Tennessee softball’s stay in Lexington was short-lived, falling to Ole Miss 4-1.
The 5-seed Lady Vols (42-10, 16-8 SEC) sputtered against the 13-seed Rebels (34-23, 6-18 SEC) on Wednesday, putting out just one run on four hits to fall in the second round of the SEC Tournament.
It’s the third season in a row that the Lady Vols have failed to win a game in the conference tournament.
“When you lose a softball game like we did today, pretty much everything that adds up to a loss was there,” Tennessee head coach Karen Weekly said. “We missed opportunities when we had runners in scoring position, didn’t make plays when we needed to to keep them from scoring, and then we allowed too many free passes.”
Bella Faw struck first in the bottom of the second inning, driving home catcher Elsa Morrison with a line-drive single to right field to put the Lady Vols up 1-0. That was the only time the Lady Vols would cross home plate.
“I was just looking to attack the zone,” Faw said. “Coach said that postseason is an opportunity to start over, start fresh and just play free.”
The Rebels tied it up in the fourth when Madi George hit Sage Mardjetko’s 3-1 pitch through second baseman Ella Dodge’s glove for an error. Mackenzie Pickens scored from second base, just barely beating out Gabby Leach’s throw home.
Then, Ole Miss grabbed the 2-1 lead when Karlyn Pickens, who had replaced Mardjetko, allowed a single to Tenly Grisham that brought pinch-runner Cassidy Patterson home. But the Lady Vols got out of the inning on the same play, as Laylonna Applin got caught in a rundown rounding third base. Both runs were unearned because of Dodge’s error.
The Rebels extended their lead in the fifth frame. Pickens struggled to open the inning, giving up a four-pitch walk to Ryan Starr. The Tennessee pitcher looked better after a conference in the circle, grabbing two quick outs, but the Rebels found a way to extend the inning. A hit batter, a wild pitch and another walk put the baserunners in prime position, and George brought two runners home with a single, putting Ole Miss up 4-1 before Pickens was finally able to close out the inning.
Tennessee couldn’t produce any offense for the rest of the game, and the Rebels held on to win, advancing to face four-seed Texas in the quarterfinals.
“You certainly have to give a lot of credit to Ole Miss,” Weekly said. “First, the velo is there, and then they do a really good job of keeping the ball down and kind of talking you into some chases.”
The Lady Vols will once again head home early from the SEC Tournament. They’ll learn their path to the College World Series during the NCAA Selection Show on Sunday, May 10, at 7 p.m. ET.
