TUSCALOOSA, AL (WBRC) -
STARKVILLE, Miss. – The second-ranked Alabama
softball team swept the series against Mississippi State with a 9-3 victory,
Sunday afternoon at the MSU Softball Stadium. With the win, the Crimson Tide
improve to 35-1 overall and 12-1 in Southeastern Conference play.
Sophomore Kaila Hunt hit a home run while freshman Danae
Hays recorded her first career grand slam to pace the Tide offense. Despite
being outhit 9-6, Alabama used a six-run fourth inning to race past the
Bulldogs (19-18, 3-13 SEC).
Sophomore Jackie Traina earned the win to improve to a
perfect 21-0 on the season. Traina allowed two runs – one earned on seven hits
while striking out five in six innings.
Alabama scored its 65th first inning run of
the season, once again seizing the early advantage. Senior Jennifer Fenton was
able to score on a senior Cassie Reilly-Boccia single after singling to start
the game and stealing second.
After Mississippi State tied the game at one in the third
inning, Alabama answered in a big way in the fourth. On the first pitch of the
inning, Hunt hit her 14th home run of the season, a liner that ended
up in the trees in left.
The Tide then loaded the bases and Hays cleared them with
her first career grand slam, giving Alabama a 6-1 lead. Hunt struck again in
the inning, this time expanding the lead to 7-1 on a sac-fly to center that
scored junior Kayla Braud from third.
Reilly-Boccia added another run on the day for the Tide
as she hit a sac-fly to right to score Braud from third. Braud started the
inning with her third walk and then stole her second base of the game before
making the score 8-2.
Braud ended the scoring on the day for the Tide as she
drove in a bases loaded run in the seventh on a ground out to put the score at
9-2.
Alabama will return home to host LSU in a three-game
conference series at Rhoads Stadium. The three-game set will begin on Friday,
April 6, with first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m. The contest will air on ESPNU.
