No. 19 Mississippi State Shuts Out No. 14 Georgia

MSU pitcher Aspen Wesley dominates in second-straight game inside the circle

MSU pitcher Aspen Wesley strikes out eight batters against Georgia. / Mississippi State Athletics

STARKVILLE – The last time Aspen Wesley was inside the circle for Mississippi State, she struck out all three batters in the final inning against Missouri on Monday to secure a 3-2 comeback victory.

In Friday night’s series opener against No. 14 Georgia (37-14, 11-11), Wesley hadn’t cooled off. The Philadelphia, Miss. native struck out two batters in the first inning to lead No. 19 MSU (32-16, 11-11 SEC) to a 2-0 win. She’d end the complete game performance with eight total strikeouts and only three hits and one walk. It’s her third shutout victory this season, which matches the single-season school record.

"The defense was amazing,” Wesley said after Friday night’s game. “Whatever coach T [Taryne Mowatt-McKinney] called, I tried to spin it as much as I could. I know that they could hit very hard, and as long as I could just get some mishits, that would be great for us.”

MSU’s defense did its part with no errors recorded and, MSU fans at least are hoping, one offensive player broke free from her slump.

Madisyn Kennedy hit her first home run in nearly a month in the fourth inning against Georgia that put MSU up 1-0.

"I would be lying if I said I was not struggling recently. I think I just knew I had a lot of confidence coming from my coaches and my teammates. I knew that they were going to have my back and had a lot of confidence that we were going to get it done. Aspen did pitch a heck of a game. We were just wanting to have her back."

The solo blast was Kennedy’s ninth SEC home run and set a new single-season school record. It was also her 27th RBI in SEC action and is one shy of the school record.

While MSU did its part in trying to secure the No. 4 seed in next week’s SEC tournament, its instate rival didn’t. Ole Miss needed to sweep No. 11 Arkansas and started off their Friday double-header with a 6-0, but fell 12-2 in the second game. MSU also needed South Carolina to win twice against No. 15 Missouri, but it was Missouri who won Friday’s contest 2-0.

After Friday’s games, MSU sits in eighth place in the SEC Standings. But there is still chance for MSU to gain a higher seed. MSU could possibly gain the No. 5 seed in the tournament if it cans sweep Georgia, Missouri loses at least one game to South Carolina and LSU doesn’t win either of its final games against Memphis.

MSU and Georgia meet for game two of its series at noon Saturday on SEC Network+.