The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Arkansas
Ole Miss and Arkansas Split Softball Doubleheader
3/21/2006 | Softball
March 21, 2006
Box Score
OXFORD, Miss. - A 2-1 Ole Miss victory in game one and a 4-3 Arkansas win in the nightcap resulted in a doubleheader split between the Rebels and Lady Razorbacks on Tuesday at the Ole Miss Softball Complex.
With the 1-1 day at the ballpark, Ole Miss moved to 12-21 on the season and 1-7 in Southeastern Conference play, while Arkansas stands at 14-14 overall and 3-5 in league action.
The Rebels rode the arms of junior right-hander Cathie Hacker and senior righty Dana Brill on their way to a 2-1 win in the first contest. With the victory, the Rebels clinched their fourth straight over the Lady Razorbacks.
Hacker started the game and gave up a run in the first inning on a Dayna Huckabee RBI single, giving Arkansas an early 1-0 lead. The Peoria, Ariz., native shut them down the rest of her outing, though, allowing just one more hit and no runs, while striking out four in three innings of work. It was her first action since March 8, as she has battled injuries most of the season.
"I thought Cathie did a great job out there after being sidelined for a while," said Ole Miss head coach Missy Dickerson, who saw her squad earn a victory in her 200th career game as a collegiate head coach. "We played well today for the most part, and it seemed like we might get two wins, but we were not able to close the deal in the second game."
Senior right-hander Dana Brill (6-7) earned the win in relief, going four innings and allowing no Lady Razorback hits, while also striking out four.
The Rebels tied it up in the bottom of the fifth. After Lauren Rowe reached on a single to left field, Michelle May sacrificed her to second and Brittany Warner walked. Erin Faircloth then singled up the middle to drive in Rowe for Faircloth's eighth RBI of the year and the Rebels' first run of the contest.
Ole Miss pulled ahead in the bottom of the sixth inning. Senior third baseman Rebecca McIntire led off the frame with a walk, was sacrificed to second by junior Mary Jane Callahan, advanced to third on a ground out by freshman shortstop Lisa Conchos, then scored on a double by Rowe. The play gave the Rebels what would be the game-winning run. It was Rowe's team-leading 17th RBI of the year.
Rowe led the Rebels at the plate in game one as she went 2-for-3 with the double, a run scored and an RBI.
Arkansas' Kayce Odle (2-3) took the loss in relief, as she gave up the Rebels' sixth-inning run, but only allowed one hit in 1 2/3 innings.
Game 2:
Game two was almost a reverse of the first contest.
The Rebels jumped on the scoreboard first in the nightcap with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. Rowe again produced the RBI hit with a two-run triple that plated Conchos and Callahan. They were Rowe's 18th and 19th RBI.
Two runs by Arkansas in the third tied the score at 2-2, and it remained that way until the bottom of the sixth, when Warner singled up the middle and a diving try by the Lady `Back second baseman could not prevent Callahan from scoring as the Rebels took a 3-2 lead.
Brill (6-8) had breezed through her first three innings of work after relieving Callahan in the fourth inning. She ran into trouble in the Arkansas half of the seventh, though, when the Lady Razorbacks loaded the bases with no outs.
Brill looked as though she may get out of the near impossible jam when she struck out the next two batters. But then Arkansas' leading hitter, Blaire Perry, singled up the middle just out of the reach of Conchos to plate two runs and give Arkansas a 4-3 lead.
The Rebels could not get the bats going in the bottom of the seventh, and fell to Arkansas for the first time in the last five games.
Katy Henry pitched a complete game for the Lady `Backs, scattering seven hits and allowing three runs (two earned), while she struck out 10 Rebels.
The two teams will square off for the rubber match on Wednesday at 5 p.m. The team that wins will clinch its first SEC series victory of the 2006 campaign.
