OXFORD, Miss. After losing a close three-game series to the No. 5 Florida Gators in the conference-opening weekend, the Ole Miss Rebels (13-8, 0-3 SEC) will play host to the South Alabama Jaguars on Tuesday before traveling to square off against in-state foe Southern Miss on Wednesday.
The Rebels will host South Alabama (9-9) on Tuesday at the Ole Miss Softball Complex for one game beginning at 3 p.m. The Jaguars are led by junior Tara Donaldson, a transfer from Auburn, who is batting a team-high .385 on the season. Sophomore pitcher Beth Pilgrim leads the team with a 5-3 record and a 1.88 ERA. She has struck out 72 batters in 70.2 innings. South Alabama is only in its second year of existence after head coach Becky Clark started the program in 2007. In its first season South Alabama posted a 36-23 record.
Ole Miss will travel to Hattiesburg on Wednesday to face in-state foe Southern Miss (12-12, 1-2 CUSA) for a single game beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the USM Softball Complex. The Rebels hold a 9-7 advantage all-time over the Eagles and have won six of the last seven meetings, including two wins last season. Southern Miss is led by senior Jennifer Fox, who is batting a team-high .345 and is tied for the team lead with two home runs. Junior Samantha Davis leads the Eagles with a 4-4 record and 2.02 ERA with 36 strikeouts in 55.1 innings.
“We had a hard-fought series against Florida and the girls played very hard,” said Ole Miss head coach Missy Dickerson. “Now we return home and need to take care of business.”
Sophomore Alise Doubt leads the Rebels with a .346 batting average, while shortstop Ashley Dowdy is close behind with a .345 average. Sophomore Lauren Grill leads the team with four home runs and 18 RBI. Freshman Lindsey Perry has a team-low 1.20 ERA and senior Tara Willitt leads the squad with five victories.
The Rebels will host Auburn (20-3) this weekend in the SEC home opener. Ole Miss lost their first three conference games, while Auburn has not played a conference game. The Rebels won two-of-three last year against the Tigers in Auburn. Junior Taryn Gray leads the Tigers with a .362 batting average on the season. Pitcher Lauren Schmalz has a league-leading 0.48 ERA. The Rebels and Tigers will play a twin bill on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. and conclude the series on Sunday at 1 p.m.
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