Grill Smashes Two Homers As Rebels Down MSU 8-3

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Mississippi State	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	4	2
Ole Miss	0	0	0	2	2	4	X	8	11	1

Mississippi State

Ole Miss

MADISON, Miss. - Junior All-American Lauren Grill smashed a pair of home runs to help lead the Ole Miss Rebels to an 8-3 victory over in-state rival Mississippi State at the M&F Bank Fastpitch Classic in front of a crowd of 1,137 at Liberty Park on Wednesday.

“This was really a team effort,” said Ole Miss head coach Missy Dickerson. “We got good pitching and some clutch hits. It was a great performance tonight against a tough team. We just need to keep this momentum going into this weekend against Kentucky.”

Grill crushed a two-run homer, her second of the night, over the batting cages in left in the bottom of the fifth to give the Rebels a 4-3 lead. It was her eighth long ball of the season and 34^th of her career. The two homers also tied a career high set in her freshman season against Kennesaw State. Grill finished the game 2-for-4 at the plate with two RBI and two runs scored.

The Rebels continued to add to their lead in the bottom of the sixth, as they strung together six straight two-out hits to break the game open with four runs in the inning. The onslaught began after left fielder Alyssa McGovern singled up the middle with two down and nobody on. She was followed by a single from first baseman Aly Presswood and an RBI single from freshman Corrine Doornberg. Courtnie Ghinaudo then hit a two-run triple into the corner in right and Lisa Conchos finished the inning with an RBI single down the line in right to give Ole Miss an 8-3 advantage.

Ghinaudo finished the game 2-for-3 at the plate with two RBI and two runs scored, while Doornberg singled twice in three at-bats and scored one run.

Mississippi State jumped on the scoreboard in the top of the second on a two-run double by designated player Courtney Moore and an RBI groundout from center fielder Brittany Gates to take a 3-0 lead.

The Rebels jumped back into the game with two runs in the fourth inning. Grill led off the frame with a long home run to straight away center. MSU starting pitcher Kelsey Nurnberg then hit Michelle May on her very next pitch to put a runner on first. Amanda Hutcheson entered to pinch run for May and moved to second on an Ashley Dowdy groundout. Catcher Amber Tramp then hit a ground ball to Bulldog second baseman Ali Bainbridge, who bobbled the ball and allowed Tramp to reach on the error. McGovern smashed a sac fly to center that scored Hutcheson and pulled the Rebels to within 3-2.

Catcher Chelsa Bramlett led off the game with a single through the right side for Mississippi State and then stole second. With one down in the frame, Bulldog left fielder Ka’ili Smith hit a fly ball deep to left, but McGovern reached up at the wall to save a home run. Starting pitcher Kelly Chandler then retired the next batter on a fly out to end the inning.

Chandler pitched the first 2.0 innings before being relieved by junior Becky Nye. She allowed three runs, one earned, in her 2.0 innings of work. Nye entered in the top of the third and retired nine straight batters before allowing a single to lead off the seventh inning. She struck out five, including fanning the side swinging in the fourth. She gave up only one hit and walked one batter as she picked up her 11^th victory of the season.

Next up, Ole Miss will travel to Lexington, Ky. this weekend to face the Kentucky Wildcats in a three-game series. The two teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at noon and conclude the series on Sunday at noon/

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Team Stats

Lauren Grill

Courtnie Ghinaudo

Corrine Doornberg

Lisa Conchos

The University of Mississippi Athletics