The Ole Miss softball team, 34-12 (11-6), continued their hot stretch in April, outlasting a gritty Southern Mississippi team by a score of 3-0 on Wednesday night.
The Rebels, who have gone 10-3 in the month of April, put a stop to Southern Mississippi’s 11-game win streak. With the shutout win, the Rebels wrap up non-conference play with a 23-6 record against opponents outside of the SEC.
It was the bottom half of the Rebels’ lineup that slugged Ole Miss to its 34th victory of the season. Batting eighth in the lineup, freshman outfielder Tate Whitley stroked a two-RBI triple to right-centerfield plating Amanda Roth and Autumn Gillespie to claim an early 2-0 lead.
Fellow freshman, Mikayala Allee, followed up with an RBI single sending Whitley home. It was all the Rebels would need to seal the win. Kaylee Horton went a perfect 3-3 from the plate while batting sixth for the Rebels.
It was a pitcher’s duel for the majority of the contest as the Rebels’ ace, Molly Jacobsen, started in the circle for Ole Miss. The junior tossed three innings of one-hit ball and kept the Golden Eagles off the board before being relieved by Ava Tillman. Tillman finished the job by pitching four innings with 2 strikeouts and only allowing 4 hits.
Southern Mississippi, 28-17 (11-7), countered with their ace, Abby Trahan, who falls to 14-9 on the season after the defeat. Trahan went the distance for the Golden Eagles hurling six innings and giving up 3 runs while striking out three.
Lacey Sumerlin (2-3) and Karley Nichols (2-2) were the only Golden Eagles to record multiple hits in the ballgame. Samantha Papp was the only other Golden Eagle to reach base as she went 1-2 and drew a walk.
With the win, Ole Miss moves to 11-6 in the SEC and claims sole possession of third place in the conference with just two series left to play. The Rebels will shift their focus to the team that sits right behind them in the standings, the No. 9 Tennessee Volunteers, who are 34-10 (11-7).
The Vols enter the matchup one game back in the loss column at 11-7 in conference play. The series has the potential to decide who will hold third place heading into the conference tournament if Ole Miss is able to record a three-game sweep this weekend, something they have failed to accomplish all season.
The weekend matchup will mark the last home series for the Rebels this season. Ole Miss has been fantastic at home all year, boasting a 19-3 record on the season.
The series against the Volunteers kicks off Friday at 6 p.m.
