Good morning! We totally botched the whole Justin Timberlake “it’s gonna be May” joke, so here it is on May 2nd. You’re welcome. There’s lots of action brewing for State athletics this month, so stay tuned for lots more to come.

What else did we toss into the Brew today?

🥎 Catching Fire
🏐 New Digs
🐶 And much, much more!

🎥 HAIL STATE PLUS

One To Remember. This women’s golf team has been busy making history this season. The Bulldogs earned one of six number one seeds in this year’s upcoming NCAA tournament for the first time in school history.

In this edition of All Access, we go behind the scenes of the team’s selection show party, and the expectations this team holds themselves to for the very near future. Hear from head coach Charlie Ewing and senior golfers Hannah Levi and Abbey Daniel on what they hope to accomplish as they get ready to tee off in Indiana.

The Bulldogs will head to NCAA Regionals next week to continue the historic run they have had thus far. This episode, and tons more like it, are available now to our HailState+ members.

With HailState+ you get to watch wherever you want to watch. Web, mobile, and (later this year) all major OTT streaming apps like AppleTV, Amazon FireTV, Roku, and Android. We got it all.

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 Tournament Bound. For a 12th consecutive year the Bulldogs are in the Men’s NCAA Tennis Tournament. This year, Starkville will be hosting one of the Regionals; that’s cause for celebration.

After learning of their fate in the NCAA Selection Show, the Bulldogs will take on Alabama State in the first round of the tournament. Alabama State earned their way to the big dance after winning the SWAC title. Just like basketball, the tennis tournament features a 64-team field, and teams play in single elimination matches until a winner is crowned.

The Bulldogs earned an at-large bid thanks to a No. 15 ranking and a 19-7 overall record this season. MSU is ready to take this opportunity in stride, and leading the way will be Carles Hernandez, Petar Jovanovic, Ewen Lumsden, and Benito Sanchez Martinez, who accumulated more than 20 wins a piece this season. The first round of NCAA Tournament play starts this Friday.

🔼 Catching Fire. You may have heard of the Snyder cut over in the DC Universe, but have you caught the latest extended cut, courtesy of Bulldog softball? The team has been hot as of late, and definitely deserved a spotlight of its own following a series sweep.

Head coach Samantha Ricketts knows how to get her team chugging at the right time, going 12-5 in the final two weeks of the season across the past three years. The senior sluggers have been a big reason for the success as Paige Cook, Madisyn Kennedy, and Chloe Malau’ulu all cracked the top-10 all-time home run list this past weekend. They can’t stop you if you don’t give them a chance to catch it!

“I think this group is resilient, and I think the biggest thing the understand is if we can learn lessons…then we’re going to be in a good position at the end of the season,” said Ricketts about her squad this year. Later this week, the Bulldogs will wrap up the season in a mid-week battle at Samford and then close things out in Auburn for the regular season finale.

🔼 New Digs. Volleyball is welcoming a new addition to its coaching staff. Head coach Julie Darty Dennis announced the hiring of assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Aaron King.

“We are just thrilled to have Aaron join the staff here at MSU,” said Dennis after announcing his arrival to the university yesterday. King joins the Bulldogs after six seasons as an assistant at Stetson University where he helped the program to 65 wins, including their first winning season in almost two decades. As a member of the ASUN, he helped develop players both on and off the court, and assisted the team earning an AVCA Team Academic Award. King was also a player himself, serving as a middle hitter in high school, and serving as team captain during his senior year.

The Bulldog’s head coach also had this to say about the new hire; “I think our team will really enjoy his infectious personality and his approach to coaching.” Fit is key to building a great team, and it sounds like Coach King is going to be a great piece for the Bulldogs for years to come.

🔼 Pro Dawgs. MSU has a knack for producing pro-level talent, and our guys are representing the Dawgs well right now in the major leagues.

Brent Rooker has been a bright spot for the Oakland Athletics so far this season. He’s hit nine home runs (tied for third in the MLB), drove in 22 runs, has a batting average of .353… and it’s only May. After winning AL Player of the Week, the former Bulldog has a real chance to establish himself as an elite player this season. And with stats like he has, no one could argue with that claim.

Justin Foscue is tearing things up on his way up the baseball ladder. Currently with the Round Rock Express, Foscue just had a day where he went 4-4 with two RBI’s en route to a victory. More performances like that, and he’ll be up in the majors in no time.

Nathaniel Lowe is a heavy contributor to the first place Texas Rangers, and has started all 28 games at first base this season. He has the second most hits on the team thus far with 28, including a team high 10 doubles. In Sunday’s series finale, Lowe blasted one over the fence for his fourth homer of the season.

Baseball and the Bulldogs go hand-in-hand, and our guys are out there making State fans proud.

🤔 BULLDOG TRIVIA

Dinger Derby. Or at least that’s what it felt like this past weekend in the Bulldogs’ series against No. 22 Kentucky. Softballs were flying out of the park all weekend, and was a big reason for State’s success.

Our question today — do you know how many home runs Mississippi State hit in last weekend’s series against Kentucky?

Think you know the answer? Scroll on down to the bottom to find out.

📬 STICK WITH US

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🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: 10!

It was the most home runs ever hit by State in an SEC series. The previous mark was seven, which had been done twice: once against LSU in 2019 and another time versus South Carolina in 2005.

Have a great Tuesday, y'all.