Ole Miss Softball Welcomes Teams to Oxford for the Ole Miss Classic

Kaitlin Lee Photo by Paul Keelaghan

The Ole Miss softball team takes to the diamond as they host the annual Ole Miss Classic. They will welcome in UT Martin, Saint Louis, Chattanooga and Southern Miss.

Ole Miss remains at home after making their debut last weekend in a two-game set against SIUE. The Rebels pitcher Kaitlin Lee garnered the win in both games. Lee’s victory moves the Gulfport native to 7-0 on the year, the best start for a pitcher for the Rebels since sophomore Morgan Bruce started her freshman year with seven wins.
Senior outfielder Elantra Cox is batting at a .615 clip in her last four ball games, scoring six runs and stealing three bases.
Ole Miss will take on UT Martin this afternoon at 5:30 p.m.
UT Martin is led by head coach Donley Canary in his 17th season at the helm of the Skyhawks program. UTM is 6-8 on the year after taking part in the Frost Classic this past weekend, hosted by another Ole Miss Classic competitor in Chattanooga. The Skyhawks went 3-2 during their stay in the Volunteer State, Knocking off Alabama State, Western Illinois and Chattanooga.
Senior Jodie Duncan carries the torch for UTM, batting .386 in her 44 at-bats, knocking a pair of doubles, scoring six runs and registering seven RBIs. Outfielder Alicia Hansen isn’t far behind Duncan with a .375 average at the dish, while infielder Alli Fulcher leads the team with eight runs scored and has added eight RBIs to her .342 batting average. In the circle, the Skyhawks boast a respectable 2.71 ERA as a staff, led by sophomore Hannah Ridolfi. Ridolfi has posted a 3-3 record with a 1.49 ERA, allowing a .232 average to opposing batters.
On Saturday, Ole Miss will take the field against Saint Louis and Chattanooga. First pitch against the Bilikens is slated for 3 p.m.
SLU is 3-6 on the year after splitting its games at the Louisiana Tech Invitational, defeating Alcorn State and South Dakota. Freshman catcher Alyssa Chavez swings a hot bat, hitting .417 with a double, a home run and three RBIs. Infielder Sadie Wise has cashed in an impressive 10 runs early on in the year, while Allie MacFarlane, Lauren Lomax and Alyssa Tarquinio are tied for the team lead with four RBIs. While Maddie Baalman narrowly outpaces her with 26.2 innings, Kaylea Chapelle boasts an ERA over three runs lower at 1.64, going 1-2 on the year.
Ole Miss will play against Chattanooga at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday. 
Chattanooga is 7-7 in 2018 after going 3-2 at the Frost Classic with wins over IUPUI, Southeast Missouri State and Evansville. Junior Emma Sturdivant is red hot with a .429 batting average, doing a little bit of everything with a double, triple and home run. Sturdivant is also tied for the team lead with Ashley Conner at 10 RBIs, while Aly Walker has been a pest with 13 runs to go along with a .333 average at the plate. Celie Hudson and Allison Swinford carry the bulk of the load in the circle for UTC. Hudson paces the Mocs with 43.2 innings of work on the rubber, garnering a 3.69 ERA with a 1-for-1 strikeout-to-ball ratio with 21 of each. Swinford isn’t too far behind with 31.2 frames, recording a 4.20 ERA, striking out 20 compared to nine free passes.
The Rebels will conclude play on Sunday in the Classic against in-state rival Southern Miss at 2 p.m.
The Eagles have posted a 6-8 record on the year, coming off of a doubleheader sweep over Alcorn State in Hattiesburg. USM’s top three hitters have been nothing short of exceptional. Destini Brown paces Southern Miss with a blistering .519 average and .658 on-base percentage, knocking in six runs and scoring six of her own. Karley Nichols has also been extremely productive at the dish with a .500 average, while Chase Nelson sits at .400. Nelson leads the team with eight RBIs, tallying a pair of doubles. In the circle, three pitchers have seen significant work spearheaded by Samantha Robles. Robles has thrown 39.1 frames, registering a 2.49 ERA with 18 strikeouts to just six walks. Jillian Johnson and Kim Crowson have each tossed over 20 innings, posting respective ERAs of 3.09 and 4.20.
Fans that can’t make it out to the softball complex this weekend can watch every pitch on SEC Network +.

Adam Brown is the sports editor of HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at adam.brown@hottytoddy.com.