Ole Miss Softball Struggles in NFCA D1 Leadoff Classic

CLEARWATER, Fla. (Ole Miss Athletics) – Ole Miss Jumped out to an early lead over Liberty but was unable to hold it, falling 4-2 on the final day of the NFCA D1 Leadoff Classic.

Ole Miss (0-5) got off to a hot start in the top of the first, with Mikayla Allee, Abbey Latham, Jessica Puk and Gabby Alvarez registering four-straight singles to take the lead. With the bases remaining loaded, Paige Smith drove in Latham on a fielder’s choice, making it 2-0 after the first half inning.

Liberty (1-4), however, turned this around in the third. After an Autumn Bishop triple cut the Rebel lead in half, Amber Bishop followed with an RBI single to tie the game. A few moments later, Kara Canetto knocked a double to right-center to give the Flames a 3-2 advantage.

The Flames added a run of insurance in the fifth, stringing together a trio of singles to scratch across a fourth run.

Ole Miss led off the seventh with back-to-back singles from Amanda Roth and Tate Whitley but was unable to bring the runs home, having the late rally fall short.