Mississippi State softball is regional No. 2 seed in 2024 NCAA Tournament. Here's bracket look
Mississippi State softball is back in the NCAA tournament, selected as the No. 2 seed in its regional, which was announced Sunday.
MSU is part of the Stanford Regional, where national No. 8 seed Stanford is the host, and includes No. 3 seed Cal State Fullerton and No. 4 seed Saint Mary's. The survivor of the double-elimination pod will advance to super regionals.
For Mississippi State and coach Samantha Ricketts, the return to the NCAA tournament comes after one of the best regular seasons in program history. After finishing 33-18 overall and going 12-12 in SEC play, the Bulldogs are part of the postseason for the first time since their 2022 super regional appearance.
The 12 conference victories are the most for MSU since 2012. This year also marked the first time Mississippi State finished .500 or better in SEC play since 2007.
MSU started its season hot with nonconference wins against notable opponents such as Louisiana, Clemson and Utah. In conference play, it secured series victories against Ole Miss, Arkansas, South Carolina and Georgia.
Should Mississippi State softball have hosted a regional?
The Bulldogs were on the bubble to host a regional through most of the season. They ranked as high as No. 16 in the USA TODAY/NFCA Coaches Poll.
However, they were one-and-done in the SEC tournament. Playing on the second day of action Wednesday, their game against South Carolina didn't start until 10 p.m. because the two prior games went 14 innings.
The Bulldogs lost 8-4, eliminating them and ending their chances of collecting wins to boost their RPI, a metric used to help determine the NCAA tournament field.
Mississippi State has never hosted a regional. However, in 2022, after upsetting Florida State in the Tallahassee Regional, MSU got to host a super regional against Arizona.
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NCAA Tournament Stanford regional
Friday
Game 1: Cal State Fullerton vs. Mississippi State, 6:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Game 2: Stanford vs. Saint Mary's, 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
Saturday
Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 4 p.m.
Game 4: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, 6:30 p.m.
Game 5: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 winner, 9 p.m.
Sunday
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner, TBD
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner, TBD, if necessary
Stefan Krajisnik is the Mississippi State beat writer for the Clarion Ledger. Contact him at skrajisnik@gannett.com or follow him on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, @skrajisnik3.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi State softball in Stanford Regional 2024 NCAA Tournament
