Staff and Wire: Ole Miss baseball's Friday first pitch of Texas A&M series pushed back, softball opens SEC Tournament

OXFORD, Miss. – The start time for Ole Miss’ Friday game against Texas A&M on May 20 at Swayze Field has been moved back, announced Wednesday.
 
Originally scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. CT first pitch, the game time has been moved 30 minutes to 7 p.m.
 
All three games of the series will be available for streaming through SEC Network +. The call from Swayze Field can be heard through the Ole Miss Radio Network.

Ole Miss softball opens SEC Tournament

LEADING OFF | After closing out the regular season with a series victory over No. 16 Georgia in Athens, the Rebels and Bulldogs will meet again in the opening round of the 2022 SEC Softball Tournament.

UGA leads the all-time series 50-15, however, the Rebels have won four of the last six meetings. The two teams are even at one game apiece in the SEC Tournament.

Ole Miss won seven of its final nine SEC contests to close out the regular season, sweeping South Carolina on the road and taking series from No. 12 Tennessee and No. 16 Georgia.

Ole Miss earned the No. 8 seed for the second straight season and the sixth time in the program’s 10 appearances in the SEC Tournament.

Outfielder Tate Whitley leads the SEC and ranks tied for fifth in the nation with 73 hits on the season, and Ole Miss’ 38 wins are tied for most in a regular season in program history with the 2016 season (38-19).

The Rebels cracked the Top 25 in multiple polls for the first time this season, checking in at No. 24 (Softball America) and No. 25 (D1Softball).

Pitcher Catelyn Riley leads the team with 11 victories on the season so far, the second-most by a freshman in program history. The Rebels have a pair of top-10 wins on the season. They shut out No. 9 Arkansas in Oxford and took down No. 8 Kentucky in Lexington. They are 9-10 against ranked teams.

Tate Whitley and Bre Roper each recorded four-hit games this past weekend against the Bulldogs. Whitley went 4-for-5 on Saturday and Roper was a perfect 4-for-4 on Sunday.

SCOUTING REPORT

Tony Baldwin led Georgia to a 40-15 record overall with a 12-12 mark in conference play in his first season as head coach.

His Bulldogs rank 18th in the NFCA Coaches Poll and 19th in the USA Softball/ESPN Top 25. Ole Miss and Georgia faced off in the final weekend series of the regular season in Athens. The Bulldogs took game one, however, the Rebels responded to win the series.

Georgia’s Jayda Kearney earned SEC Player of the Week honors after batting .778 with seven hits, four runs scored and 11 RBI in the series against the Rebels. Kearney recorded a career-best four hits in game one, followed by two home runs and a career-high seven RBI in game two. As a team, UGA is batting .325 and has scored 382 runs for an average of 6.95 per game.

The Bulldogs have also smashed 100 home runs on the season, the most by an SEC team since 2015. In the circle, Madison Kerpics leads the Bulldogs with a team-high 18 wins in 36 appearances. Through 157.2 innings of work, the sophomore has registered a 3.02 earned run average.

She pitched twice in the series against the Rebels last weekend, going 1-1.

EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS

Winning seven of its final nine games in SEC play, the Rebels recorded a 12-12 record in the conference for the second consecutive season.

Finishing eighth overall in the conference, Ole Miss once again exceeded its preseason projection from the SEC Coaches Poll, where it was picked ninth.

In six of the past seven completed seasons, Ole Miss has outperformed its projection in the conference preseason rankings.

DOGGONIT, WE TOOK THE SERIES

Closing out its regular season in Athens, Ole Miss battled back to take the series from No. 16 Georgia after dropping Friday’s opener.

The Rebels responded in game two, tallying 12 hits, their most in a conference game this year, and putting up 10 runs.

In the decisive rubber match, Anna Borgen took over in the circle, tossing a complete game and holding the potent Bulldog offense to two runs. With the series victory, Ole Miss tied its program record for most regular season wins at 38.

LATHAM’S LEGACY

One of the Rebels’ top offensive weapons in Abbey Latham is leaving her mark on the Ole Miss Softball record book.

Taking advantage of her fifth season of eligibility, she has entered the top-10 in 10 different statistical categories. Latham ranks inside the top-five in program history in games played (fourth, 232), at-bats (fifth, 644), doubles (third, 40), home runs (third, 38), total bases (third, 347) and slugging percentage (third, .539).

In addition to leading Ole Miss with 165 career RBIs, she ranks seventh in school history with 189 hits.

HOTTY TODDY TATE

Senior Tate Whitley has been a sparkplug for the Ole Miss offense this season.

Hitting in the leadoff spot, Whitley has reached base in all but seven games for the Rebels this season and has collected multiple hits in 25 contests, including nine three-hit games and one four-hit outing.

The Angleton, Texas, native has tallied 73 hits, 29 more than her total from last season (44). Whitley leads the SEC and is tied for fifth in the NCAA in hits this season and ranks 51st nationally with a .406 batting average.

Further, she has crossed the plate 50 times for the Rebels in 2022, the third-most in a single season in program history.

IT JUST MEANS A LITTLE BIT MORE

Emotions were high in Oxford as seven seniors played their final series in front of their home crowd.

Senior Anna Borgen had the Lady Vol hitters on their toes all weekend, tossing 13.1 innings and only allowing two earned runs. Catelyn Riley delivered the walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh, helping Ole Miss knock off No 12 Tennessee 5-4 in front of a packed crowd on Saturday.

A three-run third on Monday, backed by stellar defensive play, helped Ole Miss send its senior class out with a series victory over a ranked SEC opponent.

END OF AN ERA

Playing their final game at the Ole Miss Softball Complex before it is torn down for renovations, Anna Borgen and the Rebels stunned No. 12 Tennessee 3-1 to take the series Monday night.

It capped off another successful season in Oxford for Ole Miss, who posted a 19-6 record on its home field this season. Built in 1998, the Ole Miss Softball Complex served as the Rebels’ home field for 25 seasons, serving as host to one SEC Tournament, two NCAA Regionals and countless other memories.

In its recent success, Ole Miss boasted a 76-14 record since the start of the 2019 season in Oxford and a 55-game non-conference winning streak dating back to 2018.

THE BULL

Nicknamed “The Bull” for her relentless energy and competitive mentality, Catelyn Riley has helped the Rebels charge through the second half of their season. The freshman has become a mainstay in the Ole Miss lineup ever since blasting a grand slam against Tennessee State.

Starting the final 18 games of the regular season, she boasts a .375 average. Nine of her 21 hits have gone for extra bases, including two home runs. But Riley’s impact goes well beyond the plate. She has also been a difference-maker for the Rebels in the circle, ranking second on the team in innings pitched with 75.1 and a 3.35 earned run average.

Her success has been remarkable, as her team-high 11 wins are tied for the second-most by an Ole Miss freshman pitcher with Mary Jane Callahan (2004).

BLUEGRASS UPSET

Taking on top-10 opponents in back-to-back weeks, the Rebels were able to shock the softball world, knocking off No. 8 Kentucky 7-6 in Lexington to open the series. The victory came just one week after Ole Miss shut out No. 9 Arkansas at home.

Against the Wildcats, Sydney Gutierrez had a huge day at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and three runs batted in. In the circle, Catelyn Riley entered the game in the fourth inning and took over, retiring 11 of the final 14 batters she faced to clinch the victory.

It marked Ole Miss’ first top-10 win on the road since defeating No. 5 Auburn 10-4 in 2017.

SPINNY REBELS

The Spinny Rebels were the stars of Ole Miss’ midweek doubleheader as Savannah Diederich, Brooke Vestal and Landyn Bruce were unhittable in the circle.

The trio combined to throw Ole Miss’ first no-hitter since March 19, 2014, as the Rebels topped Tennessee State 10-0 in five innings. Diederich faced seven batters in the first two frames, including striking out the side in the first inning, and Vestal took over in the second, retiring all six batters she faced.

Needing just three outs to cap off the victory and the no-hitter in the fifth inning, Bruce retired the side with a flyout and two groundouts.

TOP-10 SHUTOUT

The Rebels were nothing short of dominant in the circle in the series opener against Arkansas this past weekend, keeping one of the nation’s most potent offenses off the scoreboard. 

Anna Borgen, got the start, going 5.0 innings without allowing a run, and freshman Catelyn Riley slammed the door shut on the No. 9 ranked team in the country, marking only the second time the Razorbacks have been held scoreless all season.

RBI QUEEN

Abbey Latham recorded her 144th career RBI in the second inning, passing Lauren Grill for the top spot on the all-time leaderboard as the Rebels took down UT Martin 8-3 in a midweek clash.

The fifth-year senior entered the evening needing three RBIs to break the program record. She tallied on in the first inning, singling in Whitley for the first run of the game. Then in the second inning, with the bases loaded, Latham took the ball the other way for a clutch two-RBI single to become Ole Miss’ all-time leader with 144 runs batted in.

Latham’s 165 RBIs rank 29th nationally among active career leaders.

BORGEN NAMED SEC PITCHER OF THE WEEK

Following a dominant week in the circle, senior left-hand pitcher Anna Borgen was named SEC Pitcher of the Week to close out the month of March.

Borgen posted a 0.78 ERA and earned a pair of wins over No. 19 Missouri. She only surrendered one run on the weekend and stifled opposing batters, who hit a mere .161 when she was in the circle.

The Heath, Texas, native got the start on Friday to open the series, pitching 4.0 innings and followed up that performance with five scoreless frames in the series finale on Sunday. She held one of the league’s top offenses in Missouri to just two hits while striking out a pair of Tigers.

STATEMENT SWEEP

In its first SEC series in Oxford this season, Ole Miss made a statement, sweeping No. 19 Missouri.

The Rebels came out swinging on Friday night to take game one 5-1. Paige Smith blasted a three-run home run as part of a five-run third inning. They took the series on Saturday, with another five-run inning fueling the victory. 

Bre Roper and Abbey Latham went yard in the win, and freshman Catelyn Riley earned her first career SEC victory. Ole Miss closed it out, completing the sweep on Sunday with another 5-1 win over the Tigers.

It marked the Rebels’ first sweep over a ranked SEC foe since 2017 (No. 11 LSU).