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Arkansas walks off Oklahoma State in epic NCAA Tournament comeback
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Arkansas wasn’t fazed by a 4-run deficit on Saturday afternoon in front of its home fans. The Razorbacks rallied from a 5-1 hole against Oklahoma State to get the NCAA Tournament softball game into extra innings. Then Courtney Day saved the day.
Day lined an RBI single up the middle with the bases loaded after Bri Ellis was intentionally walked, lifting Arkansas into the championship game of the Fayetteville Regional with a 6-5 win in 8 innings. The Razorbacks will play that regional finals on Sunday afternoon
Here is the video of Day’s heroics on Saturday as the home crowd went wild:
Atalyia Rijo got the 8th-inning rally started with a single to left field on the first pitch of the at-bat. Then Karlie Davison moved Rijo to second base with a bunt, which brought up the top of the lineup with Rijo in scoring position and 1 out.
Reagan Johnson grounded out to second, getting the winning run to third base, although there were 2 outs. After Raigan Kramer drew a full-count walk to put runners on the corners, Oklahoma State walked Ellis intentionally to load the bases for Day.
Day fell behind 0-2 as the drama built in Fayetteville. After working the count to 2-2, Day made her magic, lining the single up the middle to put the Razorbacks into the regional final, where they will get 2 chances to advance in the NCAA Tournament.
The game almost didn’t make it to extra innings. Arkansas was down to its last out in the bottom of the 7th inning when freshman Ella McDowell came up clutch with an RBI double that completed the comeback, tying it at 5-5.
Here is McDowell’s huge hit that kept the Hogs alive:
On Sunday, we’ll see if Arkansas can create some more magic in front of its home fans to keep its season alive.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
