Saturday, February 17
Hattiesburg, Miss.
1:00 p.m.
Missouri State University
at
Southern Miss
Softball Set for Three-Game Series at Southern Miss
February 15, 2024 | Softball
| Missouri State Bears (1-4) at Southern Miss Golden Eagles (2-3) | |
| Dates | Saturday-Sunday, Feb. 17-18, 2024 |
| Location & Site | Southern Miss Softball Complex | Hattiesburg, Miss. |
| Tickets | Day 1 | Day 2 |
| Game 1 | Saturday, 1:00 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats |
| Game 2 | Saturday, 3:00 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats |
| Game 3 | Sunday, 2:00 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats |
| Missouri State | Game Notes (PDF) | Softball Home Page |
| Southern Miss | Softball Home Page |
| Bears Mobile App | App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices) |
| Up Next | Feb. 23-25 at Louisiana Tech | Ruston, La. |
The Starting Lineup
- Missouri State softball heads to Southern Miss for a three-game series, beginning with a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 1 p.m. before the series concludes on Sunday, Feb. 18 with a 2 p.m. contest. This weekend marks the first-ever meetings between the two teams.
- The Bears opened the 2024 season at the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Clearwater, Fla. where Missouri State went 1-4. MSU's first victory of the season came in extra innings with a 9-6 win over Army after the Bears posted a five-run eighth inning.Â
- Olivia Krehbiel was named Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week on Tuesday for her opening weekend performance.She batted .417 (5-12) with a home run, two RBI and a run scored. She also drew three walks and had just one strikeout in five games on the weekend, which included matchups against No. 5 Clemson and No. 13 Oregon. Krehbiel also owned a .667 slugging percentage, .500 on-base percentage and was named to the NFCA Leadoff Classic all-tournament team. She sits just four homers shy (24) of breaking MSU's career record (27) set by Jessie Smith from 2006-09.Â
- In 2024, the Bears are set to face six NCAA Tournament teams from last season, highlighted by contests against 2023 Women's College World Series participants Tennessee and Oklahoma State. Missouri State faced two top-15 opponents on opening weekend in Clemson and Oregon, both of which made it to Super Regionals in 2023.
- Missouri State returns 14 players from last year's squad, including all five pitchers on staff. The group of returners is also highlighted by the Bears' top two hitters and NFCA All-Region selections from a year ago in McKenzie Vaughan and Krehbiel. MSU's group of newcomers consists of five freshmen and one transfer.
- Prior to the start of the season, head coach Holly Hesse announced her plan to retire following the 2024 season. Hesse owns a 904-861-2 career record as the leader of the Missouri State softball program. She is the second-winningest coach in MVC history in both overall (904) and conference (400) victories. She collected career victory No. 900 last season with a 4-3 victory over Southern Illinois on April 26.
- Missouri State was picked to finish third in the MVC Preseason Poll, while Krehbiel and Vaughan were named to the All-MVC preseason team.Â
- Vaughan is coming off an impressive sophomore campaign that saw her earn first-team all-MVC and third-team NFCA all-region honors. She led the way for MSU offensively last season in average (.318), home runs (14), slugging percentage (.748) and on-base percentage (.452). Her 14 homers a season ago broke Missouri State's single-season record and she is already tied for seventh on MSU's career home run list (19).Â
- Missouri State went undefeated at home for the first time in program history with a 15-0 record in Springfield last season. The Bears currently own the second-longest home win streak in NCAA Division I (18), trailing only Oklahoma (60).Â
- MSU showed off its speed in 2023 as it ranked 23rd nationally and first in the MVC with 99 stolen bases, the most in a single season by the Bears. Abby Ford led the way with 26 stolen bases in 2023 as a freshman.Â
This weekend's series marks the first-ever meetings between Missouri State and Southern Miss.Â
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Players Mentioned
Wednesday, June 17
Wednesday, June 17
Wednesday, June 17
Monday, June 15
