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The University of Mississippi Athletics
No. 22 Rebel Softball Set for Ole Miss Classic
3/8/2017 | Softball
Games 20-23
Dates: March 9-12, 2017
Opponents: Bowling Green, Eastern Kentucky, Oklahoma State, Jackson State
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Venue: Ole Miss Softball Complex (1,000)
TV: SEC Network +
Will Kollmeyer/Seth Austin (play-by-play)
Brittany McKinney (analyst)
Online: WatchESPN.com
Mobile: ESPN app
Tournament Central: OleMissSports.comTwitter Updates: @OleMissSoftball
Ole Miss Tournament Schedule & Game Coverage
Thursday, March 9
6 p.m.: Bowling Green vs. Ole Miss | | Watch
Friday, March 10
5:30 p.m.: Eastern Kentucky vs. Ole Miss | | Watch
Saturday, March 11
5:30 p.m.: Oklahoma State vs. Ole Miss | | Watch
Sunday, March 12
2 p.m.: Jackson State vs. Ole Miss | | Watch
Series History
Bowling Green: Ole Miss leads 2-0
Last Meeting: Feb. 21, 2014
Ole Miss 2, Bowling Green 0
Oxford, Miss.
Eastern Kentucky: Never met
Oklahoma State: Oklahoma State leads 6-1
Last Meeting: March 25, 2016
Oklahoma State 8, Ole Miss 6
Stillwater, Okla.
Jackson State: Ole Miss leads 6-1
Last Meeting: Feb. 17, 2013
Ole Miss 10, Jackson State 2
Mobile, Ala.
PROMOTIONS (FREE admission to all Ole Miss Softball home games)
Thursday, March 9
- $1 Hot Dogs
LEADING OFF
- Riding a school record 14-game win streak, Ole Miss hosts its second-straight home tournament this weekend.
- The Rebels welcome a MAC school (Bowling Green), another OVC team (Eastern Kentucky), a Big 12 opponent (Oklahoma State), and Jackson State (SWAC) to Oxford for the four day, 12-game tournament.
- Ole Miss is off to its best start in school history for the second-straight year, topping last season's 16-3 start through 19 games.
- The Rebels' 14-game win streak ranks second in the SEC and fourth in the NCAA.
- Ole Miss is coming off a 4-0 sweep in the Red & Blue Classic last weekend, where the Rebels claimed the four victories by a combined score of 30-12 with two shutouts.
- A week after breaking into both national polls for the first time ever, the Rebels moved up to No. 22 in both polls this week.
- As a team the Rebels rank top-15 in the NCAA in five major offensive categories (.372 AVG, 5th), (.463 OBP, 3rd), (8.42 runs/game, 3rd), (.554 SLG, 9th), (2.37 steals/game, 11th).
- Ole Miss has posted 31 runs in the first inning alone this season, and is 10-0 when scoring in the first, and 15-0 when scoring first. The Rebels have put away numerous opponents early, scoring 80 percent of their runs in innings 1-4.
- Defensively, Ole Miss has been sharp as well, ranking seventh in the country in double plays per game (0.63), and 18th nationally in fielding percentage (.977).
- Outside 11 runs surrendered to No. 4 Oklahoma, the pitching staff has tallied 13 games with two earned runs or less allowed, eight of which were shutouts.
SCOUTING REPORT
The Falcons of Bowling Green carry a 9-10 record thus far. Led by second-year head coach Sarah Willis, BG went 3-2 in Louisville's Red & Black Tournament last weekend. Prior to that, they dropped five straight at the Mardi Gras Invitational, and picked up a pair of wins a week prior at the Charlotte First Pitch Classic. Offensively, the team is hitting .286 led by Chelsea Raker's .463 clip and 21 RBI. In the circle, four pitchers have combined for a 3.44 team ERA, led by Meredith Miller's 4-1 record and 2.60 ERA. Brooke Parker has thrown the second-most innings (35.2) and is 1-3 with a 3.14 ERA, while Kiley Sosby is 3-3 also with a 3.14 ERA in 29 innings.
Eastern Kentucky heads into the Ole Miss Classic at 6-10 on the year, coming off a midweek tilt with Miami (OH), and three-straight weekends on the road. After dropping their first six games, the Colonels battled back for three wins in the Winthrop Invitational, before going 3-2 at the Eagle Classic in Statesboro last weekend. With a .273 team average, Rachel Minogue leads the charge with a .467 clip and 16 RBI. Johnkyria Alston has a team high 17 RBI off five home runs. Defensively, the Colonels have struggled with 33 errors through 16 games, as 11 different players have committed an error. In the circle, Molly Paulick has thrown the most innings, 46.2, and is 3-4 with a 1.05 ERA in six starts. Alex Sallberg has a 1.96 ERA and is 1-3.
A team that received votes early on in the polls, Oklahoma State is 13-9 thus far. The Cowgirls went 4-1 in their home tournament last weekend, finished 3-2 at the Mary Nutter Classic, and dropped three contests in Clearwater, Florida the week prior. Up against some tough competition at the LSU Tiger Classic, the Cowgirls went 3-2, topping McNeese State twice, and Penn State. Vanessa Shippy's .419 average leads the team, while Taylor Lynch has a team high 16 RBI. With a team average of .308, OSU has six players with double digit RBI, as six are hitting above .300. The pitching staff, with a 4.63 team ERA, is led by Brandi Needham's six wins and 3.10 ERA, while Logan Simunek is 4-1 with a 3.54 ERA.
Jackson State enters the weekend 6-11 overall cominff off three straight wins over NAIA opponents. With a .303 team average, Victoria Nelson leads the way with a .408 clip. Denisha Knight has a team-best 13 RBI, while the pitching staff has a 9.32 ERA. Sybil Lozano leads the team with a 3-2 record and 7.90 ERA.
TOURNAMENT CONNECTIONS
- Bowling Green junior C Laine Simmons and Ole Miss senior OF Miranda Strother both hail from Suwanee, Georgia. Simmons graduated from Collins Hill HS, while Strother attended North Gwinnett HS.
- Eastern Kentucky sophomore 1B and Ole Miss senior 1B Dakota Matiko are both originally from Corona, California, and both graduated from Santiago HS.
- Eastern Kentucky sophomore 2B/3B Brooke Harrison and Ole Miss freshmen Allison Stark and Gabby Alvarez all hail from Riverside, California, and were high school teammates at Martin Luther King, Jr. HS.
- Jackson State freshman OF Cheyenne Aplon is also originally from Riverside, California.
RAPID REBS
Ole Miss finished the 2016 season with 126 steals, a school record, good enough for seventh in the NCAA and second in the SEC. Again in 2017, the Rebels have been aggressive on the base paths, ranking 11th nationally in steals per game (2.37), and 12th overall in steals (45). In Ole Miss' 6-0 win over Austin Peay on March 4, the Rebels stole 10 bases, tying the school record set back on March 5, 2004 against LIU Brooklyn.
Rank School SB CS SB/G
1. Marshall 81 8 4.50
2. UT Martin 65 7 3.61
3. Akron 57 16 3.17
4. Stetson 59 10 3.11
5. Utah State 39 4 2.44
6. Florida 50 7 2.38
7. Ole Miss 45 5 2.37
FROM ONE (LINEUP) EXTREME TO ANOTHER
In the 2016 regular season, the Rebels had the same lineup and batting order only five times, totaling 52 different lineup combinations through 57 games. Now a year later, Ole Miss has settled on what looks to be a consistent starting nine. Through 19 games, the Rebels have only had six different starting lineups, with five different players starting all 19 thus far. See page 36 for a breakdown of the Rebels' batting order.
RUNS, RUNS, AND MORE RUNS
There has been no shortage of runs this season, as the Rebel offense ranks third in the country in scoring average at 8.42 runs per game. Ole Miss scored eight runs in nine-straight games from Feb. 12-25, the longest streak in school history. Overall, the Rebels have scored at least eight runs in all but six contests, and totaled double-digit run totals in seven games. See below for a chart detailing the NCAA's top five scoring offenses.
Rank Team Games Runs Per Game
1. Drexel 2 26 13.0
2. Louisiana-Lafayette 21 182 8.67
3. Ole Miss 19 160 8.42
4. Southern 13 108 8.31
5. Arkansas 20 164 8.20
NATIONALLY-RANKED REBELS
For the first time in school history, Ole Miss has broken into the top 25 of both national polls, checking in at No. 23 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball, and at No. 25 in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. The Rebels received votes off and on during the 2016 season, and finished ranked No. 24 in the final ESPN.com/USA Softball poll. After receiving votes in both polls all of this season, Ole Miss officially made its way into the regular season rankings for the first time.
COX DELIVERS WALK-OFF OVER NICHOLLS STATE
For the second time in three days, Ole Miss recorded a walk-off win, the second over Nicholls State, 6-5. The Colonels jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the third and led by as much as 5-1 in the fifth, but a late rally ended with five Rebel runs over the final three innings. Ole Miss and Nicholls State were locked at 5-5 entering the home half of the seventh, when senior Miranda Strother drew a walk, then stole second (off her sister Moriah behind the plate). Senior Courtney Syrett then walked, and after an out at the plate, freshman Dylinn Stancil also walked, before junior Elantra Cox rolled a single up the middle securing the come-from-behind victory.
REBELS GO UNDEFEATED IN RED & BLUE CLASSIC FOR SECOND-STRAIGHT YEAR
For the second consecutive year, Ole Miss went undefeated in the Red & Blue Classic. The Rebels have now gone undefeated five times in the tournament (2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017).
STROTHER BREAKS OLE MISS TRIPLES RECORD
Senior Miranda Strother entered her senior season tied for second all-time in school history with seven triples, just one off tying Heather Swinney's record from 1997-2000. Now, 19 games later, Strother has already surpassed that mark, and becomes the only Rebel with double digit triples in a career. She hit a triple in three-straight games in the Red & Blue Classic vs. Mississippi Valley State, Austin Peay and Nicholls State.
REBELS OFF TO BEST START IN SCHOOL HISTORY ... AGAIN
For the second-straight year, Ole Miss is off to a school record start with a 17-2 mark through 19 games, topping last season's 16-3 start through 19 contests. In 2016, Ole Miss reached the 17-win mark on March 5, and that was the case again this season. The 2016 team took a 20-3 record into SEC play, and this year's squad has five more games before SEC play begins next weekend, March 17-19, vs. No. 5 Texas A&M.
14 WINS ... AND COUNTING
Ole Miss has already surpassed its school record for consecutive wins, topping last year's 12-game win streak. Winners of 14 straight, the Rebels rank second in the SEC and fourth nationally, behind only two undefeated teams (Oregon, 19-0; Minnesota, 18-0), and one SEC foe (Mississippi State, 15 straight).
OLE MISS NEARING MILESTONE WIN MARK
With two straight record-breaking seasons in terms of win totals, Ole Miss has inched ever closer to the 500-win mark as a program, now only two away from the milestone. In the last six years alone, the Rebels have tallied 32 percent of the current 498 wins, including 88 in the last three years during head coach Mike Smith's tenure.
ON DECK
Following its final regular season tournament this weekend, Ole Miss will host Southeastern Louisiana next Wednesday, March 15, at 6 p.m. in Oxford.
For all Ole Miss Softball news and information, go to OleMissSports.com and follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissSoftball, on Facebook at Ole Miss Softball and on Instagram at Instagram.com/olemisssoftball. Fans can also follow head coach Mike Smith on Twitter at @msmithsb16. Additionally fans can get a behind the scenes look at Ole Miss Athletics on Snapchat under the handle, @WeAreOleMiss.
