March 30, 2003
Starkville, Miss. – The University of Kentucky softball team was unable to hold onto a 3-2 lead as they gave up four runs in the sixth to Mississippi State and fell 6-3. It was the 11th-straight loss by the Wildcats who fall to 9-24 overall and 1-14 in the SEC.
The Bulldogs (27-14, 7-8) took the lead in the bottom of the second when a bloop single by Brooke Best scored Lindsay Nelson who had doubled earlier in the inning.
Kentucky took the lead right back in the top of the third. Following walks to junior Crystalie Wolfe and senior Amanda Brown, senior Nikki Jones hit a shot over the right fielder’s head. The double scored both base runners. Jones advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by freshman Lori Melchi and came home on a groundout by senior Lyndsey Angus.
The lead was cut to one in the bottom of the third when the Bulldogs’ Iyhia McMichael extended her hitting streak to 21 games with a double that scored Jennifer Nelson.
The score remained 3-2 for two and a half innings when MSU took the lead back in the bottom of the sixth. A double to right center by Kelly Williams scored Jennifer Jessup who had reached on Kentucky’s third error of the game. Williams advanced to third on a fly ball and scored on a wild pitch. Three straight singles meant two more runs for MSU as they took the 6-3 lead.
Brown singled in the top of the seventh with one out but a ground out and a strikeout ended the game for the Cats.
The Wildcats will stray from SEC play on Wednesday as they host in-state opponent Eastern Kentucky in a mid-week doubleheader on Wednesday, April 2. The first game is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET. They will then play host to South Carolina in a three-game series on April 5-6.
Mississippi State 6, Kentucky 3 R H EKentucky 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 3 5 3Miss. State 0 1 1 0 0 4 X 6 9 0
-UK-
