April 8, 2017
AUBURN, Ala. - Despite totaling 13 hits, the No. 5 Auburn softball suffered a 10-4 setback against No. 21 Ole Miss Saturday afternoon at Jane B. Moore Field. The Tigers (32-6, 7-4 SEC) fell to the Rebels (26-12, 3-8) for the first time in the last five meetings.
"We've got to go out and compete," said head coach Clint Myers. "We know that we can execute. We've proved it over and over. At this point in the season, you've got to out and show that you can do it every single game."
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Seven different players recorded a hit in the contest, including four with multi-hit performances. Victoria Draper and Carmyn Greenwood paced the team with three hits apiece, while Kasey Cooper and Alyssa Rivera matched their Friday night totals with two base knocks each.
Haley Fagan did the most damage with a three-run home run and also drew two walks.
In the circle, Makayla Martin earned the start and went 2.1 innings. The sophomore scattered eight hits and seven runs, while totaling three strikeouts. Jenna Abbott and Ashlee Swindle combined to toss the final 4.2 frames.
Ole Miss jumped out in front 2-0 in the second inning when it tallied three singles, including one that scored two.
Auburn responded with a four-run bottom of the stanza on five hits. Greenwood led off with a hard-hit ball to left and advanced to second. Draper brought her in with an RBI single to put the Tigers on the board.
Following a Cooper single, Fagan fought off an 11-pitch at-bat and belted her sixth home run of the season to deep left to elevate Auburn to a 4-2 lead.
The Rebels regained the lead in the top of the third when they scored five runs on seven hits, including one home run, to make it 7-4.
Ole Miss added to its margin with a three-run frame in the sixth and went on to take the results, 10-4.
With the series level at one game apiece, the two teams meet for the final time at Jane B. Moore Field Sunday at 1 p.m. The game is set to air on ESPNU, 95.9 FM and the official Auburn app.