Arkansas kicks off SEC Tournament against Mississippi State
The Arkansas (41-10, 15-9 SEC) softball team begins postseason play in the SEC Tournament against Mississippi State (38-17, 9-15 SEC) on Wednesday.
The 7-seed Razorbacks face the 10-seed Bulldogs for the fourth time this season after rebounding from a Game 1 loss to take the series on the road in April.
Down 3-1 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning in the opening round Tuesday, Mississippi State had to rally to beat Kentucky and a bases-loaded error by the Wildcats sent the winning run across the plate for the Bulldog walk-off win.
Arkansas has only been shut out once in 51 games this season and it came in the opening matchup against Mississippi State, a 1-0 final, on April 10 behind Peja Goold’s complete 2-hit outing.
The Hogs will very likely see Goold, who only threw 63 pitches against Kentucky, either as a starter or reliever Thursday and Alyssa Faircloth (4.1 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 3 K in 8-0 loss to Arkansas in 5 innings on April 11) is also a strong possibility to be in the circle.
6-seed Texas A&M and 14-seed Auburn kick off the four-game slate Thursday at 10 a.m. CT with Arkansas/Mississippi State beginning approximately 35 minutes after that contest concludes. The winner of that will take on Alabama in the Quarterfinal Round on Thursday.
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Statistical comparison
| 2026 Stats | Arkansas | Mississippi State |
| Batting average | .343 | .277 |
| OPS | 1.015 | .830 |
| Runs per game | 7.7 | 4.8 |
| Home runs | 68 | 59 |
| Stolen bases (success rate) | 31 (94%) | 37 (86%) |
| ERA | 2.51 | 2.22 |
| Opponent batting average | .215 | .182 |
| Fielding percentage | .981 | .984 |
How To Watch
Who: 7-seed Arkansas Razorbacks vs. 10-seed Mississippi State Bulldogs
When: Wednesday, May 6 at (approx.) 1 p.m. CT
Where: John Cropp Stadium – Lexington, Kentucky
How to watch: SEC Network (Kevin Brown and Amanda Scarborough)
History In The SEC Tournament
Arkansas is 16-21 all-time in SEC Tournament play, highlighted by its 2022 title.
Last season, the Razorbacks posted a 2-1 record and reached the semifinals after taking down Georgia, 5-1 in the opener before downing Tennessee, 6-1, and falling to Oklahoma, 8-6. National Player of the Year Bri Ellis set a new Arkansas single-season home run and RBI record with a walk-off grand slam in the win over Georgia, while outfielder Raigan Kramer smashed a grand slam in the win over Tennessee.
Dakota Kennedy selected in AUSL Draft
Arkansas star outfielder Dakota Kennedy became the Razorbacks’ second consecutive AUSL Draft selection after being picked 16th overall in the third round by the Carolina Blaze on Monday.
She is the fourth player in program history to be drafted into the AUSL, joining 2025 No. 2 overall selection Bri Ellis, along with Chenise Delce (2023) and Danielle Gibson (2022).
Kennedy, a two-time All-American and Gold Glove winner, is batting .343 for the Hogs this season with 46 hits, including 10 doubles, a triple, 14 home runs, 43 runs batted in and 46 runs scored.
Players To Watch
ARKANSAS
LHP Robyn Herron
2026 stats: 1.86 ERA, 26 GP, 101.2 IP, 64 H, 27 ER, 38 BB, 158 K, .173 BAA
1B Tianna Bell
2026 stats: .372/.453/.699, 51 GP, 156 AB, 58 H, 9 2B, 14 HR, 54 RBI, 20 BB, 16 K
UTL Brinli Bain
2026 stats: .368/.520/.564, 51 GP, 133 AB, 49 H, 17 2B, 3 HR, 33 RBI, 41 BB, 18 K
3B Ella McDowell
2026 stats: .353/.440/.622, 156 AB, 55 H, 9 2B, 11 HR, 50 RBI, 22 BB, 13 K
LF Dakota Kennedy
2026 stats: .343/.441/.745, 45 GP, 134 AB, 46 H, 10 2B, 1 3B, 14 HR, 43 RBI, 21 BB, 21 K
MISSISSIPPI STATE
RHP Peja Goold
2026 stats: 2.12 ERA, 34 GP, 142 IP, 91 H, 43 ER, 45 BB, 169 K, .177 BAA
LHP Alyssa Faircloth
2026 stats: 2.47 ERA, 34 GP, 147.1 IP, 96 H, 52 ER, 50 BB, 233 K, .185 BAA
RF Kiarra Sells
2026 stats: .359/.497/.739, 55 GP, 142 AB, 51 H, 12 2B, 14 HR, 30 RBI, 35 BB, 26 K
3B Nadia Babary
2026 stats: .331/.395/.609, 55 GP, 169 AB, 56 H, 11 2B, 12 HR, 37 RBI, 17 BB, 18 K
SS Morgan Stiles
2026 stats: .314/.405/.402, 55 GP, 169 AB, 53 H, 9 2B, 2 HR, 20 RBI, 24 BB, 18 K
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