UConn Rallies To Upset No. 24 'Dogs, 6-3
State Commits Five Errors But Advances On To Gold Bracket Play COLUMBUS, Ga. -- UConn (1-2) sent nine batters to the plate in a five-run fifth inning and the Huskies used five Mississippi State (10-3) errors to upset the 24th-ranked Bulldogs, 6-3, Saturday morning at the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga. Kellie Wilkerson turned in a 2-for-4 day at the plate to pace the State offense, which struggled to find its bats for most of the contest. Iyhia McMichael turned in a 1-for-3 performance on a solo home run in the first inning. UConn's Mandy Schettini and Jessica Bigos collected a pair of 2-for-4 performance to pace the Huskies. In her first career start, Melissa Massey (1-1) held her own inside the circle, striking out three Huskies in six-and-a-third innings of work, but took the loss on the shoulders of three unearned runs. Wilkerson worked two outs of the fifth inning but got the no decision. UConn starter Barbara Cook (1-1), one day after dropping a heartbreaker to 8th-ranked Arizona State, got the win for the Huskies, scattering six hits and striking out eight Bulldogs. The Huskies used a pair of hits and a throwing error by rightfielder Kate Jaspers to take a 1-0 lead in the opening frame, but the Bulldogs got a towering blast from McMichael in the bottom of the first to knot the score back up. UConn put runners in scoring position in both the third and fourth innings, but both times Massey regained her composure to close the door on the threat. However, three defensive errors and three hits led to five runs for the Huskies in the fifth, four of which were of the unearned variety. UConn sent nine batters to the plate in the frame and came out on the positive on a pair of pays at the plate due to two State errors. The Bulldogs plated a run in the sixth on a leadoff double by Wilkerson and an RBI single by Lindsay Nelson, then added another in the seventh on an RBI single by Wilkerson, before Cook and the Huskies closed the door on the rally. The five errors marked the most for the Bulldogs in a game since committing five in a loss to Alabama on April 21, 2000. Despite the loss, Mississippi State finished first in its four-team pool, which included a pair of top 10 teams, and will advance to Gold Championship bracket play later Saturday.
UConn 6, #24 Mississippi State 3UConn 100 050 0 - 6 8 0Mississippi State 100 001 1 - 3 6 5Cook and Bigos; Massey (1,6), Wilkerson and Brown.W - Cook (1-1). L - Massey (1-1). HR - MSU: McMichael.