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Razorback Softball Ends Oklahoma's 31-Game Home Streak in 3-2 Win

Arkansas softball's Tianna Bell homered and Payton Burnham dominated as the Hogs stunned top-ranked Sooners
Andy Hodges|
Arkansas Razorbacks Karlie Davison against Oklahoma.
Arkansas Razorbacks Karlie Davison against Oklahoma. | Arkansas Communications

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Arkansas Razorbacks

It's not a secret if you've been paying attention, but Arkansas softball coach Courtney Deifel has quietly built something special in Fayetteville.

Ranked No. 6/8 in the nation and sitting at 36-7 overall, the Hogs rolled into Norman, Okla., this weekend to face the most dominant program in college softball. What happened Saturday night at Love's Field told you everything you need to know about where the Razorbacks are.

Arkansas defeated No. 1 Oklahoma 3-2 in a tightly contested SEC showdown, snapping the Sooners' 31-game home winning streak — the longest active streak in the country entering the game — and evening the three-game series heading into Sunday's winner-take-all finale.

It wasn't flashy. It didn't have to be.

The Razorbacks did exactly what good teams do against elite competition. They got timely pitching, made the big plays in the field and waited for their moment at the plate.

"Any win right now is a big one for the program," Deifel said after the game. "It was really great in this environment just to see our team stay the course and trust themselves. It is a hostile environment that is very loud.

"They have a lot of energy. For our team to just lean into each other and find a way to get the win was big. Any win is really big, so it just feels really awesome."

Oklahoma entered the series with a 41-6 record and a 14-3 mark in SEC play, a program that's won national championships and produces future professional players seemingly every season.

The Sooners are the standard-bearer of college softball. And yet on Saturday night, it was the Razorbacks who walked off Love's Field with the victory.

The win wasn't just meaningful for the series. It marked the third time in program history that Arkansas has beaten a consensus No. 1-ranked opponent, joining victories over UCLA in February 2011 and Cal in May 2012.

It was also the program's fifth win over a top-ranked team in the NFCA Coaches Poll.

Bell, Burnham Deliver When It Counts

Sophomore pitcher Payton Burnham carried the Hogs through 5.1 innings, striking out three while allowing just two runs on four hits. Equally impressive was she didn't issue a single walk.

"She was in her element," Deifel said of Burnham. "She loves the big moment. She wants the ball, and she was locked in today. She was dialed, and I am really proud of her."

Arkansas didn't score first by accident. Kailey Wyckoff singled up the middle with two outs in the second inning, and Kennedy Miller followed with an RBI double down the right-field line to give the Hogs a 1-0 advantage.

Oklahoma answered in the bottom of the fifth when Sydney Emerling launched a solo home run to tie it at 1-1.

That's when Tianna Bell changed the game.

Leading off the sixth inning after Ella McDowell was hit by a pitch, Bell drove a two-run shot into the left-center field bleachers, her 14th home run of the season, to put Arkansas ahead 3-1.

It was the 46th home run of Bell's career and tied her with Dakota Kennedy for the team lead. Oklahoma got one back when freshman Kendall Wells hit a solo homer, but the Sooners couldn't complete the comeback.

Robyn Herron entered the circle in the sixth inning and retired five consecutive batters to close the game, earning her fourth save of the season.

She struck out Isabella Imerling, got a lineout from Reagan Johnson in center field and induced a ground out from Aliana Agbayani to end the contest.

Details That Define a Good Team

The numbers behind Saturday's win reveal a program that's been built the right way. Arkansas is 94-18 under Deifel when the pitching staff doesn't allow a walk.

The Razorbacks have won 21 of their last 22 games when issuing zero walks, dating back to April 6, 2023. Saturday's staff combined to hold Oklahoma scoreless on the walk sheet, a major factor in keeping the Sooners from building pressure.

Defensively, the Razorbacks were sharp in key moments. Shortstop Atalyia Rijo snared a line drive and turned a 6-4 double play in the second inning.

Wyckoff made a leaping catch at the wall in left field during the third inning. Reagan Johnson made a diving catch in right-center to take away extra bases after Oklahoma's first home run.

Arkansas used five different outfielders in the game in Johnson, Wyckoff, Ramsey Walker, Kyler Del Duca and Brinli Bain that are showing depth that often goes unrecognized outside of Fayetteville.

It also marked the 205th career start batting leadoff for Reagan Johnson, tying the program record set by Devon Wallace from 2012 to 2015.

Miller extended her career-high reached base streak to 11 consecutive games. Del Duca recorded her first collegiate start, batting eighth and playing left field.

Oklahoma's starting pitcher Miali Guachino was replaced in the third inning by LSU transfer Sydney Berzon, who settled in and held Arkansas scoreless through the fourth and seventh innings.

Berzon dropped to 5-2 on the season, allowing two runs on two hits with one strikeout across 4.2 innings.

Series on the Line Sunday

The Razorbacks head into Sunday's finale with momentum, confidence and a record that now includes three wins over consensus No. 1-ranked opponents.

First pitch is set for 1 p.m. and will be streamed on SEC Network+.

Deifel's program doesn't always get the spotlight it deserves, but wins like Saturday's go a long way toward changing that. At 36-7 overall and 11-6 in SEC play, this isn't a team that sneaks up on anybody anymore.

The Hogs showed up in one of the loudest, most hostile environments in college softball and handled it.

Sunday's game is as straightforward as it gets in a three-game series: one team goes home with a series win.

For Arkansas, it's a chance to do something the program has rarely done in Norman. For Oklahoma, it's a chance to reclaim home-field dominance in front of a crowd that's used to watching the Sooners win.

Either way, the Razorbacks proved Saturday they belong in that conversation.

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Andy Hodges
ANDY HODGES

Sports columnist, writer, former radio host and television host who has been expressing an opinion on sports in the media for over four decades. He has been at numerous media stops in Arkansas, Texas and Mississippi.

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