STARKVILLE — Mississippi State University softball coach Vann Stuedeman preaches living in the moment, forgetting previous at-bats, and doing your best in the present.
Sophomore shortstop Erin Nesbit backed the coach’s approach Tuesday night.
Hitless in her first three at-bats, Nesbit slapped a game-winning double in the bottom of the seventh inning to help MSU defeat the University of Alabama at Birmingham 4-3 at the MSU Softball Field.
The win was MSU’s first walk-off victory of the season, and snapped a three-game losing streak.
“Their pitchers had gotten the best of me,” Nesbit said. “I still went up there with a lot of confidence. Coach Vann always talks about living in the moment. She is the ultimate coach when it comes to confidence. As long as we have outs, we have a chance to come back and win.
“I got a good pitch to hit and it worked out for us.”
Each non-conference victory could be treated like gold for MSU (18-12), which is trying to return to the postseason for the first time since 2009. MSU improved to 18-12 overall. The victory should help spark MSU’s Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), one factor the NCAA tournament selection committee uses to select teams for its event, as well, as UAB (16-11) entered the week ranked 15th in the national Mid-Major Softball Top 25.
“Erin is fighter. She works really hard every day,” Stuedeman said. “If you get here in the fifth inning, you have no idea if she is 0-for-4 or 4-for-4 . She still holds her shoulders back and comes to the plate with a lot of confidence. That is the type of attitude we are trying to build throughout the team. Having success reinforces that.”
The Bulldogs battled back from a 3-2 deficit with a run in the sixth. While UAB aided the cause by making five errors, MSU again showed the new look of a winner as it played with confidence and made the most of critical late-inning situations.
“The late innings are our innings. That has been the motto all year,” MSU sophomore Jessica Offutt said. “That is something the coaches have taught all year. UAB is a great team. We just came out and did our best. We don’t play the opponent. We just keep trying to grind.
“We expect to win. We live in the moment. We go at it one pitch at a time and then see where it gets us at the end of the game.”
MSU assistant coach Alan Reach is credited with creating the “late innings are our innings” motto the team lives by. Stuedeman said the philosophy is simple.
“It is all about a relentless effort,” Stuedeman said. “The theory behind it is no matter what has happened earlier in the game, you have a chance. We have played so many close games this year. The girls are beginning to adopt that philosophy and understand it as well. We worry more about the process than the outcome.
“Coach Reach’s philosophy is all about giving effort until the bitter end. It is all about making adjustments and even when the other team has the upper hand finding a way to battle back and win the moment that you are in.”
The Bulldogs built a 2-1 lead with a run in the first and a run in the third. They missed a chance to expand the lead in the fifth when a bases-loaded, nobody-out situation produced no runs.
Starting pitcher Stephanie Becker (10-5) was lifted after running into danger with a pair of outs in the fifth. Kylie Vry worked the Bulldogs out of that tight spot, but was touched in the sixth for three hits and a pair of runs. An RBI single by Kayla Orr tied the contest. An RBI double by Kristen McGrath gave the Blazers the lead.
Becker returned to the circle and got the final two outs of the inning, and then finished the contest. She threw 6 1/3 innings of three-hit ball to garner the win.
In the sixth, a two-out misplay by the catcher allowed Brittany Gates to score the tying run. In the seventh, Jessica Cooley drew a leadoff walk, moved to second on a bunt, and scored easily on Nesbit’s double to the base of the outfield wall.
“Every practice, we talk about living in the moment,” said Offutt, the Bulldogs’ lone multiple hitter. “If you make an error, you want to have the next ball hit to you. The seventh inning was a perfect example of that. It is all about finding a way. That mind-set is what has allowed us to bounce back from our tough losses this year.”
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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