STARKVILLE — Mississippi State softball coach Samantha Ricketts will welcome her alma mater, defending national champion Oklahoma, to Starkville this spring.
The Sooners will face MSU twice as part of the Bulldog Invitational from March 9-12 — a pair of matchups that highlight Mississippi State’s 2023 nonconference schedule, released Wednesday.
It completes the Bulldogs’ 54-game schedule after MSU’s Southeastern Conference slate was released in September.
Mississippi State’s first home games won’t come until Feb. 28 in a doubleheader with Mississippi Valley State after the Bulldogs play three straight tournaments on the road.
MSU, coming off its first Super Regional appearance, opens the 2023 campaign in Boca Raton, Florida, at the FAU Tournament. The Bulldogs will play the host Owls on Feb. 9 before facing Loyola-Chicago, Bethune-Cookman, Iowa and Stony Brook.
Ricketts’ team will aim for revenge against Arizona, which eliminated MSU from the NCAA tournament in 2022, as part of the TaxAct Clearwater Invitational the following weekend. In just three days, the Bulldogs will play five games against strong competition — Indiana, Michigan, South Florida and UCF as well as the Wildcats.
Mississippi State’s third tournament in as many weeks is at South Alabama, in which the Bulldogs will face USA, Tulsa, Louisiana Tech and Furman.
MSU hosts Abilene Christian, Dartmouth and Murray State in the Snowman (Alex Wilcox Memorial) Tournament from March 3-5 before welcoming in Oklahoma, Omaha, Southeastern Louisiana and East Tennessee State the following weekend.
The Bulldogs host Purdue from March 15 before their SEC opener March 17-19 in Starkville.
They play only two midweek games during conference play: March 29 at Louisiana–Monroe and April 19 against Memphis at Nusz Park.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 24 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 24 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
Join the Discussion