Box Score | Updated Season Stats | Updated SEC Only Stats
OXFORD, Miss. — No. 12 Tennessee softball came up short in the series finale at Ole Miss, falling 3-1 Monday night at the Ole Miss Complex despite out-hitting the Rebels 5-2. Super senior shortstop Ivy Davis notched two of UT’s five hits on the night, including a solo homer in the fourth to account for the Lady Vols’ only run scored.
Ole Miss senior left-handed pitcher Anna Borgen went the distance for the Rebels (36-15, 10-11 SEC) in the circle, spinning 7.0 innings with one earned run, five hits, three walks and four strikeouts. The Lady Vols left seven runners on base and were limited to one run or less for just the fourth time this season.
Tennessee (35-15, 12-8 SEC) used four pitchers in the circle throughout the night as the staff combined for two hits and three unearned runs allowed. Graduate lefty Erin Edmoundson was credited with the loss, giving up two runs on one hit with one strikeout.
After a scoreless pair of innings to start the game, Ole Miss struck first with three unearned runs in the bottom of the third. The Rebels first capitalized on a pair of pitching miscues as Tate Whitley and Bre Roper came home on two wild pitches. Senior first baseman Sydney Gutierrez added OM’s third run of the inning with a double to the right center gap, scoring Abbey Latham to put the Rebels up 3-0 through three complete.
Tennessee posted its lone run of the night in the top of the fourth when Davis hammered her second solo homer of the weekend, launching a two-out liner off the top of the left field wall and over to cut the Rebel lead to two.
Davis’ home run went down as Tennessee’s 82nd of the season, passing the 2014 total of 81 as the second-best single season output in program history. The school record stands at 100 home runs, recorded in 2015.
The Lady Vols threatened a rally in the top of the sixth after Kaitlin Parsons and Rylie West led off the frame with back-to-back singles. Borgen set the next three batters in order, however, to escape the jam and preserve the Rebels’ two-run edge in the sixth.
UT senior right-hander Ashley Rogers set up an opportunity for a comeback rally, shutting down the Rebels in the bottom of the sixth with a 1-2-3 inning. The Athens, Tennessee, native struck out her first before forcing two groundouts to third to send the Lady Vols to the top of the seventh trailing by two.
Borgen finished her complete game retiring the side in order, ending the win with a swinging strikeout to secure the series for Ole Miss.
UP NEXT: Tennessee wraps up the regular season at home this weekend, hosting the No. 17 Auburn Tigers at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium. Friday and Saturday’s games will be televised on SEC Network at 6 p.m. and 11:30 a.m., respectively, while Sunday’s season finale will stream on SEC Network+ at 1:30 p.m.
-UT Athletics
