FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Alabama softball team battled through inclement weather and a seventh-inning rally from Arkansas on Friday night to edge out the Razorbacks, 6-5, in the series opener.
Alexis Osorio (9-6) earned the win in the circle, going the distance in the hard-fought win. She allowed five earned runs on five hits with six walks and nine strikeouts.
Gabby Gallaway was 1-for-2 with a run scored and an RBI for the Crimson Tide (26-11, 7-6 SEC). Reagan Dykes had a hit and an RBI and Demi Turner added an RBI.
Alabama left a runner stranded in the top of the first and Arkansas (31-9, 6-7 SEC) put its first two batters on base in the bottom half via a hit-by-pitch and single. After back-to-back strikeouts, a check-swing single from Kayla Green scored the runner from third to give the home team a 1-0 lead before a high popup in foul territory ended the inning.
A leadoff walk from senior Peyton Grantham and a one-out single from senior Sydney Booker put two on base for Alabama in the fourth. Grantham scored from second on an error and tie it at 1-1. A lightning delay followed that play as the game was halted for nearly an hour.
Upon resumption, Dykes hit a chopper to the Arkansas shortstop and Booker slid under the tag attempt at home to score on the RBI fielder’s choice and give Alabama a 2-1 lead. A wild pitch moved the two runners into scoring position and an RBI groundout to the right side made it a 3-1 game with two out before another groundout ended the inning with the Tide leading by two.
With one out in the top of the fifth, sophomore Bailey Hemphill rocketed a stand-up double off the wall in left-center and Caroline Hardy brought her home two batters later with a line-drive RBI single to make it 4-1. With two out and a runner on in the top of the sixth, Callaway blasted a two-run home run to stretch the lead to 6-1.
Game two of the weekend series is set for an 11 a.m. start on Saturday on ESPNU.
