight starts this season as well. Through 285 innings of work this season, the Cardinal and White has surrendered 363 base hits, 96 (26 percent) of which have come of the extra base variety.

Offensively, the Lady ‘Backs are led by sophomore Rachel LeMaster who is hitting .400 with 11 RBI, as well as a scattering of .200 hitters throughout their lineup. Although possessing just a .260 batting average, sophomore infielder Kallie Foglesong paces the Lady ‘Backs in both home runs (3) and RBI (22).

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Golf
TUNICA, Miss. - The Mississippi State women's golf team shot a 330 in first round action at the Southeastern Conference Golf Championship at Tunica National Golf Course on Friday. The Bulldogs currently stand in 12th place in an SEC field that sports six teams in the top-25.

Sophomore Amanda Mathis shot an 81 to lead all Bulldog golfers and is currently in 48th place. Julia Huh shot an 82 and Beth Irwin an 83 on the par-72 course. Rounding out the scoring for the Bulldogs were Stephanie Godare who shot an 84 and Janet Dyer who shot an 87.

On a day that saw only two players shoot under par, Nicole Hage of Auburn currently leads all individuals at 3-under par. Third ranked Auburn is leading all teams after the first round of play at 3-over par.

Mississippi State will begin second round action tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. at the Tunica National Golf Course. Live statistics of the tournament are available at www.golfstat.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Starkville, Miss. - Mississippi State senior golfer Beth Irwin was named to the 2005 Southeastern Conference Good Works Team announced by the league office.

Irwin, an economics major from Germantown, Tenn., teaches junior golf clinics during the summer in the Memphis area. She has also been active in the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Golf Tournament in Memphis, and has participated in the Angel Tree program, providing gifts for children at Christmas.

Irwin has four top-10 finishes and two runner-up finishes so far this season. She finished second at the Papa Johns Collegiate Golf Tournament and tied for second at the Chrysler ACC/SEC Challenge. Irwin is currently ranked 93rd nationally by Golfweek, 18th in the SEC, and is also currently tied with Amanda Mathis for the lowest round score by an MSU player with a 67.

The SEC sponsors Good Works Teams for all 20 league sponsored sports. The Good Works Team honors a student-athlete from each school who works diligently to give back to the community in many service efforts. This is the second year for the SEC to sponsor a Golf Good Works Team for women's golf.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Golf
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. - Mississippi State’s men’s golf team opened the 2005 Southeastern Conference Men’s Golf Championship with an opening round 303. The Bulldogs stand in eighth after Friday’s round at the par-70 Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club. The Maroon and White sit just five shots out of fifth heading into the weekend.

MSU was led by senior Joe Deraney’s three-over par 73. He heads into the weekend tied for 11th. Deraney sits just five shots off the leader going into Saturday’s action. His round on Friday included two birdies and 12 pars. Sophomore Josh Oller turned in a five-over par 75 in the first round. The Brandon, Miss. product currently stands in 22nd on the individual leaderboard. Freshman Michael Knight carded a 76, finishing the day in a six-way toe for 32nd. Tim Satow finished up the State scorecard with a 79. Sophomore Jake Lambert concluded day one of the Championship with an 82.

On a tough day for low numbers, only two players in the field posted a round under par. Georgia’s Scott Richard carded a two-under par 68 to lead all individuals. Kentucky’s John Holmes fired a one-under par 69.

Kentucky registered the low-round of the day with a 290. The Wildcats hold a four-shot advantage over Florida and a five-shot lead over Alabama. The Tigers of Auburn, followed by South Carolina and Tennessee round out the top-five teams on the leaderboard.

State will begin second-round action at 8:50 ET. They will be paired with Georgia and Arkansas.

Live scoring of the tournament will be available at www.golfstat.com or secsports.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State junior golfer Jared Jimenez has been named to the 2005 Southeastern Conference Men’s Golf Good Works Team, announced by the conference office in Birmingham, Ala.

The SEC sponsors Good Works Teams for all 20 league sponsored sports. The Good Works Team highlights a student-athlete from each school who gives back to the community in superior service efforts.

Jimenez is a member of the MSU M-Club, a group comprised of State’s student-athletes. He was apart of Bully’s Book Blitz, a program designed to encourage and improve reading skills. The M-Club joined with the India Student Association and the MSU Student Association to provide support to the Tsunami Clothing Drive, an assistance program benefiting victims of the flooding disaster in Asia. He donated time at Aiken Village on the MSU campus, providing day care assistance at the married student housing complex.

On the course, the Allen, Texas native played in three tournaments during the 2004-05 campaign. His best finish of 48th came at the Raising Cane Classic in Hattiesburg, Miss. where he was competing as an individual at the event. He carded a career-best even-par 72 in the second round of The University Club Intercollegiate during the fall season.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/15/05
Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Ole Miss utilized a crucial Mississippi State error to plate a run in the first, then rallied for an insurance score in the seventh, to give starter Mary Jane Callahan more than enough run support as the Rebels snapped a three-game series losing skid with a 2-0 triumph over the Bulldogs Thursday evening at the MSU Softball Field.

The win was the first for the Rebels (25-19, 5-11 SEC) in Starkville since the 2000 season, snapping a losing skid of six games for the Blue and White. Despite the loss, Mississippi State (26-22, 6-13) still maintains a half-game lead on the Rebels for the final berth into the SEC Tournament.

The Maroon and White got base hits from four different players, including Tanelda McDonald (1-for-3) who broke up Callahan’s no-hit bid with a two-out single in the bottom of the fourth. Katie Cooley had her career-long hitting streak ended at five games on a 0-for-3 hitting line. The Rebels got a pair of multi-hit tallies from DeDe Justice (2-for-4) and Chloe Kloezeman.

Callahan (10-9) surrendered just four hits and struck out five in her 12th complete game of the campaign to pick up the win for Ole Miss, while MSU starter Kelli Miller (9-8) saddled the loss, despite surrendering an unearned run in one inning of action. Stephanie Comeaux scattered five hits and struck out six Rebels in six innings of relief, but did not get a decision.

"We just did a horrible job at the plate tonight. It was just pitiful," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "Until we can make adjustments and grow up a little at the plate, that’s what is going to happen. Stephanie did a great job of coming in and shutting them down and giving us an opportunity which is what we ask from out pitchers. We just need to generate a little more offense."

The Rebels wasted no time in mounting a scoring threat, using a leadoff walk in the first, as well as its short game, to put a runner into scoring position early. However, Miller appeared to get out of the jam until Brittany Warner’s routine grounder was misplayed by Courtney Bures at shortstop, allowing Callahan to round third and score with the 1-0 lead for Ole Miss.

After McDonald broke up Callahan’s no-hitter in the fourth, MSU put runners at first and second with its first three at-bats in the fifth, but to no avail. Callahan got pinch-hitter Sara Hickerson on a grounder to the left side and induced an inning-ending pop up from the bat of Katie Cooley.

The Rebels would rally for an insurance run in the top of the seventh, getting Callahan aboard, again, on a walk, but this time used a seeing-eye single from Kloezeman to stretch the advantage out to two. MSU went down quietly in the bottom of the frame to provide the final.

Mississippi State will return to action this weekend when the Bulldogs close out their 2005 home schedule with a three-game series against Arkansas (15-31, 1-16) at the MSU Softball Field. The two will open up their set with a 1 p.m. Saturday afternoon doubleheader, before locking horns on Sunday in the series finale at 1 p.m. Sunday’s series bookend will be preceded by Senior Day festivities as MSU’s class of 2005 * Jennifer Jessup, Melissa Massey and Tanelda McDonald * will be honored just before the first pitch.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Looking to end the regular season on a high note, Mississippi State's 20th-ranked men's tennis team will host third-ranked, arch-rival Mississippi Saturday. Match time is set for 1 p.m. at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre on the MSU campus. Admission is free.

State, 11-7 overall and 6-4 in Southeastern Conference play, will be looking to end a three-match losing skid, all three setbacks having come to current top 20 teams. The Bulldogs are presently tied for fourth place in the SEC behind the Rebels and No. 6 Florida, who are tied for the league lead at 9-1, and No. 10 Georgia, which is third at 7-3.

Mississippi is 19-2 overall this season, with its only two losses coming to Virginia (currently ranked No. 2) in the semifinals of the ITA National Indoor Championships in February, and at Georgia in late March.

In the history of the storied series that dates back to a 1907 meeting, MSU maintains a slight 46-45 edge on Mississippi. But the Rebels have claimed the last 14 consecutive contests between the teams, a streak that started during the 1999 campaign. UM took a 4-0 decision over State earlier this season in the River Hills Cup in Jackson.

"A huge challenge awaits us Saturday," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard said. "Obviously, Ole Miss has another outstanding team this season and they will be very difficult to beat. It will be tough and will take a great effort from our team to upset them. We need all of our fans to come out and support us Saturday."

After Saturday's contest, both teams will head to the 2005 SEC Championship to be held next week, April 21-24, in Athens, Ga. The draw for the tournament will be released following this weekend's conference competition.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Golf
Starkville, Miss. - The 30th ranked Mississippi State women's golf team will compete in Tunica, Miss. for the 2005 SEC Championship this weekend. The three day event will be played at the par 72, 7,210-yard Tunica National Golf Course. The tournament will begin Friday, April 15 and run through Sunday, April 17. Tee times for each of the three rounds are set to begin at 8:30 a.m.

"The team is excited about playing this year's championship in our own state," said head coach Christi Sanders. "We take a lot of positives into the championship coming off a successful regular season."

This year's SEC Championship in Tunica marks the first tournament the Lady Bulldogs have played in the Magnolia State since the SEC Championship was held at Old Waverly Country Club in 1994. The 12 team field in this year's championship features six teams in the top 25 and 8 teams in the top 50 rankings according to golfweek.

Mississippi State's lineup will feature Amanda Mathis, Beth Irwin, Janet Dyer, Stephanie Godare and Julia Huh. The Lady Bulldogs are lead by sophomore Mathis who currently holds a 75.00 stroke average for the 2004-2005 season. Mathis comes into this year's conference championship with five top-10 finishes and a win at the Wildcat Invitational last October.

As a team, Mississippi State has finished in the top-10 in seven of the eight tournaments this season. The Lady Bulldogs also have a tournament title under their belt after claiming the Wildcat Invitational in the second tournament of the fall season. MSU is currently ranked sixth in the league in stroke average with a 303.78 average per 18 holes.

In the 2004 SEC tournament held at the University Club in Baton Rouge, La., Mississippi State shot a 923 to finish in 11th place. Then sophomore Godare led the Lady Bulldogs with a three-round total of 227 and a tie for 31st place. The team champion was Vanderbilt and May Wood of Vanderbilt took home the individual title.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - With SEC Tournament seeding implications and in-state bragging rights on the line, Mississippi State's 27th-ranked women's tennis (11-5, 5-5 SEC) team travels to Oxford Friday afternoon to take on Mississippi (11-8, 4-6 SEC) in the final match of the regular season. Match time is set for 4 p.m. at the Lady Rebels' Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center.

"Mississippi is a really good team," head coach Tracy Lane said. "We are looking forward to the challenge."

Statistically, the Lady Bulldogs continue to be led by sophomore and 18th-ranked Zsuzsanna Fodor, who has posted a 13-3 singles mark during the spring campaign. The Budapest, Hungary, native picked up her 13th singles win last Sunday when she defeated South Carolina's Danielle Wiggins 6-3, 6-1 in the Lady Bulldogs 4-3 loss at Carolina. Her only three losses have come to fellow top 25 players.

Not far behind with an 11-4 singles mark is State's Tarryn Rudman. After notching two wins last weekend at No. 7 Florida and No. 25 South Carolina, the former Randpark, South Africa, product won her career-best seventh singles match in a row. Rudman began the season 0-3 inside SEC play, but has reeled off seven consecutive wins to up her singles mark to 11-4 during the spring season.

Following State's match with Mississippi on Friday, the Lady Bulldogs return the court Thursday, Apr. 21 as the Bulldogs take part in the 2005 SEC Tournament in Tuscaloosa, Ala. All tournament seedings with be determined after this weekend's slate of competition.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Golf
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State’s men’s golf team treks to St. Simons Island, Ga. for the 2005 Southeastern Conference Championship this weekend, April 15-17 at the par-70, 6,885 yard Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club. This year’s 54-hole event will mark the 66th time that the SEC Championship has been contested. Sea Island Golf Club has been host of the 12-team field for the past four seasons.

The Bulldogs are coming into this week’s season finale after a stretch of three tournaments in a five-week span. The squad has posted two top-five finishes in two of those three tournaments. The Maroon and White brought home the team title at the Homewood Suites Invitational on March 22 and finished fourth at the LSU Spring Invitational on April 3.

Head coach Clay Homan will start the same line up from the previous three competitions. The five-man line up is led by senior Joe Deraney, who leads the team in scoring with a 72.97 average and has posted eight top-20 finishes in 10 tournaments this season. Senior Tim Satow is coming off a 29th-place finish at the Billy Hitchcock Intercollegiate in Auburn, Ala. Sophomore Josh Oller joins Deraney and Satow as the only three Bulldog linksters to compete in all 10 events during the 2004-05 campaign. Sophomore Jake Lambert and freshman Michael Knight round out MSU’s line up card.

Last season, State posted a 10th-place finish in the 2004 edition of the SEC Championship. Deraney, a Statesboro, Ga. product led MSU in the final round with a four-under-par 66.

The SEC features seven teams ranked in the top-25 in the Golfweek rankings. Georgia comes into the week ranked No. 2 in the country, followed by No. 6 Florida, No. 7 Auburn, No. 16 Tennessee. Kentucky holds the No. 18 spot, while South Carolina and Alabama are ranked No. 20 and No. 23 respectively. UGA won the 2004 SEC Title, defeating the Gators of UF by one stroke.

The quest for the championship, along with the automatic berth into the 2005 NCAA Regionals will begin at 8 a.m. ET on Friday.

Live scoring of the tournament will be available at www.golfstat.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Mississippi State University track and field squads return home to host the Jace Lacoste Invitational on Saturday, April 16, at W.O. Spencer Stadium/Carl Maddox Track. Field events begin at 9 a.m. CT, while track events get underway at noon.

"It’s looking like it will be a good meet," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt. "We’ve got quite a few teams scheduled to be here. If our athletes step up like they did two weeks ago, we have a chance to score on both sides. We’re still a good team in a scoring situation at home."

Other squads scheduled to compete include Alabama’s men, Alabama-Huntsville, Arkansas State, Barry College, Bevill State’s women, Birmingham Southern, Jacksonville State’s women, Memphis, Mississippi College, SE Missouri State, Samford, Southern Miss and UAB women’s.

Entering this weekend’s meet the Bulldogs are ranked 12th in the nation in the Trackwire 25. In Austin, junior Steve Mullings won the 100-meter dash in 10.06 seconds, the top regional qualifying time in the NCAA this season. Although not an NCAA event, the Bulldogs won the 4x200-meter relay in 1:21.62. The wins mark the fifth and sixth trophies MSU has won at the prestigious event over the past four years.

In the 4x100-meter relay, sophomore Eliott Morant, senior all-American Jamel Ashley, Mullings and senior all-American LaChristopher Lewis finished third with a regional qualifying time of 39.09. The mark ties a two-year old MSU school record. The 4x400 team of Ashley, Davis, freshman Elzie Coleman and Lewis ran 3:05.45, finishing sixth.

For the second time this season, Lewis leaped to a regional qualifying mark in the long jump (24-10) at Texas.

On the women’s side, Dominique Rogers set a new freshman record in the 400-meter hurdles (1:03.53) and junior Zita Magloire finished third in the 1500-meter run (4:39.45). Senior Jennifer Johnstone set personal bests in the discus (149-7) and hammer (168-4).

Now in its third decade of service to the MSU track and field program, Spencer Stadium/Maddox Track is located on Lakeview Drive behind the Shira Field House Complex.

Named in honor of MSU’s late all-SEC decathlete and team captain, killed in a 1995 automobile accident, the Jace Lacoste Invitational has been held annually since 1996. Lacoste was named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll from 1987-1990, president of the M-Club, State’s student-athlete community service organization, a student senator and a member of the MSU Hall of Fame. He was also a member of various other MSU organizations.

In addition, the Jace Lacoste Award is presented each year to the most outstanding Bulldog track and field athlete. Past recipients of the award include: Rayton Archer (1996), Terry Day (1997), Dedric Ruffin (1998), Fred Collier (1999), Rod Newton (2000), Pierre Browne (2001, 2002), Marquis Davis (2003) and LaChristopher Lewis (2004).

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/14/05
Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State University track and field standout Steve Mullings has been named the Southeastern Conference Runner of the Week as announced by the league office on Wednesday afternoon. The award follows Mullings’ impressive performance at the 78th Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays.

"This is a good honor for Steve," said MSU associate head coach Steve Dudley. "He had a good weekend at Texas. He got a lot of support from his teammates in the relay events."

In Austin, Mullings' 10.06 time in the 100-meter dash final ties his personal best set at the MSU-hosted Bulldog Invitational. The regional qualifying mark ranks as the third fastest in school history and is the fastest regional qualifying time posted in the NCAA this season.

The mark breaks a Texas Relays record held since 1976 by Ed Preston of Arkansas State. The time also ties the Myers Stadium record set last season by Tyson Gay, a former teammate of Mullings at Barton Co. (Kansas) CC.

The 4x200-meter relay team of Mullings, senior all-American Jamel Ashley, sophomore all-American Arthur Davis and senior all-American LaChristopher Lewis won in 1 minute, 21.62 seconds.

The third-place 4x100 team of sophomore Eliott Morant, Ashley, Mullings and Lewis finished in a regional qualifying and season best 39.09. The mark ties a two-year old school record set in 2003 by Lewis, Marquis Davis, Glenn McFadden and Pierre Browne.

"It’s great to get this honor," Mullings said. "This was my third time to compete at Texas, and I’ve never lost there. I’m running the 400 this weekend at home. I’m trying to get some strength to run the 200. I’m hoping to finish in at least 47 seconds."

Mullings and the MSU track and field teams return home this weekend to host the Jace Lacoste Invitational at W.O. Spencer Stadium/Carl Maddox Track.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - In the midst of a five-game homestand that will put an official close to the 2005 home schedule, the Mississippi State softball team will host cross-state rival Ole Miss in the first game of a scattered three-game series Thursday evening at the MSU Softball Field.

Mississippi State (26-21, 6-12 SEC) will renew their rivalry with Ole Miss (24-19, 4-11) for the 29th time on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Starkville and will test the Rebels again in Oxford next Tuesday at 6 p.m. The two squads will conclude the series on April 26 in Madison as part of the M&F Bank Fastpitch Classic at 6:30 p.m.

Thursday evening’s match-up in Starkville will be broadcast live by WMSV 91.1 FM with Anthony Craven calling all the balls and strikes. Live in-game action can also be followed via a live statistics link at the official Internet home for the Mississippi State athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com. Admission to all 2005 MSU Softball home games is free.

State is coming off a midweek rout of UAB in which they tallied their highest hit total (13) since February 6 in an 11-1 mercy rule killing of the Blazers that snapped a three-game losing skid for the Bulldogs. Ole Miss will ride a four-game losing streak into Starkville, including dropping all three games with 10th-ranked Georgia this past weekend in Oxford.

"Ole Miss is playing really well right now and probably the best that they have in a few years," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "I think it will be a good battle. We are both fighting for those last spots in the SEC Tournament and a possible bid into the NCAA Regionals, so that sort of brings added tension to the game. It’s always a tough battle between Ole Miss and Mississippi State in any sport.

"I also think changing around our series where we play one in Starkville, one in Oxford and one in the Jackson area will be a great thing for softball in the state of Mississippi. I know that we’re really looking forward to that."

Boasting one of the better pitching staffs in the SEC, the Rebels also feature one of the better individual league arms as well in sophomore lefthander Mary Jane Callahan (9-9, 1.38 ERA). With Callahan in the circle, the Rebels have already posted victories over #21 Texas A&M and defending national champion UCLA. Callahan is holding opponents to a paltry .205 clip this season and has struck out 117 batters in 121.2 innings from the circle.

Callahan has gotten much of the hype in the offensive lineup as well where the Texan boasts a team-best .406 batting average with a pair of home runs and 18 RBI. Behind her, the Rebels will also throw a pair of .300 hitters at the Bulldogs, including the always dangerous DeDe Justice (.368) who paces the Rebels in both home runs (6) and RBI (21).

The Maroon and White took all three games from the Rebels and have proven victorious in 10 of the last 12 series meetings dating back to the 2000 season. The only series victory for Ole Miss came in 2003 when the Rebels got a pair of Justice walk-off home runs in games two and three to avenge a 14-0 setback in the Oxford series opener. The Bulldogs are 12-2 against the Rebels in Starkville, while the clubs have split 14 meetings in Oxford. The April 26 contest in Madison will mark the first neutral site meeting in the history of the series.

Source: MSU Media Relations

4/13/05
Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Courtney Bures and Jennifer Jessup both tallied three-run home runs to pace a phenomenal offensive output by Mississippi State as the homestanding Bulldogs snapped a three-game losing skid with an 11-1 mercy rule rout of visiting UAB Tuesday evening at the MSU Softball Field.

The Bulldogs (26-21) got multi-hits from three different players to record its highest hit total (13) since tallying 14 in a win over Louisiana Tech on February 6. The win also gave MSU its fourth-straight victory over UAB (19-28) and extended State’s overall lead in the series out to 6-1. The margin of victory (11) was the highest for either team in the seven-game-old series as well.

Bures’ 12th home run of her rookie campaign highlighted a perfect 3-for-3 night at the plate that helped push the Virginia native’s season batting average up to .430. Katie Cooley extended her career-long hitting streak out to five games on a 2-for-3 plate tally, while fellow Birmingham native Katie Johnson scored a run on a 2-for-3 night at the plate. Jessup scored three times and went yard for the sixth time this season on a 1-for-2 hitting line.

Chelsea M