No. 25 Kentucky softball (30-22, 8-16 SEC) was defeated 7-2 by Ole Miss (31-24, 7-17 SEC) in the opening round of the SEC Softball Tournament at Jane B. Moore Field in Auburn, Alabama, on Tuesday evening.
Ole Miss was the first to score, with a two-out solo shot in the top of the first.
In the top of the third, the Rebels scored twice more on an RBI single and a bases-loaded hit by pitch.
The bottom half of that inning saw Kentucky’s only runs of the game, which occurred on the same uncommon play.
While senior Erin Coffel was up to bat, the fourth ball went wild, allowing junior Hallie Mitchell to score and, while attempting to throw Mitchell out, the Rebels committed a throwing error which brought in freshman Emory Donaldson, who was pinch running for sophomore Lauryn Borzilleri.
For the rest of the game, the Cats were shut down offensively as Ole Miss retired twelve of the last fourteen batters without allowing a hit.
The Rebels scored once in the fifth on a sacrifice fly, added another run in the sixth on an RBI triple and scored two more runs in the top of the seventh with a home run.
All four of Kentucky’s core pitchers — senior Stephanie Schoonover, freshman Sydney Langdon, fifth-year senior Jaden Vickers and junior Alexia Lacatena — saw action during the game and the staff combined for seven walks and six strikeouts.
This year marked the third straight year where the Wildcats lost their first game in the conference tournament.
Kentucky will find out whether it will receive a postseason berth in the NCAA Selection show on Sunday, May 12, at 7 p.m. ET. The show will be televised on ESPN 2.
