Softball Welcomes Top-Ranked Lady Vols Wednesday

OXFORD, Miss. The Ole Miss softball team continues Southeastern Conference play on Wednesday as the Rebels host the nation’s top-ranked team in the Tennessee Lady Volunteers. The doubleheader is slated to begin at 5 p.m. at the Ole Miss Softball Complex.

Rebel Sports Marketing is offering a “Spring Break Special” in which kids get in free with the purchase of an adult ticket for the doubleheader.

The matchup with Tennessee marks Ole Miss’ first ever game against the No. 1 team in the country. The Rebels have previously faced off against the nation’s second-ranked squad on three occasions, including a 2-1 loss to Arizona State in the Palm Springs Classic earlier this year.

The Rebels enter the contests with a 9-15 overall record and 1-2 mark in league play after winning game one of last weekend’s three-game series 2-1 against No. 9 LSU before falling in the second game 2-0 in extra innings and dropping the series finale by a 4-0 count.

Tennessee is 24-1 overall and 2-1 in conference action. The Lady Vols’ 23-game winning streak to start the year came to an end on Saturday with a 4-0 loss at No. 19 Florida.

The Lady Vols are hitting .334 as a team with four players batting over .400. The squad has hit 21 home runs and 27 doubles, while also ranking third in the SEC with 59 stolen bases. But Tennessee is probably best known for its All-American left-handed pitcher Monica Abbott, who enters the week 18-0 with a 0.06 ERA, having given up just one earned run in 112.1 innings pitched, with an astounding 264 strikeouts. She has limited opponents to a .045 batting average while not giving up an extra-base hit all season.

“We’ll be facing the best pitcher in the country right now bar-none,” said Ole Miss head coach Missy Dickerson. “We will just have to be the best we can be at the plate when we are facing her. We’ve worked hard in practice, and we’ll need that to carry over into the games.”

Ole Miss earned its first win over a ranked opponent this season with its 2-1 victory over LSU on Saturday. The Rebels have played one of the nation’s toughest schedules, having already played nine games against ranked opponents and several more against highly regarded programs.

“We’ve held our own against some of the best teams in the country,” Dickerson said. “It’s time to show that we’re an improved team. I told our girls Sunday that when we come to play and put together all three aspects of the game (hitting, pitching, defense), we will be hard-pressed to be beaten. We had two out of three against LSU, but we didn’t hit. Some of it was Dani Hofer, who is a good pitcher, but some of it was a lack of aggression and discipline on our part. If we are not disciplined on (Abbott’s) rise ball, we will be in trouble.”

Senior team captain Mary Jane Callahan has led the Rebel charge in the pitcher’s circle and at the plate. She boasts a 6-5 record and a team-best 1.12 ERA as a pitcher, while she leads the club with a .355 batting average and 14 RBI as a hitter. Callahan’s next victory will make her the school’s all-time winningest pitcher. She is currently tied with Amanda Fine (1997-99) with 40 career wins.

Freshman third baseman Lauren Grill is the team’s top power threat, as she ranks second in the SEC with seven home runs and ninth with a .712 slugging percentage. The team has already hit 18 home runs this year after launching 10 in 60 total games in 2006.

Ole Miss will look to improve upon its 3-22 all-time mark against Tennessee. The Rebels last defeated the Lady Vols in 2003.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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