FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. Junior Katie Warrick drove in four runs and sophomore Autumn Storms picked up her second win in as many days as the 23rd-ranked Razorbacks registered an 8-2 victory Sunday over No. 20 Mississippi State to complete the first three-game sweep of a ranked opponent in program history. Arkansas improves to 28-6 overall with a 5-4 mark in SEC play.
Sundays triumph also capped a three-week home stand that saw the Razorbacks post a 12-1 record at Bogle Park. Overall, Arkansas is now 19-1 playing on its home field. The program last swept a conference opponent in 2013.
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The Razorbacks continue their SEC schedule next weekend with a road trip to No. 9 South Carolina. The series opener is scheduled for Friday at 5 p.m. (CT) at the Carolina Softball Stadium in Columbia. All three games will be streamed on SEC Network+ through the WatchESPN app.
Final: #23 Arkansas 8, #20/18 Mississippi State 2
After a scoreless first inning, Arkansas plated the first run of the game without the benefit of a hit. Loren Krzysko walked to lead off the second and moved around to third on a pair of wild pitches. Fellow senior Tori Cooper brought her home with a sacrifice fly to deep center field. Mississippi State (28-9, 3-6 SEC) answered with two runson two solo shotsin the top of the third inning to take the lead and force a change in the circle with Storms taking over for starter Mary Haff.
The Razorbacks erased their deficit with a five-run fourth inning that Warrick finished off with a two-run single to center field. A.J. Belans picked up her first of two hits Sunday with an RBI single that scored Cooper from second to tie the game. Later in the frame, Hannah McEwen and Ashley Diaz drew consecutive bases-loaded walks for a two-run lead. Warrick added to the advantage with her base knock.
Storms, meanwhile, was doing her part to keep the visitors off the scoreboard. Mississippi State threatened in the top of the sixth with a runner at second and no outs. Storms responded with a strikeout and back-to-back ground outs to second. In the seventh, Storms worked around a lead-off single to retire the next three hitters and secure the series sweep. She gave up just three hits with no walks in 4.1 innings of relief work.
Arkansas final two runs came in one swing by Warrick in the bottom of the sixth. McEwen drew her third walk of the day to lead off the frame. With one down, Warrick stepped to the plate and on the 13th pitch of her at-bat against Cassady Knudsen, she drove a two-run shot over the fence in center field. The big fly was her team-leading seventh home run of the season.
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