Motivated Wesley helps Bulldogs to another win
Aspen Wesley had extra motivation to have a good outing in the circle Saturday afternoon.
As Mississippi State was recognizing Native American Heritage Day, the spotlight was on Wesley and her Choctaw heritage.
Wesley had been looking forward to the special day ever since she first learned about it.
The anticipation started way before Wesley went out for her start against the South Carolina Gamecocks.
“I was in the bullpen and the little kids were watching in the back,” Wesley said. “I said to myself 'that's crazy. That was me when I was younger,' so I wanted to put on the best attitude for them no matter what the outcome was.”
The outcome for Wesley and the Bulldogs was very good.
Wesley went the distance, scattered four hits, walked only one and struck out seven as MSU defeated South Carolina 4-1. The Bulldogs have now won the series by taking the first two games and improved their overall record to 21-8.
MSU head coach Samantha Ricketts was happy to see Wesley keep the game under control the entire game.
“She was attacking the zone and going after the hitters,” Ricketts said. “She did a great job mixing, was calm and collected and gave us a chance to get the offense going. She was poised and doing what Aspen does best. It was a little bit more special to do it with her fan base, her family and everyone here to support. It was definitely a special day for Aspen and I'm glad we could get her that opportunity today.”
Wesley ended up throwing 89 pitches and felt like she managed the load effectively.
“I feel like all of my pitches were working in some sort of way,” Wesley said. “They had great hitters and we had to work certain ways for different hitters. I just wanted to make sure my spins were working. The wind was blowing a little bit so I didn't want to do too much and make the ball move with the wind.”
After being shut out by the Gamecock pitching for three innings, the Bulldogs broke scoring ice for a pair of runs in the fourth. Chloe Malau'ulu had a leadoff double, then Paige Cook blasted a two-run home run to give MSU a 2-0 lead.
The Bulldogs added two more runs in the fifth frame on an RBI triple from Macy Graf and a sacrifice fly by Cook to score Graf.
Cook, who had a seasonhigh three RBI, knew how important the day was for Wesley and wanted to do something to help.
“We had been talking with Aspen and said we will have her back,” Cook said. “That's what we said when we went up to bat.”
Along with Cook's homer, Graf's triple and Malau'ulu's double, Jackie Mckenna had the only other extra base hit for MSU with a fifth-inning double.
The final game of the series between the two teams takes place today. The first pitch is set for high noon at Nusz Park.