Willis Strikes Out 12 In 2-0 Loss At No. 12 Arkansas

Friday, March 26

Fayetteville, Ark.

6:00 PM

Mississippi State

15-12, 0-7

#15 Arkansas

26-3, 7-0

Mississippi State

Arkansas

Willis Strikes Out 12 In 2-0 Loss At No. 12 Arkansas

March 26, 2021 | Softball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: Brian Ogden, Assistant Director/Communications

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Mississippi State doubled up No. 12 Arkansas in the hit column on Friday night, but one swing for the Razorbacks was enough to win the ballgame.

With two outs in the bottom of the fourth, Arkansas' Linnie Malkin sent a ball over the left-field wall to plate two runs. MSU (15-12, 0-7 SEC) tallied four hits, but left seven runners on base.

"Annie [Willis] did a great job of keeping us in the ballgame," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "Their pitchers threw a great game. The hits are going to come. It felt like we just missed on a few great opportunities. I thought we put together better swings tonight, but we just have to find a way to get those runners home when we have the opportunity."

Annie Willis commanded the zone with the exception of her mistake to Malkin. The senior rolled through the first three innings on just 36 pitches. Even after the home run, Willis retired the next four batters via the punch out and finished the night with 12 strikeouts. She held Arkansas (26-3, 7-0 SEC) to just two hits.

Jackie McKenna, Paige Cook and Carter Spexarth all singled in the contest, and Chloe Malau'ulu hit a two-out double in the bottom of the fifth to put runners on second and third. It was the second of three times that MSU found itself with two runners on and two outs, but the Bulldogs could not bring them home.

Quotables

Annie Willis on her night in the circle:
"Honestly, I felt like it went good. I want that one pitch back, but we can't change that. After that I was just more locked in. I decided, and I felt it in my bones, that we were going to break through at some point. We trusted the process, and we trusted it all week. We just knew we were going to compete today, and we're going to come back tomorrow and compete again."

Annie Willis on striking out four straight after the home run:
"We're right there. We're going to keep punching until we break through that wall. And we're going to break through. That just shows how much fight we have and how much we're going to fight to do it."

Quick Hitters

Fa Leilua – Drew her SEC-leading 25th walk ... Added a single in the fourth.

Chloe Malau'ulu – Doubled into left-center field in the fifth.

Jackie McKenna – Started behind the plate for the 10^th time this season … Singled into left-center field in the fifth.

Annie Willis – Struck out a season-high 12 batters … Allowed just two hits in the game … Struck out the side twice … Started a double play in the first after snagging a soft comeback liner.

Scoring Recap

Bottom 4
Hannah McEwen drew a leadoff walk. Following a foul out and a strikeout, Linnie Malkin hit a two-run home run to left field.
Mississippi State 0, Arkansas 2

On Deck

The Bulldogs and Razorbacks continue the series on Saturday. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. CT, and the game will be broadcast on SEC Network+.

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