Saturday, April 2
Knoxville, Tenn.
1:00 PM
Mississippi State
24-11, 5-3
8
at
3
#13 Tennessee
24-10, 6-4
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Mississippi State
2
0
4
2
0
0
0
8
12
1
Tennessee
2
0
0
0
0
0
1
3
5
1
Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics
Bulldogs Rally To Upset No. 11 Tennessee, Tie Series
April 02, 2022 | Softball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Mississippi State tallied a dozen hits in an 8-3 victory at No. 11 Tennessee on Saturday to even the series in Knoxville.
Jackie McKenna and Chloe Malau'ulu led the way offensively for State (24-10, 5-3 SEC), collecting three RBIs each. All three of McKenna's came on a home run to right field in the middle of a four-run third inning for the Bulldogs. Malau'ulu hit a two-run home run and an RBI double.
The eight-run output was fitting on a day when the Bulldogs and the rest of the SEC were honoring the late Alex Wilcox on All for Alex Day.
"It definitely means more for us. We talked about it this morning during our film review session," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "The final message was why we're wearing this color and continuing to remember that we're the ones carrying the torch and get to continue sharing her story and her legacy. Let's do this for Alex. Do this for Eight. Let's go out there like she would have. We know that's when we play our best, when we're loose and enjoying each other in the dugout, which is exactly what she would have been doing."
The Bulldogs never trailed in the contest. After Malau'ulu's homer in the first, Tennessee (24-10, 6-4 SEC) plated a pair in the bottom half of the frame to tie the game. MSU then scored four runs on a pair of homers from Mia Davidson and McKenna in the third.
State picked up two more on Malau'ulu's double and a base hit from Paige Cook in the fourth. The Lady Vols pushed one final run across in the seventh to result in the final score.
Kenley Hawk started and threw 5.1 innings, allowing just three hits. She picked up her 10th win of the season with four strikeouts. Annie Willis threw the final 1.2 innings, striking out three.
"It reminded us to be selfless. We were playing for everybody, and knowing that if [Alex] can do it while going through chemo, a bad knee or something is nothing compared to what she went through. We took that to heart. We were watching some film today, and Ricketts was talking about how if it was Alex out here, she would be making sure she's having fun with a smile on her face. Knowing that we get to do this for her is one of the most amazing feelings."
Jackie McKenna on the response to Friday's game…
"I don't think we showed what we can do [on Friday]. We had every game plan for every pitcher, and I just think it was a matter of getting the hits, stringing them together and scoring runs for our pitchers."
Jackie McKenna on her three-run home run…
"I thought it was going to be off the wall. It's a really high wall. I mean I knew I hit it hard. I had a 2-0 count, so I was looking for that pitch. I just put my bat to it, made a good swing and the wind took it out. I think it broke it open. The whole game we were up, and we knew what we can do. I think everyone pulled together, and we did a good job working as a team today for the win."
Paige Cook – Went 3-for-3 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored … also walked to reach in all four trips.
Mia Davidson – Went 2-for-4 with a double and a homer … scored twice … home run was No. 84 of her career, which is tied for No. 9 in NCAA softball history.
Chloe Malau'ulu – Went 2-for-4 while driving in three runs … hit a double and a home run.
Jackie McKenna – Hit a three-run homer in the third inning … added a single to go 2-for-4.
Shea Moreno – Went 2-for-4 for her third multi-hit game of the year.
With one out, Mia Davidson doubled, and Chloe Malau'ulu homered to left field.
Mississippi State 2, Tennessee 0
Bottom 1
Kiki Milloy was hit by a pitch to open the inning. She stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error. Lair Beautae singled up the middle to score Milloy. Ashley Morgan then doubled off the right field wall to push Beautae to third. Zaida Puni reached on a fielder's choice when the throw came home, but all the runners stayed put. Rylie West hit a sacrifice fly to score Beautae.
Mississippi State 2, Tennessee 2
Top 3
Davidson led off with a home run. With two outs, Paige Cook and Madisyn Kennedy hit back-to-back singles. Jackie McKenna hit a three-run homer to right-center field.
Mississippi State 6, Tennessee 2
Top 4
Shea Moreno led off with a base hit into left field. She advanced to second on a ground out for the second out of the inning. Moreno scored on a double from Malau'ulu. Matalasi Faapito was hit by a pitch before Cook singled to score Malau'ulu.
Mississippi State 8, Tennessee 2
Bottom 7
With two outs, Beautae doubled. Morgan was then hit by a pitch to put two runners on. Puni singled up the middle to score Beautae.
Mississippi State 8, Tennessee 3
Jackie McKenna and Chloe Malau'ulu led the way offensively for State (24-10, 5-3 SEC), collecting three RBIs each. All three of McKenna's came on a home run to right field in the middle of a four-run third inning for the Bulldogs. Malau'ulu hit a two-run home run and an RBI double.
The eight-run output was fitting on a day when the Bulldogs and the rest of the SEC were honoring the late Alex Wilcox on All for Alex Day.
"It definitely means more for us. We talked about it this morning during our film review session," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "The final message was why we're wearing this color and continuing to remember that we're the ones carrying the torch and get to continue sharing her story and her legacy. Let's do this for Alex. Do this for Eight. Let's go out there like she would have. We know that's when we play our best, when we're loose and enjoying each other in the dugout, which is exactly what she would have been doing."
The Bulldogs never trailed in the contest. After Malau'ulu's homer in the first, Tennessee (24-10, 6-4 SEC) plated a pair in the bottom half of the frame to tie the game. MSU then scored four runs on a pair of homers from Mia Davidson and McKenna in the third.
State picked up two more on Malau'ulu's double and a base hit from Paige Cook in the fourth. The Lady Vols pushed one final run across in the seventh to result in the final score.
Kenley Hawk started and threw 5.1 innings, allowing just three hits. She picked up her 10th win of the season with four strikeouts. Annie Willis threw the final 1.2 innings, striking out three.
Quotables
Mia Davidson on extra motivation on All for Alex Day…"It reminded us to be selfless. We were playing for everybody, and knowing that if [Alex] can do it while going through chemo, a bad knee or something is nothing compared to what she went through. We took that to heart. We were watching some film today, and Ricketts was talking about how if it was Alex out here, she would be making sure she's having fun with a smile on her face. Knowing that we get to do this for her is one of the most amazing feelings."
Jackie McKenna on the response to Friday's game…
"I don't think we showed what we can do [on Friday]. We had every game plan for every pitcher, and I just think it was a matter of getting the hits, stringing them together and scoring runs for our pitchers."
Jackie McKenna on her three-run home run…
"I thought it was going to be off the wall. It's a really high wall. I mean I knew I hit it hard. I had a 2-0 count, so I was looking for that pitch. I just put my bat to it, made a good swing and the wind took it out. I think it broke it open. The whole game we were up, and we knew what we can do. I think everyone pulled together, and we did a good job working as a team today for the win."
Quick Hitters
Rocky Toppling – The Bulldogs have now won three of their last four meetings with ranked Tennessee teams … State won its first game in Knoxville since defeating then-No. 4 Tennessee, 11-7, on April 20, 2014 … MSU won the series in Knoxville in 2014.Paige Cook – Went 3-for-3 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored … also walked to reach in all four trips.
Mia Davidson – Went 2-for-4 with a double and a homer … scored twice … home run was No. 84 of her career, which is tied for No. 9 in NCAA softball history.
Chloe Malau'ulu – Went 2-for-4 while driving in three runs … hit a double and a home run.
Jackie McKenna – Hit a three-run homer in the third inning … added a single to go 2-for-4.
Shea Moreno – Went 2-for-4 for her third multi-hit game of the year.
Scoring Recap
Top 1With one out, Mia Davidson doubled, and Chloe Malau'ulu homered to left field.
Mississippi State 2, Tennessee 0
Bottom 1
Kiki Milloy was hit by a pitch to open the inning. She stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error. Lair Beautae singled up the middle to score Milloy. Ashley Morgan then doubled off the right field wall to push Beautae to third. Zaida Puni reached on a fielder's choice when the throw came home, but all the runners stayed put. Rylie West hit a sacrifice fly to score Beautae.
Mississippi State 2, Tennessee 2
Top 3
Davidson led off with a home run. With two outs, Paige Cook and Madisyn Kennedy hit back-to-back singles. Jackie McKenna hit a three-run homer to right-center field.
Mississippi State 6, Tennessee 2
Top 4
Shea Moreno led off with a base hit into left field. She advanced to second on a ground out for the second out of the inning. Moreno scored on a double from Malau'ulu. Matalasi Faapito was hit by a pitch before Cook singled to score Malau'ulu.
Mississippi State 8, Tennessee 2
Bottom 7
With two outs, Beautae doubled. Morgan was then hit by a pitch to put two runners on. Puni singled up the middle to score Beautae.
Mississippi State 8, Tennessee 3
On Deck
The Bulldogs and Lady Vols will continue the series on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT with the game available on SEC Network+. The series finale on Sunday will be broadcast nationally on SEC Network at 11 a.m.Follow the Bulldogs
For more information on the Bulldog softball program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateSB."
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Hawk, Kenley (10-2)
L: E.Edmoundson (14-4)
Batting:
2B: Davidson, Mia 1 ; Malau'ulu, Chloe 1
HR: Davidson, Mia 1 ; Malau'ulu, Chloe 1 ; McKenna, Jackie 1
RBI: Davidson, Mia 1 ; Malau'ulu, Chloe 3 ; Cook, Paige 1 ; McKenna, Jackie 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Davidson, Mia 2 ; Malau'ulu, Chloe 2 ; Cook, Paige 1 ; Kennedy, Madisyn 1 ; McKenna, Jackie 1 ; Moreno, Shea 1
CS: Florian, Phoebe 1
HBP: Faapito, Matalasi 1
Batting:
2B: L. Beautae 1 ; A. Morgan 1
RBI: L. Beautae 1 ; Z. Puni 1 ; R. West 1
SF: R. West 1
Base Running:
RUNS: K. Milloy 1 ; L. Beautae 2
SB: K. Milloy 1
HBP: K. Milloy 1 ; A. Morgan 1 ; M. Gibson 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
1
H
3
RBI
1
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
3
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
3
Players Mentioned
INF
/ SoftballC/INF
/ Softball
P/INF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
INF
/ SoftballOF
/ SoftballC/UTL
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
P
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