Lockdown Defense Leads Alabama to Series Sweep at Mississippi State

Sunday, April 16

Starkville, Miss.

1 p.m. CT

Alabama

32-12, 9-6

Mississippi State

23-19, 3-11

Alabama

Mississippi State

Lockdown Defense Leads Alabama to Series Sweep at Mississippi State

4/16/2023 4:20:00 PM | Softball

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The series sweep is the first this season for the Crimson Tide

STARKVILLE, Miss. – Lockdown defense helped lead Alabama softball to a 1-0 shutout Sunday over Mississippi State, securing the first series sweep of the season for the Crimson Tide.

The series sweep is the first of the season for Alabama (32-12, 9-6 SEC) and marks its third-straight conference series win. It is the Crimson Tide's 12th three-game sweep all time vs. Mississippi State (23-19, 3-11 SEC) and its first road sweep over the Bulldogs since 2012.

Alabama scored first for the third time this weekend, courtesy of a third-inning RBI single from Ally Shipman. In the home half of the same inning, the Bulldogs loaded the bases with one out before Ashley Prange fielded a hard one-hopper, stepped on the bag at third and fired over to first for an inning-ending double play to get out of the threat still leading by one. The score remained the same heading to the bottom of the seventh and Mississippi State got its leadoff batter on base, but Montana Fouts (17-6) and the Alabama defense retired the next three to secure the 1-0 shutout and the series sweep.

Emma Broadfoot accounted for two of the Tide's five hits on the day, with Shipman's third-inning RBI single driving in the lone run of the day for either team. Fouts earned her second win of the weekend, tossing her seventh shutout of the season, five of which have come in conference play.

From Head Coach Patrick Murphy

"You have to start with Ashley Prange at third base. She made some hellacious plays on defense today with two double plays and the line drive to end the game. [Ally] Shipman got the only RBI of the day and Montana [Fouts] maybe had her C game today, but you have to find ways to win games like that. Five weeks ago, I'm not sure if we win a game like that but the defense came through and we got the timely hit. Sometimes the timely hit gets you a 1-0 win and sometimes its 8-7 but it's a win at the end of the day."

Highlights

Alabama has now won seven straight games against Mississippi State, owning a 69-11 overall record including a 29-7 mark in Starkville
It was the 12th three-game sweeps for the Tide over the Bulldogs, five of which have come in Starkville
It was the first three-game road sweep since 2012, also doing so in 2010, 2008 and 2002
The two double plays turned are the most in a game for Alabama since March 4, 2022 vs. Texas
Broadfoot's 2-for-3 day marked her third multi-hit game of the season
Montana Fouts now has 1,095 career strikeouts, putting her 18 shy of second-place Stephanie VanBrakle (2003-06) on the Alabama career record books
The win was the 91st of Fouts' career and her 32nd shutout

Scoring Summary

T3 | Ally Shipman drove in Kristen White from second with an RBI single to center (1-0, 2 Out)

Up Next: vs. Liberty/at Marshall (Huntington, W. Va.)

Tuesday, April 18 vs. Liberty – 12 p.m. CT
Tuesday, April 18 at Marshall – 2:30 p.m. CT

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