Ole Miss softball returns to action this evening as they travel down to Hattiesburg to take on the Southern Miss Golden Eagles. First pitch is slated for 6 p.m.
Ole Miss comes in with a record of 17-14 on the season and salvaging one game against No. 10 Auburn. The Tigers took the first two games of the series but the Rebels got the last laugh, coming out victorious in the final game thanks to Amanda Roth’s eighth-inning walk-off home run.
Junior center fielder Kylan Becker became the first Rebel in 2018 to register four hits in a game Sunday against Auburn. Becker’s 4-for-4 showing at the plate matched her career-high for hits in a game. Her teammate Brittany Finney swung a hot bat in the final two games of the series, going 4-for-7 with a double.
Kaitlin Lee dominated in the circle as she threw all eight innings Sunday against a dangerous Auburn lineup, allowing just one earned run on six hits. It was the 34th win and complete game of Lee’s Rebel career, ranking fifth and seventh, respectively, in school history.
Southern Miss got off to a 3-1 start at the beginning of the season but has since struggled now with a 14-25 overall record, starting off C-USA play at 4-8. The majority of those struggles, though, have been on the road.
The Golden Eagles come into tonight’s game batting .264 as a team with 41 doubles, eight triples and 10 long balls. USM has been aggressive on the bases, successfully stealing on 52-of-66 attempts. Southern Miss is led offensively by freshman outfielder Destini Brown, who is batting .354 with a team-high 20 runs scored and 13 RBIs, going 13-for-15 on stolen base attempts. Fellow freshman Karley Nichols is next in line with a .339 average, with all 20 of her hits going for singles. Senior Ciarra Cherry is the only other USM player batting over .300 at .330. She is tied with Brown for the team lead with 20 runs and has shown the ability to hit for extra bases with five doubles, a triple, three homers and 18 RBIs.
In the circle, senior Samantha Robles leads the team with 107.2 innings, posting a 4.29 ERA with 71 strikeouts to 34 walks. Robles threw a complete-game against the Rebels in USM’s 5-2 win in Oxford, allowing two runs on just six hits. Senior Kim Crowson has tossed 80.0 frames on the rubber, posting a 3.33 ERA. Crowson has been wild at times, surrendering 10 wild pitches and hitting five batters. Senior Jillian Johnson is the only other Golden Eagle with more than 10 innings of work, registering a 3.66 ERA with 22 strikeouts and 28 walks in her 57.1 innings.
The Rebels and the Golden Eagles have met in between the chalk once this season with USM winning 5-2 in the Ole Miss Classic. Despite that loss, Ole Miss still a 20-12 advantage in the all-time series.
Fans can watch every pitch on CUSA-TV. The service requires a paid subscription, with a 24-hour pass costing $6.95.
Adam Brown is the sports editor of HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at adam.brown@hottytoddy.com.
