RT Cantillo slides safely into second base through an Alcorn State player. / (Quentin Winstine)
BY ALLISON SLUSHER
ajslushe@go.olemiss.edu
GAME ONE: OLE MISS 8, ALCORN STATE 0
After a tough year in the Southeastern Conference, the Ole Miss softball team ended its season on a positive note with a doubleheader shutout of Alcorn State.
The Lady Rebels (24-31) jumped out early, scoring a run in each of the five innings on their way to an 8-0 win over the Lady Braves (12-36).
Junior pitcher Carly Hummel (13-16) started in the circle for the Rebels and picked up the the win, throwing a perfect three innings. In the fourth inning, sophomore Lauren Lindsey stepped in and gave up just one hit in the final two frames.
Junior center fielder R.T. Cantillo put the first run on the board for the Rebels in the bottom of the first when she stole home. Cantillo scored two more runs throughout the game and went 2-for-2 at the plate.
Ole Miss kept the runs coming when freshman shortstop Haley Culley stole home. Senior left fielder Brittany Broome hit a triple to send Cantillo home, giving the Rebels a 3-0 lead. Sophomore third baseman Allison Brown stood out at the plate hitting a two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth.
GAME TWO: OLE MISS 10, ALCORN STATE 1
Senior Erinn Jayjohn pitched her last game of college ball in the second game of the doubleheader. Jayjohn (3-3) gave up one run on four hits in four innings of work to lead Ole Miss (25-31) to a 10-1 win over Alcorn State (12-37).
“I’m just really proud of how hard they’ve worked and how hard they’ve tried to lead,” head coach Windy Thees said of the seniors playing their last game. “They’ve all got different roads ahead of them with their life, and I just want to wish them the best. They’re great kids.”
Offensively, the Rebels again came out swinging in the bottom of the first when sophomore third baseman Allison Brown hit an RBI triple. Brown then took home on an Alcorn State error to put the second run of the game on the board. Senior catcher Kelly Nolan scored for Ole Miss in the bottom of the second on freshman right fielder Bri Payne’s RBI double.
The Lady Rebels scored in each of the first four innings, including a six-run third that was highlighted by sophomore designated player Lauren Lindsey’s grand slam, which gave the Rebels a 9-1 lead.
“The pitcher was throwing me inside,” Lindsey said. “Inside’s my favorite pitch, and I don’t get it much, so I knew when I got it I had to take it.
“It was my first actual home run. Words can’t explain it. You’re just full of happiness, you know, in awe that you can actually do something like that, that God gives you that ability.”
