The Statesboro, Ga. native was one of six individuals selected to compete as an individual in the East Regional. He earned his spot in postseason play with his steady play during the 2004-05 campaign. The highlight of the season for Deraney came on March 22 when he won medalists honors at the Homewood Suites Invitational in Mobile, Ala. During that event, he was the only competitor in the field to post rounds under par, leading State to the team title. Deraney has been the Bulldog's top-finisher in nine of the 11 tournaments this season. He has posted eight top-20 finishes in 11 events and four of those eight finishes have been in the top-10.

The 27-team East Regional is being hosted by the Southeastern Conference in the Music City. Deraney will be joined by five SEC teams; Georgia is the top-seed in the Regional, followed by third-seeded Florida, sixth-seeded Tennessee, eighth-seeded Alabama and 18-seeded Vanderbilt. Mississippi's Jordan Dempsey was also selected as an individual competitor. All 12 SEC school's are represented in this year's chase for the NCAA Championship crown.

"He played in the first round of U.S Open qualifying in Memphis, Tenn. on Tuesday, so I think that will be good for him to play a competitive round before the regional," said MSU head coach Clay Homan. "He has played a lot of golf here at MSU. He will leave here ranked in the top-three in rounds played. Joe has gotten better every day that he has been on this campus."

The Golf Club of Tennessee is a Tom Fazio-designed layout. When the club opened in 1991, Golf Digest recognized it as one of the best new private courses in America. Golf Weekly listed the course in its America's 100 Best Modern Courses list.

"It's very similar to Old Waverly, except for some elevations. You can shoot low numbers if you keep it in the fairway," said Homan.

Homan participated in the 1995 East Regional in New Haven, Conn. as an individual, so he knows what Deraney will be going through this week.

"The main thing that I'm going to tell him is to enjoy the opportunity and to do his best," added Homan. "If he plays to his ability, he has got a chance to advance to the Championships."

Deraney will tee off on Thursday at 1:21 p.m. CT. He will be paired with Robert Dinwiddie of Tennessee State and Chris Wheeler of Tulane.

Live scoring of the NCAA East Regional will be available at www.golfstat.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Bures, who was, last week, named freshman all-SEC, first team all-SEC and SEC Freshman of the Year, became the fourth different MSU player all-time to earn a spot on the first team all-region squad, while Jessup earned her first career national honor as a member of the second team. Both will now be considered for all-American status which will be announced prior to the start of the NCAA Women's College World Series later this month.

The duo was joined by 12 other players from the distinguished Southeastern Conference on the squads, including Tennessee and Alabama pitching aces Monica Abbott and Stephanie VanBrakle.

Bures leads the team in nearly every offensive statistical category, including batting average (.413) home runs (17) and RBI (54). She has turned in 27 multiple-hit games, 16 multiple-RBI games and 11 multiple-run contests this season, while also pacing the team in both game-winning RBI (7) and game-winning runs scored.

Having shattered MSU's freshman home run record with her 14th of the season at Florida on April 23, the Haymarket, Va., native has since added three more four-baggers to her total and is just one off of MSU's single season record held by former MSU all-American Iyhia McMichael (18 in 2003).

"It's a tremendous honor for Courtney to make the first team as a freshman," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "She has had a tremendous season for us so far and has done everything we have asked of her. Obviously, it gives her a very good opportunity to be considered for all-American honors. Hopefully, she can finish out strong here at the regional tournament."

Jessup, a sixth-year senior for the Bulldogs in 2005, ranks third on the MSU squad with a .307 batting clip that complements 16 extra-base hits and 34 RBI. Jessup is hitting nearly 30 points better than her career batting average coming in, while posting career-bests in runs scored (32), home runs (7), RBI (34), walks (22) and total bases (81). She currently ranks third all-time at Mississippi State in games played, having been penciled into 251 lineups since the beginning of her redshirt freshman campaign in 2001.

"J.J. set some lofty goals for herself coming into this year, and this is one of the things she wanted to achieve," Miller said. "She's had a tough time. She's struggled with some injuries again and her hip never came around like we hoped that it would. That forced her from her natural shortstop position into the outfield, so it's nice for her to get this honor."

Bures, Jessup and their Mississippi State teammates will return to action on Friday afternoon when the second-seeded Bulldogs (33-29) battle third-seeded Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (41-9) at the NCAA Region 4 Tournament in Austin, Texas. First pitch of the regional tournament's opening game has been set for 4 p.m. at McCombs Field on the campus of the University of Texas.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/16/05
Track & Field
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Mississippi State University's list of Southeastern Conference 100-meter dash champions got a little longer on Sunday. Just as Lorenzo Daniel (1986) and Marquis Davis (2003) before him, junior Steve Mullings won the 100-meter dash title at the 2005 SEC Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Mullings broke the Vanderbilt Track record en route to his regional qualifying and winning time of 10.15 seconds.

"We had a great day," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt. "We came out of the weekend with two champions. Jamel (Ashley) had a fantastic day. He beat some great all-Americans in the 400. Unfortunately for us, we had to scratch our 4x400-meter relay. LaChristopher (Lewis) hurt his hip flexor yesterday in the long jump and it was bothering him after running the 4x1 today, so we didn't run the 4x4. We didn't want to risk any more injury. We're going to be taking a lot of depth and quality to nationals. The key to our women's team is keeping our talent healthy. We had more ladies in the training room this year than we had here this weekend."

Mullings took fourth in the 200-meter dash with a regional qualifying 20.48. Senior all-American Jamel Ashley finished second in the 400-meter dash (45.72) and eighth in the 200 (21.04), both regional qualifying marks. Sophomore all-American Arthur Davis ran a regional qualifying 46.84 to finish seventh in the 400-meter dash.

State's 4x100-meter relay team of Mullings, Ashley, Davis and senior all-American LaChristopher Lewis finished third in 39.56, a regional qualifying mark.

"It was a good day for Steve Mullings and Mississippi State," said associate head coach Steve Dudley. "Jamel (Ashley) solidified his all-American status. (LSU's) Kellie Willie is an Olympic gold medallist, and Jamel gave him a run for it today. There are things we improved on this weekend. I think we showed why we're a top 10 team, but a lot of that hinges on injuries. Right now, we've got to get LaChristopher (Lewis) healthy."

Competing at his first SEC Championships, freshman Chris Woods took eighth in the 800-meter run in 1:55.87. In the javelin, freshman Austin Golding set a personal record (177-3). In the 5000-meter run, freshman John Brigham finished 19th in 14:39.80, while Travis McKay came in 21st in a personal best 14:44.92. As a team, the Bulldogs finished in seventh place with 57 points.

In women's action, sophomore Christina Hernandez threw a personal best 43-9 1/4 in the shot put. The 4x100-meter relay team of freshman Dominique Rogers, senior Kia James, freshman Angelica Phillips and junior Lauren Johnson placed seventh with a season-best 47.92. In the 4x400-meter relay, Rogers, James, junior Zita Magloire and Johnson combined for a season-best 3:53.84. The Lady Bulldogs finished 11th with 11 points.

Up next for MSU, individuals who have met regional qualifying marks will compete at the NCAA Mideast Regional in Bloomington, Ind.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State shattered a school record and never left their seats Sunday evening as the Bulldogs learned that they will partake in their fourth straight NCAA Softball Regional appearance, heading to the Austin, Texas, regional that includes the host and fourth overall seed Texas Longhorns.

The field of 64 announced around 6:35 p.m. on ESPNews, includes six teams from the Southeastern Conference, five of which will host one of 16 four-team regionals. Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Auburn and Florida will join MSU in the NCAA postseason as well.

Mississippi State will face Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the opening game of Friday's day one action, with sixth-ranked Texas battling UMass in the ensuing contest.

Mississippi State made its first NCAA regional appearance in 2000, took a hiatus from postseason play in 2001, and have since made three consecutive appearances.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/15/05
Track & Field
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Despite a three hour severe weather delay, field events resumed at the 2005 Southeastern Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships at 6 p.m. CT on Saturday. While other athletes competed in their respective events, MSU senior LaChristopher Lewis waited a little longer for his turn in the men's long jump. The wait obviously did not affect the all-American as Lewis leaped a regional qualifying 25-1 3/4 to win the SEC title.

"Everyone came through for us today," said MSU head coach Al Schmidt. "They did great. You have to feel good about our chances tomorrow. We have lots of points to get."

Junior Steve Mullings, the NCAA leader in the 100-meter dash, left little to be discussed with his top-qualifying time of 10.18 seconds. The regional qualifying mark ties the Vanderbilt Track record set by Mardy Scales (MTSU) last season.

In the 400-meter dash, senior all-American Jamel Ashley ran the fourth fastest qualifying time in 46.35, while sophomore all-American Arthur Davis will start the final in the seventh lane after finishing third in his heat with a time of 46.32.

Junior Kendall Pyant II finished sixth in the long jump with a season-best and regional qualifying 24-6 1/2.

Sophomore Travis McKay brought in two points for the Bulldogs, turning in a seventh-place showing in the 3000-meter steeplechase. Mckay's 8:59.26 is a personal record for the Edmonton, Alberta-native and the third fastest time in school history.

The Bulldog's first team points came from senior Matt Denton and freshman Tim Williams in the high jump. Both competitors cleared 6-10 3/4 and finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

Heading into Sunday, the Bulldogs sit in fifth place with 24 points.

Freshmen Austin Golding and Joseph Queen were slated to compete in the men's pole vault but due to the inclement weather, the event was postponed until Sunday at noon.

Junior Meggan Hodge took eighth in the 3000-meter steeplechase, picking up one point for the Lady Bulldogs. Her 10:46.04 breaks her previous school record of 10:50.44 set earlier in the season. In the high jump, junior Jasmine Walls finished tied for second by clearing 5-7.

In the women's discus, sophomore Christina Hernandez finished eighth with a personal best 152-7. The mark ranks second on MSU's all-Time Superlatives list. Senior Crystal Averitt finished once play shy of scoring points. Averitt took ninth with a throw of 152-1.

Freshman Alexandra Rozefort competed in the long jump at her first SEC Championships. Rozefort's leap of 19-0 3/4 (w+) would have been a personal record had it not been for the 5.9 wind speed.

State's women closed out day three with nine points, good enough for 10th place.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Fourth-seeded Tennessee plated a trio of unearned runs in the top of the third inning and rode the back of a dominating one-hit shutout from staff ace Monica Abbott to cruise past second-seeded Mississippi State and oust the Bulldogs from SEC Tournament contention with a 3-0 victory Saturday afternoon at the Florida Softball Stadium.

The win gave the Lady Vols (58-12) their fourth consecutive victory over Mississippi State (33-29) after sweeping a three-game set with the Bulldogs earlier this season in Knoxville. The Maroon and White suffered through their fifth one-hit showing of the season and fell to 11-16 all-time in SEC Tournament play with the setback.

Courtney Bures doubled for the third time in two appearances against the Lady Vols to highlight a 1-for-3 hitting line, while Jennifer Jessup gave MSU its only other baserunner in the contest after being hit by pitch in the sixth. Sarah Fekete, the SEC's leading hitter in terms of batting average, singled three times in as many trips to the plate to pace the hit column for the Orange.

MSU starter Stephanie Comeaux (10-10) scattered three hits over two and one-thirds innings from the circle, but took the tough luck loss after being tagged with all three runs in the third. Reliever Ragan Blake turned in one of her best outings of the season, striking out three and allowing just two hits over the remainder of the contest, but did not get a decision. Abbott (41-7), the only pitcher in NCAA history to turn in consecutive 500-strikeout seasons, struck out nine and allowed just Bures' double in the fourth to pick up the win for UT.

After stranding five runs through the first two innings of play, including a bases loaded situation in the first, Tennessee used a pair of walks and a fielding error to load the bases again with one out in the third, then got a sac fly from Katherine Card to plate the game's first run. Stacey Jennings followed with a two-run single to cushion the Orange advantage out to three.

Bures broke up Abbott's bid for a perfect game with a two-out double off the left field wall in the fourth, but Abbott regained her composure and induced a pop fly from Tanelda McDonald to escape the threat. Jessup reached after being hit by pitch with two outs in the sixth, but Abbott got Lindsay Hunley on a swinging strikeout to end the frame.

Mississippi State will head back to Starkville on Sunday morning before gathering at an undisclosed location later that evening to watch the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on ESPNews. The entire 64-team bracket, as well as regional host locations, is expected to be announced between 6:30 and 7 p.m. on the sports news channel.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/14/05
Track & Field
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Despite the superstitions surrounding Friday the 13th, the Mississippi State University track and field squads held their own on the second day of the 2005 Southeastern Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The event is being held at the Vanderbilt Track in Nashville, Tenn.

In the men's 200-meter dash preliminaries, junior Steve Mullings posted the third fastest qualifying time in 20.31 seconds, a personal record and regional qualifying mark. Also qualifying for the final was senior all-American LaChristopher Lewis. Lewis ran a regional qualifying and personal record 20.70 en route to finishing 10th. Sophomore all-American Arthur Davis finished 18th in 21.25.

Freshman Chris Woods competed in two events, qualifying for the 800-meter run finals with a personal record and regional qualifying 1:49.74. Woods also competed in the 400-meter hurdles.

In the decathlon, freshman Joseph Queen took ninth place at his first SEC Championships with a personal best 5,956 points. In addition to the PR in the overall events, Queen set personal marks in the 100-meter dash (11.80), shot put (33-11 1/2), high jump (5-7 1/4), 400-meter dash (52.27), 110-meter hurdles (17.66), discus (110-00), javelin (148-11) and 1500-meter run (4:50.19).

On the women's side, freshman Dominique Rogers broke her previously set 400-meter hurdles freshman record by finishing in ninth place with a time of 1:03.50. Junior Zita Magloire ran a season best 2:13.69 in the 800-meter run.

In the hammer throw, senior Crystal Averitt took 14th with her mark of 178-10, just one inch shy of her school record. Jennifer Johnstone finished 14th with her personal best 172-5, the second-best mark in school history.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Tennis
DURHAM, N.C. - A run in this year's NCAA Championship was not to be for Mississippi State's men's tennis team, as the 23rd-ranked Bulldogs suffered a 4-2 defeat to 41st-ranked Virginia Commonwealth Friday afternoon at Duke University's Ambler Tennis Stadium.

The loss ended State's season at 12-10 overall, the Bulldogs' first winning record since 2001. MSU made its 15th consecutive NCAA appearance this year. VCU, which evened the series with MSU at 1-1, improved to 17-10 overall and will face eighth-ranked Duke Saturday in the second round.

The Rams gained the opening point of the day by posting wins at the No. 2 and 3 doubles positions. No. 3 was first off the court, with VCU's duo of Sergi Arumi and Francesc Lleal downing Bulldogs Luiz Carvalho and Arnaud Roussel 8-3. Rams Daniel Lohff and Sebastian Ripoll then clinched the point, edging State's tandem of Philippe Frayssinoux and Pierre Mouillon 8-6 at No. 2. The No. 1 spot was tied at 6-6 when play was suspended at that point.

In singles, the Rams took the first set in three of the six matches and that would ultimately prove to be the difference in the match, as VCU claimed straight-set triumphs in all three of those affairs.

VCU took a 2-0 lead when Arumi finished a 6-1, 6-2 decision over the State rookie Mouillon at the No. 4 singles position. MSU posted its first point of the day when the senior Carvalho rallied from being down a service break in the first set to win 7-5, 6-2 over Ripoll at No. 5.

The next two matches complete would finish within a few minutes of each other. VCU gained a 3-1 advantage when 17th-ranked Arnaud Lecloerec held off a solid challenge from Bulldog sophomore Ivan Bjelica at No. 1, claiming a 6-4, 6-3 victory. Moments later, the MSU sophomore Roussel took a 6-4, 6-4 decision from Ram Damien Lacombe at No. 6, also overcoming an early deficit in his match.

The final two matches were both very close battles, but VCU's Lleal closed out the match for the Rams with a two-tiebreak win over MSU junior Jose-Carlos Pinto at the No. 3 spot 7-6(5), 7-6(3). The last match, which was suspended once the team victory had been clinched, had VCU's 96th-ranked Mar ton Ott leading the State freshman Frayssinoux 3-2 in the third set. Frayssinoux had taken the first set early on.

The Bulldogs were without the services of one of its best players this season Friday, as junior Florent Girod was incapacitated with the flu. Girod led the Bulldogs with a 15-4 mark in dual matches this year.

"A lot of credit goes to VCU. They just played better than us today," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard said. "We knew they were not a typical No. 3 seed going into the match. They started the year in the top 15 and they may very well finish the year that way. I don't like finishing the season with a first-round loss in the NCAAs, but we played hard and lost to a great team, and that's all I can ask from our guys. We look forward to preparing for next season."

Though the 2005 team season is done for the Bulldog netters, State's work this season on the courts is not completely done. The MSU doubles team of Carvalho and Pinto, ranked 29th nationally, will compete in the NCAA Doubles Championship, which will be held May 25-30 in College Station, Texas.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Having ousted sixth-seeded South Carolina by a 4-1 count in the opening game of day two action at the SEC Tournament, the seventh-seeded Bulldogs will now square off with fourth-seeded and 11th-ranked Tennessee in a loser's bracket game on Saturday at 11 a.m.

The Lady Vols (57-12) were knocked to loser's bracket play with a 5-3 loss to top-seeded Georgia in Friday's nightcap. Tennessee began SEC Tournament play with a 4-0 defeat of host Florida on Thursday afternoon.

The winner of Saturday's game between Mississippi State (33-28) and Tennessee will face second-seeded Alabama on Saturday at 5 p.m. Georgia advances to take on the winner of Saturday's elimination game between third-seeded Auburn and eighth-seeded LSU in the nightcap at 7:30.

Saturday's game will be broadcast live by WMSV 91.1 FM with Anthony Craven calling all the balls and strikes. The game can also be followed online via a live stats link at the official Internet home for the MSU athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com.

2005 SEC TOURNAMENT REMAINING SCHEDULE
All Times Eastern

Saturday, May 14
Game 9 - #7 Mississippi State vs. #4 Tennessee, 11 a.m.
Game 10 - #8 LSU vs. #3 Auburn, 1:30 p.m.
Game 11 * Game 9 Winner vs. #2 Alabama, 5 p.m.
Game 12 * Game 10 Winner vs. #1 LSU, 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, May 15
*Game 13 * Same Two Teams From Game 11, 9:30 a.m.
*Game 14 * Same Two Teams From Game 12, 9:30 a.m.
Game 15 * Championship Game, 2 p.m.

Source: MSU Media Relations

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Seventh-seeded Mississippi State plated a pair of runs in the first two innings to give more than enough run support to a tag team pitching gem by Kelli Miller and Ragan Blake and stave off elimination from the 2005 SEC Tournament with a 4-1 victory over sixth-seeded South Carolina Friday afternoon at the Florida Softball Stadium.

The win helped State (33-28) avoid its first 0-2 showing at the league's championship event since 2003 and improved the Bulldogs' record to 11-15 in SEC Tournament play in eight appearances. South Carolina (28-28-1), who took last weekend's series with the Maroon and White in Columbia, S.C., dropped consecutive games to MState for the first time since the 1999 season when MSU took the final game of the season series, as well as an elimination game in the SEC Tournament.

Jennifer Jessup drove in one run, scored twice and made a dazzling diving catch in the late innings to highlight a Bulldog squad that, despite mustering just one hit against second-seeded Alabama on Thursday, erupted for eight hits against the Gamecocks. Jessup and Lindsay Hunley both turned in 2-for-3 plate tallies, with Tanelda McDonald (1-for-4) and Courtney Bures (0-for-3) both producing a lone RBI.

Margaret Person singled three times in as many trips to the plate for the Gamecocks, who also got base hits from four other players. Stefanie Norman produced USC's only run of the game on a pinch-hit RBI single in the fifth.

Miller (13-11) showed utter dominance of the South Carolina batting order through the first two innings of play and picked up the win after getting some help from her defense at key points in the match-up. The Colorado native scattered five hits and struck out a pair in four and two-thirds innings from the circle to pick up the win for MSU. Blake tallied her seventh save of the season after allowing just two hits over the last nine outs of the game.

USC starter Aleca Johnson (7-9) surrendered four runs (two earned) on seven hits and a trio of walks over six innings of work to saddle the loss for the Gamecocks, with reliever Kate Pouliot allowing one hit in a scoreless seventh inning for the no decision.

"Our pitchers got ahead of their batters the entire game and that makes a big difference," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "We got Kelli some runs early and that helps as well. We had some big plays defensively. (There was a) big play by Courtney Bures to save a run when the game was on the line. I thought it was a big, big, play and Jennifer Jessup made two great plays out in left field."

Jessup and Hunley both singled to lead off the game, before the Bulldogs used a fielding error by left fielder Lisa Longo on a deep fly ball from Bures to plate the game's first run. State would add to their lead in the second with a trio of hits, as well as a throwing error by Longo, to take a 2-0 lead into the third.

USC cut its deficit in half on Norman's clutch hit in the bottom of the fifth, but MSU would add pair of insurance runs in the seventh on a sac fly from Bures, as well as a RBI single from McDonald.

South Carolina had its best chance to score early, putting its first two runners on in the third via base hits, but Miller regained her composure to freeze Darcy Norem on a called third strike, before Jessica Josker hit into an inning-ending double play to get State out of the jam. The Gamecocks threatened to score again late in the game after getting a two-out single from Ashley Smith, but MSU escaped again after Longo's bloop hit to left field was snared on a diving catch by Jessup.

"That's what so great about this team is that they're always there to cheer you on and are always there for you," Blake said. "Losing is always hard for every team, but I think coming out saying 'this is this game, that (Thursday's loss) was the past' is always good."

Mississippi State will continue on in SEC Tournament action on Saturday morning when the Bulldogs face the loser of Saturday evening's winner's bracket contest between top-seeded Georgia and fourth-seeded Tennessee. First pitch of the elimination game has been slated for 11 a.m. EDT.

Saturday's day three action can be heard live on WMSV 91.1 FM, with live in-game statistics available via a stats link at the official Internet home of the MSU athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Tennis
ATLANTA, Ga. - The 26th-ranked Mississippi State women's tennis team (12-8, 5-6 SEC) dropped a 4-1 decision to 40th-ranked Pepperdine (15-8) Friday morning at the Bill Moore Tennis Center on the University of Georgia Tech campus in the NCAA first round. Despite the loss, the Lady Bulldogs' 12 overall wins is the most since the 1989 season in which the Lady Bulldogs posted a 12-7 record.

The Lady Bulldogs got off to a hot start, winning the doubles point and taking the early 1-0 advantage over the Waves. At the third position in doubles, Tarryn Rudman and Polina Kokoulina knocked off Pepperdine's combo of Merve Asimgil and Vanessa Dunlap 8-5 to give State the early edge. MSU's 14th-ranked tandem of Zsuzsanna Fodor and Anastasia Kugakolova clinched the point for the Lady Bulldogs, downing Waves Sylvia Kosakowski and Caroline Raba 8-2 at the first position. At the time the doubles point was awarded to the Lady Bulldogs, Magdi Rekasi and Hayley Rudman had a 7-3 advantage at No. 2 in their match with Pepperdine's Eva Dickes and Bianca Dulgheru.

In singles, Pepperdine quickly evened the score at one point apiece when Asimgil defeated Rekasi 6-2, 6-2 at No. 5. The Waves took a 2-1 lead in the match when the 29th-ranked Dulgheru bested State's 120th-ranked Kugakolova 6-3, 6-3 at the second position. Pepperdine extended its lead to 3-1 following the match at No. 1. MSU's 19th-ranked Fodor claimed the first set 6-1, but Pepperdine's 74th-ranked Raba took the last two sets 6-3, 6-2 to garner the point. The Waves claimed victory and advanced to the second round when State's Renée Joseph was ousted by Pepperdine's Dickes at No. 4. As was the case in Fodor's match at No. 1, Joseph took the first set 6-2, but could not hold the lead, ultimately falling 6-3, 7-5 in the final two sets.

With the win, Pepperdine moves on the face the winner of Georgia Tech and Winthrop for the right to advance to the round of 16 to be played at the Dan Magill Complex in Athens, Ga.

Up next for the Lady Bulldogs will be a trip to the NCAA Individual Championships for Fodor and Kugakolova in Athena, Ga., May 23-28 on the University of Georgia campus. Fodor will compete in the singles field of 64, while Kugakolova will partake in the doubles field of 64 along side Fodor.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/13/05
Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Competing in its 15th consecutive NCAA Championship, Mississippi State's men's tennis team will open competition in the 2005 edition of the national title hunt Friday, taking on Virginia Commonwealth in Durham, N.C. The 23rd-ranked Bulldogs and 41st-ranked Rams will square off at approximately 1 p.m. ET at Duke University's Ambler Tennis Stadium in a match that will follow the opening match of the day between the Blue Devils and South Carolina State.

State, at 12-9 overall, will enter the tournament guaranteed of its first winning season since 2001. At 6-5 in the Southeastern Conference, the Bulldogs finished tied for fourth in the league this season, their best league finish in seven years. VCU, 16-10, finished second in the Colonial Athletic Association.

MSU and VCU have met just one time in history, the lone clash coming in 1995 in the consolation draw of the Blue-Gray National Collegiate Classic in Montgomery, Ala. In that meeting, the Bulldogs downed the Rams 6-0.

State is guided by fourth-year head coach Sylvain Guichard, who has been named Co-Coach of the Year in both the SEC and the Intercollegiate Tennis Association's Southeast Region this season. VCU is led by 15th-year mentor Paul Kostin, who has guided the school to 13-straight NCAA appearances and nine CAA titles. Under his leadership, the Rams reached the NCAA title match in 2000.

The Bulldogs' top two players this season have been junior Florent Girod and true freshman Pierre Mouillon. Girod went 15-4 in dual matches and won 13 straight contests to open the season. Mouillon was 14-5 in team competition and led the squad with a 9-2 SEC mark. VCU has two players currently ranked in the top 100 nationally. Sophomore Arnaud Lecloerec is ranked 17th nationally while senior Marton Ott is 96th.

"Friday's match will be a war," Guichard said. "VCU is one of the most underrated teams in the country and will be a very tough first-round challenge for our team. It will take a great effort from our guys to move on in the tournament."

The winner of Friday's affair will move into Saturday's second round, also a 1 p.m. match, to face the Duke/SCSU winner for the right to advance to the round of 16, to be held May 21 in College Station, Texas. The final four rounds of the 2005 NCAA Men's Tennis Championship will be held in College Station, May 21-24.

Live stats of this weekend's first and second rounds will be available on Duke's athletic web site, goduke.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

MSU's appearance in this year's NCAA Team Championships marks the first time the Lady Bulldogs have participated in the annual event since the 2001 campaign and only the fourth time in school history. In that 2001 season, the Lady Bulldogs finished with a 9-13 record, 3-8 within the SEC and advanced in the NCAA second round.

This year's bid also marks the fourth time head coach Tracy Lane has guided the Lady Bulldogs into the NCAAs during her nine-year stint at MSU. State made three consecutive trips to the NCAAs under Lane from 1999-2001, but had not made a return appearance until this season's bid to Atlanta.

MSU is facing a fairly unfamiliar foe when they take the court Friday morning to face Pepperdine. The Waves own a slim 1-0 advantage over the Lady Bulldogs, winning 6-0 in the Wildcat Invitational in Tucson, Ariz., in the third match of the 1989 season. State finished that season 12-7, 5-4 in the league. This season, Pepperdine won the WCC Tournament for the 14th time in the last 15 seasons.

The Lady Bulldogs' top two players this year have been Zsuzsanna Fodor and Anastasia Kugakolova. The 19th-ranked Fodor went 15-4 in dual matches and broke the school's all-time record for singles victories in a season with 35 en route to earning First Team all-SEC accolades in singles. Kugakolova, the 120th-ranked singles player, went 11-6 in dual matches, upsetting the nation's 23rd-ranked singles player along the way. Pepperdine has two players ranked in the top 75 nationally. Bianca Dulgheru is ranked 29th nationally while Caroline Raba is 74th.

"It's going to be a very tough first round match," Lane said. "Pepperdine is a very solid team top to bottom and we've got to take care of business on Friday. They are going to be competing against us like one of the tougher teams in our conference. We know what we are up against and we are going to have to come out and play some really solid tennis."

During the 2004 fall season, State's 19th-ranked combo of Zsuzsanna Fodor and Anastasia Kugakolova squared off with Pepperdine's duo of Eva Dickes and Bianca Dulgheru in prequalifying of the Riviera/ITA Women's All-American Championships. In that match, the Waves' Dickes and Dulgheru handed State tandem its first loss of the fall season, downing Fodor and Kugakolova 9-8 (8).

Should State claim victory in its match with Pepperdine, MSU would then meet either host Georgia Tech (19-3) or Winthrop (21-3) on Saturday at 2 p.m. ET and the right to advance to the NCAA round of 16 in Athens, Ga.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Alabama (54-12) erupted for 11 hits and tied an SEC Tournament record with a pair of home runs in its fourth consecutive victory over the Bulldogs (32-28) and its first victory over MState in the SEC Tournament since 2000. The offensive showing by the Bulldogs marked its lowest hit total in eight appearances at the league's championship tournament, besting a previous low of three recorded in a 7-1 loss to then-No. 25 Georgia in 2002.

Tanelda McDonald recorded MSU's only hit in three trips to the plate, with two other players reaching on Alabama errors. Jackie Wilkins highlighted a 3-for-4 hitting line with her fourth home run of the season, while Stephanie VanBrakle homered for the eighth time this season and drove in a pair of runs on a 2-for-4 plate tally for the Crimson Tide. UA got multi-hit tallies from Jordan Praytor and Ashley Courtney as well.

MSU starter Stephanie Comeaux (10-9) surrendered nine hits and four earned runs in four and one-thirds innings from the circle to take the loss for the Bulldogs, with reliever Ragan Blake striking out three and allowing only two hits in one and two-thirds innings for the no decision. Having taken the loss in Alabama's regular season finale at Lipscomb, Wright (18-5) rebounded in a big way against the Bulldogs, allowing just one hit and striking out two over her eighth complete game of the season.

"I was getting ahead (of the batters) and I was able to throw pitcher's pitches," said Wright of her performance. "I just wanted (Mississippi State) to put the ball in play and let my defense make a play."

Comeaux got into trouble real early, letting Alabama load the bases with its first three at-bats of the contest, before recording an out on VanBrakle's grounder to the left side that let Bures get the force out at home. The MSU righthander delivered three consecutive balls to begin Accetturo's at-bat and, despite throwing a pair of strikes to take the count full, walked in the game's first run that let the Crimson Tide take an early lead into the second inning.

The Crimson Tide cushioned their lead out to a pair on VanBrakle's RBI double in the third that brought Courtney racing home from first, then pushed their advantage out to 5-0 with solo home runs in the fourth and fifth innings by Wilkins and VanBrakle, respectively. A sixth inning RBI double by Courtney in the sixth would provide the final.

"(Jennifer Wright) did a nice job on the mound," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "She hit her spots and really made the ball move. We could not get our bunts down in the first inning and could not really get anything going offensively after that. We need to do a better job offensively. I thought that we were very anxious. We need to get off to a better start and give our pitchers some support."

Mississippi State will continue action in the SEC Tournament on Friday morning when the Bulldogs face sixth-seeded South Carolina (28-27-1, 11-17) in a loser's bracket contest at 11 a.m EDT. The Gamecocks were a mercy-rule victim of third-seeded Auburn on Thursday morning as the Tigers scored multi-runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings to defeat USC by an 8-0 count.

Friday's elimination contest can be heard live on WMSV 91.1 FM, with live in-game statistics available via a live stats link at the official Internet home of the MSU athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com.

#9 ALABAMA 5, MISSISSIPPI STATE 0
Mississippi State (32-28) 000 000 0 - 0 1 0
Alabama (54-12) 101 111 x - 5 11 2
Comeaux, Blake (5) and Geddings. Wright and Courtney. W - Wright (18-5). L - Comeaux (10-9). Save - None. HR - Wilkins (UA), VanBrakle (UA).

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/12/05
Softball
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Having matched its best regular season finish in the SEC Western Division standings in school history, seventh-seeded Mississippi State will suit up to take on second-seeded and ninth-ranked Alabama in the opening round of the 2005 SEC Tournament Thursday afternoon at the Florida Softball Stadium in Gainesville, Fla.

Having finished third in the SEC West standings for the first time since 2001, the Bulldogs (32-27, 12-18 SEC) will draw the divisional champion Crimson Tide (53-12, 23-7) in game two of Thursday's opening round action at 1:30 p.m EDT. The game is slated to be broadcast live on WMSV 91.1 FM with Anthony Craven calling all the balls and strikes. The match-up can also be followed in progress via a live stats link at the official Internet home of the MSU athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com.

Making its eighth consecutive appearance at the league's postseason gala, MState will face Alabama for the fourth time in SEC Tournament play. The inaugural neutral site meeting between the two clubs came in the championship game of the 1998 tournament in Columbus, Ga., with the Crimson Tide posting a 4-3 comeback triumph in extra innings before State rebounded with a 6-3 victory over UA in the opening round of the 1999 tournament. The last meeting between the two clubs in 2000 was, again, spoiled by an Alabama comeback as the Tide scored four runs in the final two innings to negate a 3-0 lead by the Bulldogs.

Having traded series victories the past two seasons, the Crimson Tide currently boasts a three-game series winning skein after posting a series sweep of the Bulldogs in Tuscaloosa earlier this season. Over the course of the weekend, Alabama outscored the Maroon and White by a 28-8 count, including a pair of mercy rule victories in the bookends of the series. State hit just .136 against Crimson Tide pitching, with Alabama posting a .418 average to complement six doubles, four home runs and 20 RBI.

"We really struggled with Alabama over at their place," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "We have to get up for every game, no matter who we're playing, and we didn't do that over there. We had a few days to get some kids healthy and I think that will help a little bit. We worked on some things down in Gainesville this week and we're ready to come out and play hard on Thursday."

State has posted a 10-14 record in its seven previous tournament appearances, including a 7-7 mark against SEC Eastern Division foes. The Bulldogs tallied their best mark in SEC Tournament play in 1998 when, following an opening round loss to South Carolina, the Maroon and White rattled off four-straight victories in the loser's bracket before falling to Alabama in the title game. Only Alabama, Florida and South Carolina have qualified for more SEC Tournaments than Mississippi State since the establishment of the league in 1997.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - On the shoulders of one of the most impressive premier seasons in school history, Mississippi State freshman shortstop Courtney Bures (Haymarket, Va./Stonewall Jackson HS) left the SEC Tournament awards ceremony Wednesday evening in Gainesville, Fla., with a handful of hardware, taking home freshman all-SEC, first team all-SEC and SEC Freshman of the Year accolades.

The honor marked the ninth consecutive year that the Bulldogs have had at least one representative on the first team all-conference squad and the first time in the six-year history of the award that a Mississippi State athlete has earned Freshman of the Year laurels. Bures and sophomore Hayle Guess, who underwent season-ending shoulder surgery on March 10, are the only two MSU players to ever don freshman all-SEC honors.

Currently leading the 2005 squad in every offensive statistical category, Bures has churned out a .428 (80-for-187) average so far this season to complement 37 extra-base hits (17 HR), 53 RBI and 49 runs scored. Her .834 slugging percentage heading into SEC Tournament play is just percentage points lower than former all-American Iyhia McMichael's .836 mark tallied in 2004. Bures is also just one home run away from matching McMichael's single season mark of 18 established during the 2003 campaign.

In 30 league games this season, Bures turned in a .435 (37-for-85) batting average with 19 extra-base hits, 19 RBI and 20 runs scored. She also turned in an .835 slugging percentage, a .495 on-base percentage and was 7-for-11 (.636) on stolen base attempts.

The awards came just more than 24 hours after Bures was announced as one of the initial 32 players nationwide to have received an invitation to the USA Softball National Team Selection Camp to be held at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif., June 13-17. Fellow infielder Callye Williams was named among the initial postseason awards handed out by the league office this week as the junior from Katy, Texas, was named to the SEC Softball Good Works Team on Monday afternoon.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/11/05
Softball
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. - Mississippi State freshman infielder Courtney Bures, as well as former Bulldog all-American Kellie Wilkerson, were among 32 athletes on the initial invitee list for the 2005 USA Women's National Team Selection Camp released Tuesday afternoon by the Amateur Softball Association.

Bures becomes the fifth Mississippi State player to participate in a national team camp, joining a list of former MSU all-Americans that includes Wilkerson (1999-02), Iyhia McMichael (2001-04) and Keri McCallum (1997-00). McCallum and teammate Michelle Gates (1997-00) were both invited to the camp following the 1998 and 1999 seasons.

Bures was one of 50 players nationwide invited to participate in USA Junior World National Team tryouts last summer. Wilkerson has been a member of five USA National teams, including the Junior World squad as a following the completion of her prep career in 2000.

The camp, which will be staffed by MSU head coach Jay Miller, will be held June 13-17 at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif. The Women's Selection Committee will announce the remaining athletes invited to the selection camp on May 18.

An 18-member national team and 16-member elite team will be selected from this camp to represent the United States in the various international events in 2005. The National team will participate in an exhibition versus Australia on July 12 in Irvine, Calif., the World Cup of Softball July 14-18 in Oklahoma City, and the Japan Cup July 16- August 5 in Yokohama, Japan. The Elite team will participate in the Canada Cup June 29-July 11 in Surrey, B.C., and the Inter-Continental Spain Cup July 20-July 28 in Madrid, Spain.

"This is a tremendous honor, not only for our program, but also for Mississippi State University and the Southeastern Conference," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "Courtney is just an outstanding young talent and, I think, she is going to be our next all-American here. She works hard for everything she gets and is very deserving of this invitation."

A Haymarket, Va., and Stonewall Jackson High School product, Bures currently leads every offensive statistical category for the Bulldogs this season, including batting average (.428), home runs (17) and RBI (53). Having begun a torrid pace with four home runs in her first official weekend as a collegiate athlete, Bures is within one home run of matching MSU's single season record currently held by McMichael. Earlier this season, she shattered Wilkerson's six-year-old freshman home run record with her 14th four-bagger of the season against Florida.

A .429 career hitter with the Bulldogs from 1999-02, Wilkerson still holds down a handful of MSU offensive and pitching career records, while currently ranking first on the NCAA's single season (14 in 2002) and career saves (32) list. She is currently employed at the nationally-renowned Club K Pitching and Catching School in Nashville, Tenn. Wilkerson also helped lead her New York/New Jersey Juggernaut to the inaugural National Pro Faspitch (NPF) Championship in August, pacing the team with a .331 batting clip.

The Amateur Softball Association, founded in 1933, is the National Governing Body of softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. The ASA has become one of the nation's largest sports organizations and now sanctions competition in every state through a network of 89 local associations. The ASA has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 240,000 teams and 40,000 umpires today, representing a membership of more than three million.

USA Softball is the brand created, operated and owned by the ASA that links the USA Men's, Women's, Junior Boys' and Junior Girls' National Team' programs together. USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting these four National Teams to compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women's National Team is one of the only two women's sports involved in the Olympic movement to capture three consecutive medals at the Olympic Games since 1996. The U.S. women have also won seven World Championship titles including the last five consecutive.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/10/05
Men's Track and Field
The men's track team is ranked 13th in the latest Trackwire 25 poll. Arkansas is ranked No. 1. Other SEC teams ranked include Florida at No. 2, LSU No. 3, Auburn No. 8 and Ole Miss and Georgia tied at No. 21.

Guichard was named the Wilson/ITA Southeast Region Co-Coach of the Year Monday, sharing the award with his former coach and mentor, Florida's Andy Jackson. The two were also named 2005 Southeastern Conference Co-Coaches of the Year together. Guichard, who played at MSU in 1992 and '93, and assisted Jackson from 1996-2001, took over the program in '01 when Jackson departed to guide the Gators.

Metz, who rejoined the Bulldog program in 2004 after serving one season as head coach at Birmingham Southern College, was named the ITA Southeast Region's Assistant Coach of the Year Monday. Metz was on State's roster from 1994-98 and was the only player that was a member of MSU's two NCAA semifinal squads in '94 and '98. He later served two years (2001-02) as assistant coach for the Lady Bulldogs before taking the post in Birmingham.

The alliance of Guichard and Metz has moved State back among the nation's top 25 teams this season while gaining the program's 15th consecutive NCAA bid. The Bulldogs are currently ranked 23rd as they prepare for first-round NCAA action against Virginia Commonwealth this Friday, May 13, in Durham, N.C. Entering the NCAAs at 12-9 overall, MSU will finish 2005 with its first winning record since 2001.

Under their leadership, the Bulldogs also made the biggest turnaround in the SEC this season, going from 2-9 last year to 6-5 this season. State tied for fourth in the league overall this year, its best placement in the conference since 1998, and was second in the Western Division, it's best divisional finish since the SEC adopted divisions for men's tennis in 2002.

As regional award winners, Guichard and Metz are automatically nominated for the ITA National Coach and Assistant Coach of the Year awards, which will be announced at the ITA Awards Banquet, to be held Wednesday, May 25, in conjunction with the finals of the NCAA Championship in College Station, Texas.

Source: MSU Media Relations

The Statesboro, Ga. native led the Bulldogs in stroke average this season with a 73.18 average. He took home medalists honors at the Homewood Suites Invitational this past March. Deraney finished the regular season with seven top-20 finishes under his belt.

"The bid is well deserved by Joe (Deraney). He played well all year long," said MSU head coach Clay Homan. "Even though he did not play well the last two tournaments, this is a great chance for him to make it to the NCAA Championships."

He joins Mississippi's Jordan Dempsey, Rob Langley of Furman, Tulane's Michael Thompson and Chris Wheeler, along with Tennessee State's Robert Dinwiddie.

The Southeastern Conference, who will serve as the host of the 2005 East Regional, had 10 teams selected to compete for the National Title. Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama and Vanderbilt will compete in the East Regional, while Kentucky and Arkansas were sent to the Central Regional. Auburn, South Carolina and LSU will all travel west to the West Regional.

Deraney becomes the eight Bulldog golfer to make the NCAA field as an individual. The last time MSU had an individual compete in the field was Michael Connell and Chad Wellhausen in 1998. Wellhausen advanced to the NCAA Championships that season. Current head coach Clay Homan was invited as an individual in 1995 in New Haven, Conn.

The championships will be conducted June 1-4 at Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Maryland. Loyola College (Maryland) is the host institution for this year's championships.

Source: MSU Media Relations

The junior from Katy, Texas, currently serves as president of MSU's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee where she has played an integral role in the reorganization efforts of the organization as well as the planning of special events.

Williams is a member of Mississippi State's Student Athlete Community Service Organization, The M Club, serving on the M-Club's Tsunami Relief efforts, as well as Project Angel Tree, which gives gifts to underprivileged kids at Christmas time, and the annual canned food drive. The junior has also participated in reading projects at local elementary schools in Starkville and litter pick up in Starkville/Oktibbeha County Area.

An everyday starter at second base for the Bulldogs this season, Williams has posted career highs nearly across the board. The Texan currently boasts a .304 (48-for-158) batting average to go along with 16 extra-base hits and 22 RBI. Currently ranking among the league's top defensive second baseman as well, Williams has committed just nine errors in 214 total chances this season in the middle infield for a fielding percentage of .960. Of Williams' career-best 22 RBI this season, 18 have been of the two-out variety.

The Southeastern Conference sponsors Good Works teams for all 20 league-sponsored sports, serving to highlight an athlete from each school who gives back to his or her community with outstanding service efforts.

Williams and her MSU teammates will return to action on Thursday afternoon when the top eight teams from the league gather in Gainesville, Fla., for the 2005 SEC Softball Tournament. The seventh-seeded Bulldogs (32-27, 12-18 SEC) will open up their portion of tournament play at 1:30 p.m. EDT against second-seeded and SEC Western Division champion Alabama (53-12, 23-7) at the Florida Softball Stadium.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/9/05
Softball
(Game 3) COLUMBIA, S.C. - Lindsay Hunley and Courtney Bures both hit solo home runs in the midst of a two-run comeback effort by Mississippi State as the visiting Bulldogs salvaged their weekend series at South Carolina with a 3-2 victory in eight innings Sunday afternoon at Beckham Field.

The win helped State (32-27, 12-18 SEC) avoid its first sweep in its series with South Carolina (28-26-1, 11-16) since 1997 and, coupled with Tennessee's sweep of LSU in Baton Rouge, La., gave the Bulldogs the seventh overall seed in the SEC Tournament to be held later this week in Gainesville, Fla.

Hunley and Bures' homers both highlighted two-hit days at the plate for the freshmen, with the Maroon and White also getting multi-hit tallies from both Tanelda McDonald and Katie Cooley who hit 2-for-4 and 2-for-2, respectively. Rookie Nakita Boyce turned in a 1-for-3 plate tally and drove in a run with her first extra-base hit of the campaign.

Senior Kristin Hall singled three times in as many trips to the plate to lead the hit column for the Gamecocks.

MSU sophomore righthander Stephanie Comeaux (10-8) surrendered just three hits and struck out five in six strong innings of relief to pick up her first victory since April 12. Starter Kelli Miller allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits in two innings, but got the no decision. Aleca Johnson (7-8) made two appearances in the series bookend before finally saddling the loss for USC, allowing three earned runs on seven hits and a pair of walks in six and one-thirds innings of action from the circle.

"It was good to see the young kids step up; our freshmen drove in all three runs," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "That's a real good sign for us. We also got a great ball game from Stephanie. She just came in and shut them down which is what we needed somebody to do."

South Carolina used a pair of two-out hits in the first, capped off by a run-scoring single by Ashley Smith, but State answered to tie the score in the second on Boyce's RBI triple down the left field line that scored Cooley all the way from first base. The Gamecocks reclaimed the lead on Jessica Josher's RBI single in the bottom of the frame but, after a pair of quiet frames, the Bulldogs knotted the score back up again on Hunley's second home run of the season that shadowed the left field foul line before clearing the fence.

State put something together again in the seventh, getting Boyce on via a leadoff walk, but Jennifer Jessup grounded into a fielder's choice to record the first out of the frame and USC shortstop McKenna Hughes turned nothing into something moments later, snaring Tanelda McDonald's seeing-eye single up the middle to spark an inning-ending double play. Bures provided the final in the eighth, hammering Johnson's first pitch of the inning into the USC track and field complex just beyond the centerfield fence.

Seventh-seeded Mississippi State will return to action on Thursday morning when the Bulldogs face second-seeded and SEC Western Division champion Alabama (53-11, 23-7) in the second game of the 2005 SEC Tournament in Gainesville, Fla. First pitch has been slated for 1:30 p.m. EDT at the Florida Softball Stadium.

"We really struggled with Alabama over at their place," Miller said. "We have to get up for every game, no matter who we're playing, and we didn't do that over there. We have a few days to get some kids healthy and I think that will help a little bit. We'll work on some things down in Gainesville this week and then come out and play hard on Thursday."

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/8/05
Women's Golf
GAINESVILLE, FLA. - Mississippi State concluded play at the NCAA East Regional Saturday, finishing in 16th place. The Lady Bulldogs fired a 311 in the final round on the 6,023-yard par-70 University Golf Course. State finished the three-round tournament, shooting a 925 to end the three day event.

Amanda Mathis led the Bulldogs for the fourth time this season, finishing the tournament in a tie for 19th at 11-over par. The 19th place finish by Mathis is the best finish at an NCAA Regional by any MSU women¹s golfer. Beth Irwin finished in a tie for 72nd at 23-over par. Houston, Texas native Stephanie Godare ended the tournament in a tie for 77th place, shooting a three-round best 77 in the final day of action. Julia Huh, the highlight from Saturday with an ace, finished in a tie for 86th. Senior Janet Dyer ended her career, shooting an 81 and finished the tournament in a tie for 95th.

Ohio State shot a three round total of 856 (+16) and beat second place Duke by six strokes to capture the team title. Southeastern Conference foe and tournament host Florida was the only SEC team to advance to the NCAA Championships finishing in seventh place. South Carolina finished ninth and Vanderbilt finished 10th, narrowly missing a top-eight finish to advance to the championships.

Anna Grzebien of Duke shot a three-under in the final round to take home the individual title, beating Jenny Suh of Furman and Leah Wigger by one stroke. Grzebien finished the tournament one-under par and was the only player to break even par. The top finisher in the SEC was Kristen Svicarovich of Vanderbilt who finished ninth, shooting a six-over par for the tournament.

The NCAA East Regional concluded the 2005 spring golf season for Mississippi State.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Softball
(Game 2) COLUMBIA, S.C. - South Carolina sent nine batters to the plate in a five-run second inning, then held back a furious comeback effort by Mississippi State in the late frames, to finish off a series-opening doubleheader sweep of the Bulldogs on a 7-5 triumph Saturday afternoon at Beckham Field.

The Gamecocks (28-25-1, 11-15 SEC) took its season series from Mississippi State (31-27, 11-18) for the 11th consecutive time with an offensive outburst that produced its most runs in more than a month. Despite the setback, the Maroon and White hit their 41st, 42nd and 43rd home runs of the campaign to shatter a two-year-old school record formerly held by the 2003 squad.

Courtney Bures and Tanelda McDonald both highlighted 3-for-4 days at the plate with back-to-back home runs in the seventh inning, while Katie Cooley smacked her seventh four-bagger of the campaign to highlight a 2-for-3 hitting line. Jessica Josker drove in a pair of runs and crossed the plate one time to pace the USC offense.

MSU starter Kelli Miller (12-11) lasted just one inning of the nightcap, surrendering three earned runs on as many hits and one walk, to saddle the loss for the Bulldogs. After a rough relief outing by Melissa Massey, Stephanie Comeaux surrendered four hits and struck out two over the last five innings of the contest, but got the no decision. USC starter Kate Pouliot (7-11) allowed six hits and three runs over four and one-thirds innings of action from the circle to pick up the save for the Garnet and Black, with game one winner Aleca Johnson working two and two-thirds innings to earn her sixth save of the season.

"By the time we scratched back into it, it was too little, too late," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "We out-hit them and I thought we did a good job coming back and giving ourselves a chance. We just dug ourselves too big a hole early. We didn't get anything pitching-wise early on. Stephanie came in and shut them down, but it was too late for us to climb out of the hole we put ourselves in."

South Carolina got a double from Josker to lead off the game and then got a two-out RBI single from Ashley Smith a short time later to snag the early lead. The Gamecocks would chase two MSU pitchers in the five-run second inning that almost put the game out of reach, but the Bulldogs clawed themselves back into it in the fifth on a home run by Cooley, as well as RBI knocks from Bures and Callye Williams, that cut the deficit to just three, 6-3, heading into the sixth.

USC used a wild pitch from Comeaux to push its lead back to four in the sixth, but State got back-to-back one-out solo home runs from Bures and McDonald in the seventh to put the Gamecocks on their heels. The Bulldogs would load the bases with three of their next four at-bats, but Johnson induced a game-ending liner that shortstop McKenna Hughes went horizontal to snag.

State and the Gamecocks will each close out their regular season campaigns on Sunday afternoon when the squads meet in the 1 p.m. EDT series finale at Beckham Field. The game will be broadcast live by WMSV 91.1 FM with Anthony Craven handling all the play-by-play duties.

Source: MSU Media Relations

(Game 1) COLUMBIA, S.C. - Things started for a bang for Mississippi State in their series opener with South Carolina, but the Gamecocks plated three runs behind an effective pitching performance by senior righthander Aleca Johnson to erase an early 1-0 deficit and capture its series bookend with the visiting Bulldogs by a 3-2 count Saturday afternoon at Beckham Field.

The win gave South Carolina (27-25-1, 10-15 SEC) its 10th consecutive series-opening victory against the Bulldogs (31-26, 11-17) and pushed USC's overall lead in the series out to 19 wins against 8 losses.

Katie Johnson singled twice in three trips to the plate to pace the hits column for the Bulldogs, who also got solo home runs from Jennifer Jessup and Callye Williams. Jessica Josker drove in a run and crossed the plate on time on a 2-for-3 hitting line for the Gamecocks. Meghan Cornett hit a two-run homer to highlight a 1-for-3 hitting line for the Garnet and Black as well.

MSU starter Stephanie Comeaux (9-8) opened the game with two and two-thirds innings of hitless ball, but still took the loss for the Maroon and White after allowing three earned runs on three hits and a pair of walks. Johnson (7-7) picked up the victory for South Carolina, offsetting a pair of MSU home runs with five strikeouts over her sixth complete game of the season.

State wasted no time in lighting up the left field scoreboard as Jessup took a 2-and-1 offering from Johnson and hammered it over the score display and into the USC track and field complex for the 1-0 lead in the first. South Carolina would go down quietly for the first two and two-thirds innings of play until Josker broke up Comeaux's no-hit bid with a flare into left field to give the Gamecocks their second baserunner of the contest.

Cornett would give USC its first lead of the game moments later, putting everything into Comeaux's 2-and-2 offering to give the hosts a 2-1 lead heading into the fourth. However, the lead would be short lived for the Garnet and Black as Williams crushed Johnson's first pitch of the next frame deep down the left field line and off of the foul pole to knot the game back up.

A leadoff walk in the bottom of the fifth, coupled with a one-out bunt single from Darcy Norem, gave the Gamecocks runners at the corners and chased Comeaux from the circle, but Josker laced another ball into rightfield to plate Chrissy Schoonmaker from third base and give USC the 3-2 advantage.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/7/05
Softball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Having clinched their eighth consecutive SEC Tournament berth by virtue of a Tennessee sweep of Ole Miss last weekend, the Mississippi State softball team will see their first game action in more than 10 days when the Bulldogs head to Columbia, S.C., Saturday afternoon to close out their 2005 regular season campaign in a weekend series with South Carolina.

Mississippi State (31-25, 11-16 SEC) and the Gamecocks (26-25-1, 9-15) will renew their rivalry for the 27th time in a 1 p.m. EDT Saturday afternoon doubleheader at USC's Beckham Field, before closing out the weekend set on Sunday at 1 p.m. All three of the weekend match-ups can be followed via a live statistics link at the official Internet home of the Mississippi State athletic department, www.MStateAthletics.com, with Sunday's series finale slated to be broadcast live on WMSV 91.1 FM.

Both the Bulldogs and South Carolina enjoyed rare idle time over the last 10 days, with both clinching the final two SEC Tournament berths on the shoulders of Ole Miss results. Tennessee swept its three-game series at Ole Miss last weekend to give MSU enough breathing room to nab its spot, while a doubleheader sweep of Arkansas by the Rebels in Fayetteville, Ark., on Tuesday gave the eighth and final spot to USC.

Although locked into a berth in the league's postseason gala which will take place in Gainesville, Fla., May 12-15, both teams can better their seeding in the tournament with favorable results this weekend. A series victory by the Gamecocks over the Bulldogs will thrust South Carolina into the seventh overall seed and knock the Bulldogs to eighth. A series victory by MState, coupled with a series victory by Tennessee over LSU in Baton Rouge, La., will give the Maroon and White the sixth seed and knock LSU down to seventh.

State's last game action came in the form of a 4-0 setback to Ole Miss last Tuesday in Madison, Miss., while South Carolina finished off their series victory over the Rebels with a 2-0 victory a couple of days prior. Both teams used the off time for final exams that took place on both campuses over the course of the last week.

"(The layoff) helped us a lot in terms of letting the kids get some rest and we healed up a little bit after getting pretty banged up over the course of the season," said Mississippi State head coach Jay Miller. "We had good practices this week and got some things accomplished so I think we are ready to play."

Although posting just a .260 team batting clip through 52 games of the 2005 season, the Gamecocks have plenty of weapons throughout their order, including senior first baseman Meghan Cornett who currently paces USC with a .382 (60-for-157) hitting line that complements 15 extra-base hits and 21 RBI. However, the Garnet and Black boast five players in their lineup with 20 or more RBI, including sophomore McKenna Hughes who leads her squad in both home runs (8) and runs driven in (35) despite toting just a .252 (39-for-155) batting average.

From the circle, the Gamecocks have utilized a pair of pitchers down the stretch, including junior righthander Melanie Henkes (10-4, 1.98 ERA) and rookie Kate Pouliot (6-11, 4.96).

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Golf
GAINESVILLE, FLA. - Mississippi State played 36 holes Friday at the NCAA East Regional, concluding the day in 14th place. The Lady Bulldogs shot a 306 in the first round and stood in 12th place before firing a 308 in the second round to finish the two-round day.

Mississippi State was lead by sophomore Amanda Mathis who currently stands in a tie for 24th after shooting a two round total of 148. Senior Beth Irwin fired a 153 to find herself in a tie for 53rd place. Freshman Julia Huh shot a 155 and finished the day in a tie for 68th. Junior Stephanie Godare shot a two round total of 158 which put her in a tie for 81st. Senior Janet Dyer fired a 162 to finish the day in a tie for 94th.

"We had some good play on the course today," said head coach Christi Sanders. "We had a few girls play well but unfortunately we had to take a couple of high scores in both rounds. We just have to go out tomorrow in the final round and give it everything we've got because anything can happen in this tournament."

The highlight of the day came early in the first round on the par-three 15th. Julia Huh used a seven iron to roll the ball on the green and into the cup for an ace which was the first of her career. The next golfer to the tee was Whitney Simmons from South Carolina who flew the ball into the cup knocking Huh's ball out of the cup. After consulting the rules, officials counted both aces. Anna Grzebien of Duke provided a third ace on the par-three second hole.

Ohio State, who currently leads, shot a two round total of 565 to lead second place Duke by 10 strokes. Leah Wigger of Virginia stands at three under par to lead all individuals after two rounds and is one of only two individuals under par.

Tomorrow's final round can be followed by live stats at www.golfstat.com.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/6/05
Women's Golf
GAINESVILLE, FLA. - The first round of the NCAA East Regional was postponed Thursday due to heavy rain in the Gainesville area. The first teams will tee off at 6:30a.m. CT to begin tournament play on Friday. The third and final round is scheduled to be played Saturday to determine who will advance to the NCAA Championships May 17-20.

The forecast for Gainesville on Friday is partly cloudy with a high temperature of 76 degrees and a 10 percent chance of rain. Saturday's forecast calls for plenty of sunshine and a high of 81 degrees.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State's Zsuzsanna Fodor and Anastasia Kugakolova were both selected Thursday afternoon to compete in the 2005 NCAA Division I Women¹s Tennis Individual Championships May 23-28 in Athens, Ga., on the University of Georgia campus.

The 2005 SEC Freshman of the Year, the 19th-ranked Fodor earned a South Region at-large singles bid in the field of 64 following an outstanding individual season in which she posted a 35-8 overall record, 8-3 within the SEC en route to a first-team, all-SEC selection. Playing at the No. 1 position every match of the season, the former Budapest, Hungary, product opened the fall campaign winning 15 of her first 16 matches, including two tournament titles and one consolation title. She finished the fall season with an 18-3 overall mark.

During the spring season, Fodor won eight of her first nine matches, storming out of the gate with an 8-1 overall record and finishing the spring with a 15-4 mark, 8-3 in the SEC. In just her first year on campus, Fodor recorded an unblemished 10-0 home record which included upset wins over the fifth and seventh-ranked singles players. During an April 3rd match at LSU, Fodor picked up her 32nd singles win of the season, etching her name in the MSU record books as she passed State¹s Andrea Lord¹s 31 for tops on the schools all-time singles wins in a season list. At the conclusion of the SEC Tournament, Fodor was listed as the 15th-ranked singles player in the nation, having never dropped below No. 28 in the 14 consecutive weeks she was ranked.

Joining Fodor in Athens will be Kugakolova, as the duo will compete among 32 doubles teams in the NCAAs. Currently the 14th-ranked doubles team in the nation, Fodor and Kugakolova finished their season with a 23-6 overall record, 8-3 in the always difficult SEC. In the fall season, the two finished with a 6-2 overall record which included an upset win over in-state rival and 15th-ranked Mississippi.

Spring competition would produce many of the same results as the highly touted tandem were undefeated at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, finishing the 2005 spring campaign with a perfect 9-0 record. Along the way, the duo knocked off the seventh-ranked doubles team in the nation and upset Kentucky's sixth-ranked team in the quarterfinal round of the SEC Tournament. The two were ranked every week of the season for 14 consecutive weeks, reaching as high as No. 13 and never falling below No. 46. For their outstanding efforts during the course of the season, the two earned second-team, all-SEC accolades in doubles at the conclusion of the regular season.

The singles and doubles competition will be conducted May 23-28 at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens, Ga., following the conclusion of the team championship (May 19-22). The University of Georgia will serve as the tournament host.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Mississippi State doubles tandem of Luiz Carvalho and Jose-Carlos Pinto has been selected to compete in the 2005 NCAA Doubles Championship May 25-30 in College Station, Texas, as announced by the NCAA Division I Selection Committee Thursday. With the duo's at-large selection, it marks the 17th straight season MSU has had a singles or doubles participant in the NCAA Individual Championships.

Currently ranked 29th nationally together, Carvalho, a senior, and Pinto, a junior, notched a 14-16 overall record this year. Among their successes was a semifinal showing in the fall at the ITA All-American Championships in Chattanooga, Tenn., college tennis' first major of the year. During that run, which earned them a top 10 ranking in January, they upset the second-ranked team in the country at the time.

Other highlights of the pair's campaign was a quarterfinal showing at the Southern Intercollegiate Championships in Athens, Ga., in September and a berth in the prestigious 16-team field of the ITA National Indoor Championships, the second major, in Ann Arbor, Mich., in November. The duo also made the quarters of the SEC Indoor Championship in New Orleans in January.

Prior to competition in the doubles field, Carvalho and Pinto will join the rest of the MSU net squad in team competition, as the Bulldogs make their 15th consecutive appearance in the NCAA Team Championship. State meets Virginia Commonwealth in first-round action next Friday afternoon in Durham, N.C. on the Duke University campus.

Source: MSU Media Relations

5/5/05
Track & Field
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State University associate head track and field coach Steve Dudley has announced the signing of Water Valley (Miss.) High School standout Pierre Allen to a national letter-of-intent. Allen will begin competing for the Bulldogs during the 2005-06 school year.

"Pierre will help our sprint corp continue to be one of the best in the nation," Dudley said. "It is always important to have Mississippi student-athletes to stay in state, and we are very proud that he chose to come to Mississippi State for his academic and athletic career."

Allen currently runs the 100-, 200-, 400- and 4x200-meter relay at WVHS. His personal records include 10.76 in the 100-meter dash, 21.7 in the 200 and 48.1 in the 400-meter dash. Allen has been named Best Sprinter, to the Best Relay squad, Most Valuable Player of the team and was recently awarded MVP honors at the Olive Branch meet.

As a member of the football team, Allen spent time on both sides of the ball as a running back/receiver and in the secondary. He was named Most Improved and all-District and all-Area.

He is a member of the Beta Club and participated in a community service project where WVHS students helped develop architecture designs for various facilities for the cities of Oakland and Water Valley.

"I'm looking forward to coming to Mississippi State," Allen said. "I believe I am going to become a better student-athlete. I have complete trust in Coach Dudley. I know he can help me succeed in whatever I chose to do."

Allen intends to seek an accounting degree and is the son of Steve Allen and the late Sheila Turner.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Fresh off one of the greatest seasons in school history, which included an SEC Western Division championship, the 26th-ranked Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs earned a trip to the 2005 NCAA Tennis Championships to take on 40th-ranked Pepperdine in the opening round. Regional host and fifth-ranked Georgia Tech and 71st-ranked Winthrop round out the four-team field in Atlanta, Ga.

For the Lady Bulldogs, it is the first time since the 2001 season that State has played in an NCAA match and the fourth time head coach Tracy Lane has guided her Lady Bulldogs into NCAA competition. The ninth-year head coach owns a 3-3 record in NCAA matches and has advanced past the opening game in all three of her previous appearances.

"Today was a big day for us and we are really thrilled about going to Atlanta to play Pepperdine," Lane said. "All the hard work paid off and it just says a lot about what the girls accomplished this year."

The Lady Bulldogs take the court Friday, May 13, (start time yet to be determined) to take on West Coast Conference foe, Pepperdine, for only the second time in school history. The Waves own a 1-0 all-time advantage over the Lady Bulldogs after posting a 6-0 victory during the 1989 season in the Wildcat Invitational in Tucson, Ariz. This season, Pepperdine finished the season ranked No. 40 after posting a 14-8 overall record en route to the claiming the WCC Tournament title for the 14th time in the last 15 seasons.

State punched its ticket to regional play following an outstanding season in which the Lady Bulldogs recorded a 12-7 overall record, 5-6 in the league, earning an SEC Western Division crown. MSU¹s five conference wins were the most since the 1989 campaign and were an all-time high for Lane during her nine-year stint at MSU. Her 12 overall wins also succeeded her previous total of 11 which she set during the 2000 season, finishing 11-11.

Along the way, the Lady Bulldogs went 9-1 at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre, posting upset wins over then 26th-ranked Alabama and 19th-ranked Tennessee. In SEC Tournament play, the Lady Bulldogs advanced into the quarterfinal round for the first time since the 2001 campaign, falling just short of their first trip to the semifinals as they fell 4-1 to third-ranked Kentucky in the quarters.

If the Lady Bulldogs advance past Pepperdine, they would play the winner of Winthrop University and No. 6 seed Georgia Tech on Saturday (start time yet to be determined). MSU joins nine other SEC schools in the field of 64, sending a conference-best 10 schools into NCAA play.

Source: MSU Media Relations

Men's Tennis
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State's men's tennis team learned Wednesday afternoon that it will compete in the first round of the 64-team 2005 NCAA Championship Friday, May 13, in Durham, N.C. State's first-round NCAA site, which will be one of 16 nationally, will be hosted by the Duke University. Wednesday's selection marks the Bulldogs' 15th-consecutive appointment to the NCAA Team Championship field, one of only seven schools (Florida, Georgia, MSU, Southern Cal, Stanford, TCU and UCLA) in the nation that have earned that distinction.

MSU (12-9), currently ranked 23rd nationally, will meet 41st-ranked Virginia Commonwealth (16-10), next Friday at the Ambler Tennis Stadium on the Duke campus in a match that will begin not before 1 p.m. ET (start time will be determined by conclusion of morning match). If State wins that contest, the Bulldogs would advance to play the winner between eighth-ranked host Duke (who is the country's No. 9 seed overall) and South Carolina State on Saturday, May 14, at 1 p.m. ET in the second round. The Saturday contest would be for a spot in the NCAA Team Championship's round of 16, which will be held May 21-24 in College Station, Texas.

The Bulldogs and Rams have met in men's tennis on only one previously recorded occasion, with State taking a 6-0 decision from VCU in the consolation draw of the 1995 Blue-Gray Classic in Montgomery, Ala. Like State, VCU also has an impressive string of NCAA appearances going. With Wednesday's selection, the Rams have now gained 13 consecutive bids.

"Needless to say, we are very happy to be back in the NCAAs again this season," MSU head coach Sylvain Guichard, who was named 2005 Southeastern Conference Co-Coach of the Year, said. "We have had a successful season and have worked very hard to gain our program's 15th-straight selection to the tournament. We are very proud of that and look forward to the opportunity to play for the national title.

"VCU will be a very tough match for us in the first round. They have struggled at times this season, which has kept them down in the rankings. But they are a much, much better team than No. 41 in the country. They finished in the top 15 last season. We will have to prepare well for that match if we have hopes of moving on in the tournament."

MSU's 15-year streak of appearances in the NCAAs began in 1991. The Bulldogs are 15-14 in the tournament in that time span. In the 15 appearances, State has reached the round of 16 11 times, the quarterfinals five times, and the national semifinals twice. MSU has earned 19 NCAA bids in men's tennis overall, as it also made the field four consecutive seasons in the 1960s (1965-68) when the event was in an individual format.

The Southeastern Conference's power was once again very evident in the NCAA field this season, with 10 of the league's 12 teams earning bids to the 64-team field. State had the biggest turnaround in the league in '05, going from 2-9 last season to 6-5 this year.

The selections for the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships, to be played May 25-30 in College Station, will be released Thursday. The Bulldog doubles duo of Luiz Carvalho and Jose-Carlos Pinto, currently ranked 29th nationally, could possibly earn a bid to the 32-team doubles draw.

MSU IN THE 2005 NCAA MEN'S TENNIS TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP

First and Second Rounds
May 13-14, 2005 ­ Durham, N.C.

Friday, May 13
#8 Duke vs. South Carolina State ­ 10 a.m. ET
#23 Mississippi State vs. #41 Virginia Commonwealth - not before 1 p.m. ET

Saturday, May 14
Second Round Match (to advance to round of 16 at College Station, Texas) - 1 p.m. ET

Source: MSU Media Relations

Women's Golf
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Mississippi State women's golf squad will begin postseason play Thursday, May 5 at the NCAA East Regionals held in Gainesville, Fla. The 10th-seeded Lady Bulldogs will join 20 other teams for the three-round event at the 6,023-yard par 70 University Golf Course on the University of Florida campus. The top eight teams from the 21-team field will advance to the NCAA Championships held May 17-20 in Corvallis, Ore.

The Lady Bulldogs enter the NCAA East Regional ranked 35th in the nation in the latest Golfweek poll and seventh in the Southeastern Conference in stroke average. The Bulldogs are lead in stroke average by second team all-SEC performer Amanda Mathis. Mathis, a sophomore from Picayune, Miss., currently holds an average of 75.46 which ranks 15th in the SEC. She is currently ranked 88th nationally in the latest Golfweek poll and reached as high as 24th earlier this season. Beth Irwin, Janet Dyer, Julia Huh and Stephanie Godare round out the starting five for the Lady Bulldogs.

"The players have all finished their final exams and are excited about playing the event and solely concentrating on golf," said head coach Christi Sanders. "The team has earned this bid from their fine play all season and we look forward to playing well this week and earning a spot in the NCAA Championship finals."

The Bulldogs are among nine teams from the SEC to make it to regional play and will be joined in the East Regional by conference rivals Florida, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. The East Regional sports seven teams in the Golfweek top-25 poll including two-time national champions and currently ranked No. 1 Duke. Other top-25 teams include No. 6 Pepperdine, No. 8 Washington, No. 10 Ohio State, No. 11 Florida, No. 13 Tulane, and No. 19 Furman.

State enters postseason with seven top-10 finishes and a victory at the Wildcat Invitational in Lexington, Ky. ea