Video: Ole Miss Softball Tops Mississippi State In Game One

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STARKVILLE, Miss. (Ole Miss Athletics) – Freshman Sarah Van Schaik, pinch hitting in front of her hometown crowd, came through in a big way as she ripped a three-run home run to straightaway center field giving the Rebels a lead in what resulted in a 4-3 final score over Mississippi State Saturday night at Nusz Park.

Ole Miss (27-9), 3-4 SEC) trailed for most of the contest, but it was the Petal, Mississippi native who changed the game in a no doubt blast in the sixth inning. In the circle, senior Madi Osias got her 14th win after tossing 4.1 innings of relief with just one run allowed, while Kayla Landwehrmier got the save with no hits allowed in 1.2 frames.

Natalie Martinez got the sixth frame going when she reached on a walk, before Paige McKinney pinch ran at first base. Courtney Syrett then put down a bunt to move her over, but the throw over to first was muffed leaving all the runners safe. From there, Alex Schneider roped a line drive off the glove of the third baseman and moved to second after McKinney got tagged out at home in a rundown. That setup runners at second and third for Van Schaik, who blasted a 1-1 pitch clear over the center field wall swinging the momentum in favor of Ole Miss.

Despite trailing from the third to the sixth, the Rebels were first to get on the board in the first inning thanks to shaky pitching in the circle. Cox led off reaching on a ground ball at third, and after stealing second, she moved to third on a groundout from Hailey Lunderman. Regan Green then threw a wild pitch that would score Cox giving the Rebels a then 1-0 advantage.

Mississippi State scored two in the second after an RBI double, and a walk that scored another Bulldog runner. The Bulldogs went on to score one more in the sixth, but thanks to solid relief work from Landwehrmier, the Rebels were able to escape.

Cox finished the game 2-for-4 with a run scored, while Strother, Schneider and Van Schaik all had one hit each. The home run for Van Schaik was the first of her young career, and the Rebels’ seventh long ball in the last eight games.

Elisha Jahnke went one inning in her start for the Rebels giving up two runs with four walks and just one hit. MSU’s Green was tagged with the loss, dropping to 5-5 on the year. The Rebels were apart of Mississippi State history, playing in front of the fifth-largest crowd in Bulldog history as 1,474 fans witnessed the contest.

On Deck
Ole Miss and Mississippi State return to Nusz Park for game two of the series Sunday night at 6 p.m. The contest will air live on ESPNU with Tiffany Greene (play-by-play) and Carol Bruggeman (analyst) on the call.