FAYETTEVILLE -- No. 20 Mississippi State scored six unanswered runs and came back to defeat the 17th-ranked University of Arkansas softball team 6-3 on Friday night at Bogle Park.
The Bulldogs (23-6, 4-3 SEC) scored four runs in the seventh inning, highlighted by a bases-clearing double by Madisyn Kennedy, to complete the comeback.
It snapped a nine-game winning streak in the series for Arkansas. Prior to Friday, the Razorbacks (23-7, 2-2) had not lost to Mississippi State since April 2017.
Arkansas was limited to three hits by Mississippi State right-hander Aspen Wesley, who pitched a complete game. Aside from a three-run fourth inning, the Razorbacks were held hitless by Wesley.
"Hopefully we see a lot more fight and better at-bats collectively," Arkansas Coach Courtney Deifel said. "I mean, we had some momentum, but we weren't having great at-bats collectively.
"We had a good string there in the fourth. ... [But] that competitive energy that we've been talking about a lot -- having that consistently, digging in and making them be a tough out at the very least -- I just don't feel like we did that throughout the game."
Morgan Leinstock (6-1) started and pitched 6 1/3 innings for the Razorbacks. She had given up 2 runs and 6 hits through 6 innings, but Deifel elected to go with left-hander Hannah Camenzind in relief to begin the seventh.
After falling behind 2-0 against her first batter, pinch hitter Matalasi Faapito, Camenzind was replaced by Leinstock.
"It was mostly a matchup thing, more than anything, of just wanting [Camenzind] to go at their lefties," Deifel said. "So when we made that move and then they went with Faapito, I liked the matchup of Morgan."
Faapito drew a walk against Leinstock, which was the start of a big inning for the Bulldogs, who entered the seventh trailing 3-2. After back-to-back hits by Sierra Sacco and Nadia Barberry loaded the bases, Kennedy, the reigning national player of the week, delivered the go-ahead double.
Camenzind entered again two batters later and got out of a jam with one more run surrendered, but the damage was done. Arkansas went down quietly in the bottom of the seventh to cap Mississippi State's win.
"Obviously, in hindsight, I maybe just stay with [Camenzind] or maybe just stay with [Leinstock] from the jump," Deifel said. "But you just do the best you can in the moment and it just didn't work tonight."
Arkansas had taken a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning when third baseman Hannah Gammill delivered a two-out, three-run home run. It took a powerful swing by the senior from Beebe to get the ball over the wall in right-center field as it fought against a strong wind.
But her swing was the highlight of an otherwise quiet offensive game for Arkansas.
Kennedy Miller, who was hit by a pitch to lead off the seventh inning, provided the only baserunner for the Razorbacks over the final three innings.
"[Wesley] did just a really great job of mixing her speeds and literally kept us in between the entire game," Deifel said. "[Gammill] got on one, but really besides that she just kind of caught us between speeds the entire game.
"It just didn't feel like we could really necessarily commit to one speed and commit to one plan. Good pitchers do that, so she had a great night."
The Razorbacks were outhit 11-3 and committed two errors. Reagan Johnson, Nia Carter and Gammill each had one hit for Arkansas.
Mississippi State will have an opportunity to win its second SEC series of the season when the teams play today at 2 p.m.
Arkansas’ Hannah Gammill celebrates her three-run home run in the fourth inning against Mississippi State on Friday at Bogle Park in Fayetteville. The No. 20 Bulldogs defeated the No. 17 Razorbacks. (NWA Democrat Gazette/Caleb Grieger)