Arkansas’ Bri Ellis Crushed a Game-Winning Grand Slam on Only Strike She Was Thrown

Georgia didn't stand a chance against the best hitter in the nation.
Bri Ellis against Tennessee in the SEC tournament.
Bri Ellis against Tennessee in the SEC tournament. / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Bri Ellis only needs one pitch. Georgia found that out the hard way this week when the Bulldogs faced the Arkansas Razorbacks in the SEC softball tournament.

Georgia and Arkansas were tied 1-1 in the 7th inning when the Razorbacks loaded the bases with one out. That's when Bri Ellis came to the plate, having walked twice on four pitches and been hit by a pitch earlier in the game. The first pitch from Georgia's Randi Roelling was a ball. The second was hit over the wall for a game-winning grand slam.

Think about that. Ellis gets just one pitch to hit in the entire game and she only gets that pitch because the bases are loaded and her team has the winning run on third ... and she hits that one pitch over the fence for a game-winning grand slam? Who exactly does she think she is, Barry Bonds or something?

Well, actually...

Ellis actually might be more dangerous at the plate than Bonds was during his historic 2001 MVP season. Bonds hit .370/.582/.799 in 2001 with an OPS of 1.381 that year.

Ellis is hitting .492/.663/1.229 with an OPS of 1.892.

The highest single-season OPS in baseball history is Josh Gibson's 1.474.

In 118 at bats this season, Ellis has hit 26 home runs, nine doubles and struck out 13 times. Intentionally walking in the winning run must have at least crossed Georgia's mind.


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Stephen Douglas
STEPHEN DOUGLAS

Stephen Douglas is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in media since 2008 and now casts a wide net with coverage across all sports. Douglas spent more than a decade with The Big Lead and previously wrote for Uproxx and The Sporting News. He has three children, two degrees and one now unverified Twitter account.