The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Open Fall Practice Sunday
9/26/2014 | Softball
OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss softball team will hit the diamond as a full unit for the first time in the Mike Smith era when the squad begins fall practice at the Ole Miss Softball Complex on Sunday in preparation for the 2015 season.
The Rebels have been working with the coaching staff in individual drills since the beginning of the semester, but take to the field for the first time as a squad this weekend which has the coaching staff excited as it begins building for the upcoming campaign.
"We're looking forward to getting the opportunity to work the entire team - getting everyone together and putting in our system," Smith said. "It will be great to get to start putting in full team defenses and progress from individual drills. It will be nice to get everyone together and start putting in our system. We have some work to do and will have four full team practices before we play our first fall game, but we're looking forward to getting everyone on the same page and putting all the individual work together."
Ole Miss returns 13 letter winners from a year ago and welcomes nine new players to the squad as the Rebels begin fall practice. Among those returning letter winners are four pitchers and 10 position players along with nine position players in the freshman class.
Allison Brown is one of three seniors returning to the squad and is the top returning hitter from a year ago. The infielder hit at a .338 clip after starting all 50 games played last season with 12 doubles and four home runs. She is joined by pitcher Lauren Lindsey, who posted a 1-1 record with a 2.33 ERA last season, and Jamie Morgan who hit at a .269 clip in her first season with the Rebels after transferring into the program and played in 52 of 53 games on the season.
Practice begins on Sunday and will continue through the coming week before Ole Miss hosts its first fall games with a doubleheader against Northwest Mississippi Community College beginning at 4 p.m. on Friday afternoon. The Rebels will then continue practices before hosting a second weekend of fall games on Saturday, Oct. 11 with games against Tennessee Tech and Jones Community College beginning at 2:30 p.m.
The Rebels will then travel to face Memphis in a doubleheader that Sunday, Oct. 12, before closing out the fall slate of games at home against Wallace State on Tuesday, Oct. 21 with a doubleheader that begins at 5 p.m.
