Ole Miss softball swept the No. 11 LSU Tigers this weekend in its first-ever sweep of a ranked SEC opponent.
Last Friday, the No. 22 Rebels kicked off the weekend with an afternoon 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. double-header. Ole Miss head coach Mike Smith called on right hander Kaitlin Lee to face off against LSU’s Carley Hoover on the mound.
Lee held the Tigers’ offense, ranked 19th in the nation, to just three hits and struck out five batters as the teams battled it out in front of a rowdy Oxford crowd. After seven innings of squandered scoring opportunities, including one during the third inning that left two Ole Miss runners stranded in scoring positions, the SEC rivals entered extra innings.
Senior Miranda Strother ultimately broke the deadlock in the bottom of the eighth with a walk-off solo shot to deep center field, earning the Rebels their fifth walk-off victory of the season. Lee threw her second consecutive complete game shutout and extended her complete game streak to seven, the second-longest streak of any pitcher in school history.
Immediately after the first game’s dramatic conclusion, the teams reset for take two. Pitching would prove decisive yet again as the Rebels squeezed out another 1-0 victory.
Paige McKinney runs home during a game earlier this season. McKinney scored the only run in Friday’s win over LSU after an overthrown ball to first base. (Photo By: Taylar Teel)
In the bottom of the third, Paige McKinney singled up the middle, and Courtney Syrett’s follow-up single pushed McKinney into scoring position. Junior slugger Elantra Cox stepped up to the plate and drove a hard ground ball at LSU’s short stop. An overthrown ball to first base allowed McKinney to score and gave the Rebels their decisive 1-0 lead.
Freshman Morgan Bruce got the start and held the Tigers to three hits in just over five innings of work. Before the pitching change, Bruce struck out 11 of the final 16 batters she faced. Lee relieved her in the sixth inning and kept LSU quiet for the rest of regulation play.
The wins on Friday granted Ole Miss its second series victory over LSU in school history and broke a five-year losing streak against the Tigers.
Saturday afternoon, the Rebels completed their sweep over LSU with a little late-game help from freshman Alyssa Gonzalez.
As the sixth-largest crowd in Ole Miss history filled the Ole Miss Softball Complex, Lee again took to the pitcher’s circle, holding the Tigers to just two runs over seven innings of work. The right hander completed her eighth consecutive game and added two tallies to her strikeout count.
The Rebels entered the bottom of the seventh in dire straights. Down 2-0 with one out, Grayce Majam singled to give Ole Miss a lifeline. Next up in the order, Dylinn Stancil pinch hit and an errant throw to second kept all runners safe. That’s when Gonzalez, a native of Chino, California, crushed a dinger down the third base line and into the left field stands, completing the weekend sweep.
The Rebels now turn their attention to a midweek clash with University of Tennessee Martin before a three-game away series at No. 3 Florida over the weekend.
