If you stayed awake long enough to watch the entirety of Arkansas’ quarterfinal game with Ole Miss in the SEC Softball Tournament, you were fortunate to see a historical performance from the Razorbacks.
[autotag]Linnie Malkin[/autotag] hit her program-best 48th career home run, while [autotag]Mary Haff[/autotag] tied an Arkansas record by recording her 26th career shutout in the Razorbacks win over Ole Miss, 3-0.
Linnie Malkin broke [autotag]Devon Wallace[/autotag]’s home run record to extend Arkansas’ lead to 2-0 in the 2nd inning on a solo home run to lead off the inning. For Malkin, that was her 20th home run of the season. At the plate in 2022, Malkin has exceeded career highs in home runs (20), RBI (63), and average (.408).
Senior [autotag]Danielle Gibson[/autotag] is not far behind Malkin in career home runs as a Razorback. Gibson, counting her one season at Arizona State, has hit 58 career home runs, hitting 46 of those during her time at Arkansas.
Haff had a great night in the circle. In a complete-game effort, Haff struck out nine batters and allowed just five hits in the win. In addition to tying the school record in shutouts, she recorded her 800th strikeout, which has happened only once before in program history. Both marks were first made by [autotag]Heather Schlichtman[/autotag], who played at Arkansas from 2001-04.
Joining Malkin in hitting a home run was [autotag]Taylor Ellsworth[/autotag] in the 5th inning. Her 15th long ball of the year gave Arkansas the 3-0 lead. The Razorbacks got on the board in the first inning on a fielding error, allowing [autotag]KB Sides[/autotag] to run across the plate.
Arkansas will now face the SEC Tournament host, Florida, on Friday at 4:30 p.m. CDT. The game can be seen on SEC Network.
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