# SEC Softball Series Preview: Mississippi State Bulldogs at Oklahoma Sooners **Published:** 2026-05-18 — **By:** Stacy Stanfield **Category:** games — **Type:** game-series-preview **Source:** https://secscouts.com/news/mississippi-state-bulldogs-at-oklahoma-sooners-softball-preview **Teams:** [Miss State](https://secscouts.com/mississippi-state/), [Oklahoma](https://secscouts.com/oklahoma/) --- ## Series Overview Mississippi State (41-18, 10-16 SEC) heads to Love's Field in Norman for a three-game set against Oklahoma (51-8, 20-5 SEC), a postseason-caliber weekend that pits a Bulldog squad fighting to validate its at-large résumé against a Sooner lineup that has battered SEC pitching all spring. Mississippi State enters with four wins in its last five — including a 4-0 shutout at Oregon and a 4-3 win over Kentucky — while Oklahoma rolls in having won four of its last five, with the lone blemish a 10-5 home loss to Georgia. The stakes are clear. Oklahoma has already locked down one of the league's premier records and a top conference seed at 20-5 in SEC play. Mississippi State, sitting at 10-16 in league action, needs quality results on the road against a marquee opponent to bolster its postseason profile. With 38 home runs from Kendall Wells and a top six hitters all batting above .380, the Sooners present arguably the toughest matchup the Bulldogs have faced all year. ## Series Schedule - **Game 1** — Thursday, May 21 at Love's Field (time TBD) - **Game 2** — Friday, May 22 at Love's Field (time TBD) - **Game 3** — Friday, May 22 at Love's Field (time TBD) ## Keys to the Series **For Mississippi State:** The Bulldogs need their top of the order to travel. Kiarra Sells (.342/.482/.697) is the engine, and her .697 slugging mark gives Mississippi State a legitimate threat to change games with one swing. Nadia Barbary, hitting .330 with a .621 slugging percentage and four home runs on the year, has been the hottest Bulldog over the last five games at 5-for-17 with two homers and three RBI — that production cannot dip in Norman. Kinley Keller's .364 average in SEC play (and 5-for-12 over her last five) makes her the most reliable Bulldog bat against league competition, and she has to keep producing against Oklahoma's arms. Alyssa Faircloth carries a 2.28 ERA and represents Mississippi State's best chance to slow a Sooner lineup that scored eight on Michigan, nine on Kansas, and 11 on Binghamton in its recent stretch. Faircloth's eight home runs also give the Bulldogs a power bat to deploy against Oklahoma's staff. **For Oklahoma:** The Sooners need to keep doing what they have been doing. Kai Minor is hitting .446 overall and .438 in SEC play with two homers and five RBI in conference games, and she just went 9-for-20 with four home runs and six RBI over her last five contests. Ella Parker's .929 slugging percentage and 25 home runs make her the most dangerous middle-of-the-order presence in the series. Gabbie Garcia (.406, 22 HR) went 7-for-14 with seven RBI over her last five outings — protecting that level of production is the simplest path to a sweep. ## Pitching Matchups and Key Players Mississippi State leans heavily on **LHP Alyssa Faircloth (2.28 ERA)**, who has been the steadying force in a Bulldog rotation that just held Oregon to zero runs and Saint Mary's to zero runs in back-to-back wins. Oklahoma counters with **LHP Audrey Lowry (2.62 ERA)** and **RHP Sydney Berzon (2.63 ERA)**, a tandem that matches up favorably against the rest of the SEC. **LHP Kierston Deal (7.50 ERA)** rounds out the staff and could see middle-relief work in any game that gets out of hand early. The spotlight at the plate falls on Oklahoma's quartet of Kai Minor (.446), Ella Parker (.410, 25 HR), Gabbie Garcia (.406, 22 HR), and Isabela Emerling (.405), who went 5-for-8 with a homer and five RBI in her last five games. Kendall Wells's 38 home runs lead the team and tower over anything in Mississippi State's lineup, where Faircloth's eight long balls top the chart. For the Bulldogs, Sells, Barbary, and Keller form the spine of any offensive answer, with Abigail Stevens (.318, .591 SLG) and Morgan Stiles (.405 OBP) needed for length. ## Series Prediction Oklahoma's depth at the plate — six regulars hitting over .380, three sluggers with 20-plus home runs, and two starters under a 2.65 ERA — is a significantly higher offensive ceiling than what Mississippi State has handled in conference play. Faircloth's 2.28 ERA and Sells's .697 slugging give the Bulldogs a path to steal a game, particularly with Faircloth on the mound and Sells, Barbary, and Keller heating up at the right time. But across three games, the math favors the home side. **Prediction: Oklahoma takes 2 of 3, with Mississippi State stealing a Faircloth-led middle game.** --- *Original article: [SEC Softball Series Preview: Mississippi State Bulldogs at Oklahoma Sooners](https://secscouts.com/news/mississippi-state-bulldogs-at-oklahoma-sooners-softball-preview) — SEC Scouts*