The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
JMU
Softball Travels To Orlando For Knights Classic
2/24/2022 | Softball
Rebels Close Out 16 Game Road Trip to Open Season
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KNIGHTS CLASSIC Feb. 25-27 Orlando, Fla. UCF Softball Complex |
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| Ole Miss Notes (PDF) • JMU Notes (PDF) • SEC (PDF) |
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| Friday, Feb. 25 James Madison | UCF 11 a.m. | 5 p.m. |
Saturday, Feb. 26 DePaul 10 a.m. |
Sunday, Feb. 27 DePaul | Oakland 8 a.m. | 10 a.m. |
| Game One: Live Stats Game Two: Live Stats | Watch |
Live Stats |
Game One: Live Stats Game Two: Live Stats |
LEADING OFF
• After pushing back its home opener due to weather, Ole Miss turns its attention to the Knights Classic in Orlando, Florida. The Rebels are scheduled to play five games, taking on James Madison, Depaul, Oakland and the host UCF. It will continue Ole Miss' 16 game road trip to start the 2022 season.
•The Rebels closed out their 4-1 weekend at the Troy Inviational with a 8-7 victory over the Trojans.
• Ole Miss returns to Oxford next week to host Southeastern Missouri in the home-opener on March 2 at 6 p.m.
• Outfielder Tate Whitley had a big weekend at the Troy Invitational, going 11-of-17 (.647) with eight runs scored and five batted in. The senior ranks fifth in program history with a .342 career batting average.
• Right-hand pitcher Savannah Diederich has looked sharp in the circle for the Rebels this season. She is coming off a 14 strikeout game against Eastern Kentucky this past weekend, one shy of her career high.
• Catcher KK Esparza is off to a hot start in her collegiate career. She's tallied 10 hits, including her first career home run and six RBIs through the first 11 games. The Friendswood, Texas, native currently ranks fifth in the SEC among freshmen with a .400 batting average.
• One of the Rebels' top offensive weapons in Abbey Latham is back for an extra season in Oxford. The fifth year senior currently ranks inside the top five in program history in doubles (36), home runs (30), RBIs (130) and slugging percentage (.534).
ONE LAST RIDE
In 2022, four Rebels will be exercising their fifth season of eligibility as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Three returners in Abbey Latham, Anna Borgen and Sydney Gutierrez, along with Georgia Tech transfer Bre Roper are set to cap off their collegiate careers in Ole Miss uniforms.
HOTTY TODDY TATE
Senior Tate Whitley has been a sparkplug for the Ole Miss offense this season. Batting in the leadoff spot, Whitley went 11-of-17 (.647) at the Troy Invitational, scoring eight runs and tallying five RBIs. She recorded multiple hits in four of the Rebels' five contests and has now collected a hit in each of her last six games and reached base in nine straight. The Angleton, Texas, native already has 17 hits on the year, tied for the second-most in the SEC and ninth-most in the nation, while batting a hot .500.
IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Following the conclusion of the 2021 season, Ole Miss announced the addition of two transfers who look to contribute right out of the gate. Utility player Bre Roper joins the Rebels from Georgia Tech as a fifth-year senior and has already established herself as a mainstay in the Ole Miss lineup. Roper has tallied multiple hits in three of her last five games and is hitting .433 on the season with five runs scored and five more batted in.
Also making her way to Oxford is junior right-hand pitcher Brooke Vestal. The former No. 1 recruit in the nation by FloSoftball and high-school All-American joins the Rebels after spending the last three seasons at Oklahoma. Vestal made her Rebel debut, tossing the final 2.0 innings of an 8-0 shutout win over Eastern Kentucky at the Troy Invitational. She struck out four of the eight batters she faced and didn't allow a hit.
OKAY-K
Freshman KK Esparza got off to a hot start in her collegiate career, leading the Rebels with a .500 batting average and seven hits at the Easton Invitational opening weekend. She also launched her first-career home run in the second inning, lifting Ole Miss to a 1-0 victory over Cal. She tallied three more hits and RBIs at the Troy Invitational last weekend, giving her 10 hits and six runs batted in on the season. The Friendswood, Texas, native currently ranks fifth in the SEC among freshmen with a .400 batting average.
SHUT DOWN STUFF
After ranking second in the SEC and 11th in the nation last season with 16 shutouts, the Rebels' pitching staff is back at it. Ole Miss tallied its first shutout of the season, blanking Cal 1-0 in the final game of the Easton Invitational last weekend. Borgen and Diederich combined for the shutout, tossing 2.1 and 3.2 innings in the victory.
Borgen, who is entering her fifth season in a Rebel uniform, has established herself as one of the most accomplished pitchers in Ole Miss history, ranking sixth all-time with a career ERA of 2.50, while Diederich ranks just outside the top-10 with a 2.71 ERA. Together, the duo packs a one-two punch for the Rebel pitching staff.
LATHAM'S LEGACY
One of the Rebels' top offensive weapons in Abbey Latham returns for an extra season in Oxford. The fifth-year senior is coming off one of her most productive seasons and is ready to continue it into the 2022 season. Latham currently ranks inside the top five in program history in doubles (36), home runs (30), RBIs (130) and slugging percentage (.534). Climbing her way through the record books, the Livingston, Alabama, native looks to cement her legacy as one of the Rebel greats.
SOPHOMORE SURGE
Last season, Paige Smith added a much welcome punch to the Rebel lineup. In 2021, Smith earned SEC All-Newcomer honors after starting all 58 games for the Rebels. She was an offensive force for Ole Miss, scoring 31 runs and driving in 39 with her bat. The sophomore slugged a team-high .524 and became the ninth Rebel in program history to hit double-digit home runs in a season, finishing with 11.
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
The Ole Miss Softball Complex has been an absolute fortress for the Rebels over the last few years. After going a perfect 8-0 at home in 2020, Ole Miss won each of its first 13 home games in 2021 to set the program record for a streak within the same season, finishing off the streak with 24 straight home victories overall. Finishing the season 24-3 at the Ole Miss Softball Complex, the Rebels have won 57-of-65 games in Oxford dating back to the start of the 2019 season.
Outside of SEC play, the Rebels have been nothing short of dominant when playing in front of its home crowd. Ole Miss has won 42-straight non-conference regular season home games in a row, having not fallen to a non-SEC team in Oxford during the regular season since a 5-0 defeat to Boston College in 2018.
ROOKIES IN THE RANKINGS
Head coach Jamie Trachsel's first recruiting class at Ole Miss welcomed nine freshmen to Oxford. The talented group ranked No. 10 in the nation by Extra Innings Softball bolsters a healthy mix of talent across the field. The class includes eight total signees, including four members of Extra Innings' Elite 100 Player Rankings.
Infielder Brooke Barnard was tabbed as the No. 11 ranked recruit in Extra Innings Softball's 2021 Recruiting Rankings. A three-time letterwinner at Palm Beach Gardens High School in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, Barnard helped lead PBGHS to district championships in 2018 and 2019, while receiving all-district, all-county and all-state honors in both seasons.
A three-time South Dakota First Team All-State and four-time Class A All-Tournament Fastpitch honoree, Lexie Brady checks in tied for 52nd in Extra Innings Softball's Recruiting Rankings. As a senior at O'Gorman High School in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Brady hit .544 with nine doubles, a triple and eight home runs, scoring 35 runs and driving in 28 more.
Makenna Segal comes to Oxford ranked tied for 65th in Extra Innings Softball's Recruiting Rankings. A four-time letterwinner at South Forsyth High School in Cumming, Georgia, she set school records in career batting average (.489), career on-base percentage (.620), home runs (34) and career walks (118).
KK Esparza rounds out the Rebel freshman class in the Extra Innings Softball's Recruiting Rankings at No. 69. Esparza was a three-time letterwinner at Friendswood High School in Friendswood, Texas, where she played under Olympic gold medalist Christa Williams-Yates.
OLE MISS PICKED 9TH IN PRESEASON SEC POLL
Ole Miss has been picked 9th in the 2022 Preseason SEC Softball Poll. Last season, Ole Miss finished eighth in the conference after being picked last in the coaches' poll. The Rebels garnered a 12-12 record in league play in 2021, with the 12 wins ranking as the second-most ever in a season in program history. In five of the past six completed seasons, Ole Miss has outperformed its projection in the conference preseason rankings.
SOFTBALL SIGNS NATION'S NO. 3 SIGNING CLASS FOR 2022
Trachsel's second signing class at Ole Miss, the Rebel class is ranked No. 3 in the nation by Extra Innings Softball, features seven plays ranked inside the top-200 in Extra Inning's rankings, with six incoming Rebs garnering Extra Elite 100 status.
CHAMPIONS. NOW.
The $350 Million CHAMPIONS. NOW. capital campaign has been established to vastly improve the Ole Miss Athletics facilities and raise the standard for the Rebels' level of competitiveness and success within the Southeastern Conference and nationally.
The Ole Miss Softball Complex is one of the first phases of the plans with a $20 million stadium renovation, featuring a larger press box, upgraded grandstands, enlarged bullpens, as well as improved team offices and storage, helping raise the standard.
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. Also, follow head coach Jamie Trachsel on Twitter at @Jamie_Trachsel.
