In the final road series of the season for Ole Miss Softball, the Arkansas Razorbacks came out on top before sending the Rebels packing to finish out their season at home.
The Rebels, whose road record is now finalized at 6-10 going into their final home series, were outscored by a total of eight points in the weekend’s games.
Despite losing the series, the Rebels were defensively successful in Saturday’s game, in which starting pitcher Kaitlin Lee held the Razorbacks to three runs. Lee, who was recently selected by the Aussie Spirit in the NPF Draft, was a bright spot for the Rebels and struck out five Razorbacks in six innings on the mound. Freshman Anna Borgen closed out the game and allowed only a single hit and no runs.
Although the Rebels played solid defense throughout, the team’s hitting was completely absent, resulting in a 3-0 shutout by Arkansas.
In the second game against Arkansas, the Rebels put up a good fight but couldn’t come back after the Razorbacks tallied a grand slam in the sixth inning. Although the Rebels’ hitting recovered after a stale Saturday effort, the team just couldn’t make up for the deficit after Arkansas’ grand slam. With this loss, Ole Miss posted its most hits this season in a losing effort, tallying nine total.
Sunday’s game was just the second time all season in which Ole Miss tallied at least one home run during a loss. Brittany Finney hit a homer in the top of the fifth inning, but the Rebel defense couldn’t stay tough, resulting in an 8-3 loss.
Originally, Ole Miss was supposed to face Alabama State on Wednesday night, but head coach Mike Smith canceled the match Monday. This was supposed to be the last non-conference game of the season for the Rebels. Now that the game will not take place, Ole Miss finishes out the season with a non-conference record of 23-5.
The Rebels’ final regular season series will take place Friday through Sunday at home against the University of Georgia Bulldogs, who have a 15-6 conference record and are tied for the No. 6 rank, according to the NCAA. The series will certainly be a challenge, especially amid other struggles that have been present over the season.
Ole Miss will play Friday at 6 p.m., Saturday at 4 p.m., and the series will conclude with Sunday’s game at 1 p.m. Graduating seniors will be honored pre-game on Saturday, which will serve as the team’s senior night before the conclusion of the season.
