HATTIESBURG — Alexis Silkwood helped the Mississippi State softball team close a six-game road trip in styles Wednesday night.
The sophomore left-hander threw a six-inning no-hitter in a 10-0 win in Game 1 before MSU rallied for a 12-6 victory in the nightcap to sweep Southern Mississippi at the Southern Miss Softball Complex.
“It’s always nice to get two road wins,” MSU coach Vann Stuedeman said. “The MSU Hattiesburg Alumni Chapter greeted the bus as we rolled in. It was nice to see so much maroon in the stands. Mackenzie Toler set the tone early with a one-out, two-run home run in the top of the first. Alexis Silkwood had a great outing throwing a six-inning no-hitter. We had a ton of offense with 11 hits, 10 runs, seven walks, and three hit by pitches in game two. It will be nice to be home this weekend after a six-game road stretch.”
Silkwood (17-6) walked three and struck out eight. The no-hitter was the first of her career and the 16th in the MSU record books. It marked the first no-hitter for a MSU pitcher since Stephanie Becker did it against Ole Miss on April 14, 2013.
Shelbee Rodgers (4-6) suffered the loss. She allowed seven runs on seven hits in three innings. MSU’s junior Kayla Winkfield was 3-for-3.
Toler’s two-run shot deep to right center also scored senior Julia Echols to set the stage for the Bulldogs.
In Game 2, MSU (24-8) trailed 2-1 in the fourth but scored six runs to take the lead for good. The Bulldogs used small ball with singles, walks, and hit batters to take the lead. MSU had only two hits in the inning.
With junior Loryn Nichols on second base after a walk and a steal, Echols launched a ball over the center-field wall to put her side ahead 9-3. USM answered with their own two-run inning to bring the score to 9-5 after five.
Winkfield continued her hot day at the plate in the sixth with a RBI single up the middle to score Silkwood to make it 10-5.
USM added a run in the sixth, but Amanda Ivy laced a two-run bomb off the scoreboard in left-center field to account for the final margin.
Freshman Cassady Knudsen pitched two innings in relief for the win.
Freshman Holly Ward (6-1) allowed four earned runs, five total, on seven hits in five innings for the win. She also struck out two.
MSU will play host to No. 2 Florida (30-3, 3-3 Southeastern Conference) at 5:30 p.m. Friday in Game 1 of a three-game weekend series. The game will air on SEC Network+ through WatchESPN.com and the “Watch ESPN” app.
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