Golden Eagles Travel for Doubleheader Against Jackson State

HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- The Southern Miss softball team travels to Jackson, Miss. for an in-state doubleheader against the Jackson State Lady Tigers on Tuesday. The Golden Eagles look to pick up a pair of wins before heading into a bye weekend.

The Black & Gold head upstate following a Conference USA series against UAB last weekend. The Golden Eagles (18-15, 1-8 C-USA) failed to pick up a win against the Blazers at the Southern Miss Softball Complex. Two of the contests went to extra innings, as UAB swept Southern Miss in a series for the first time since 2015.

In the final game of the series on Sunday, March 27, the Golden Eagles found success offensively, as four different players recorded multiple hits. Both of Southern Miss' runs in Saturday's 4-2 loss came off of home runs from Hannah Borden and Paige Kilgore, as the Golden Eagles now have 28 homers thus far this season.

Jackson State enters Tuesday's doubleheader with a record of 14-13 and a 5-4 mark in Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) action. The Lady Tigers last took the field in Montgomery, Ala. for a conference series against Alabama State. JSU went 1-2 on the weekend, dropping the first and final games of the series.

Southern Miss last faced Jackson State last season in a pair of matchups in Hattiesburg. The Golden Eagles knocked off the Lady Tigers by scores of 10-0 and 6-2 on Feb. 23, 2021. Junior pitcher Morgan Leinstock picked up a win over JSU, pitching 4.2 innings and recording six strikeouts in the process.

Jackson State features two student-athletes with batting averages over .350, while the Lady Tigers' .48 triples per game rank third in the NCAA. In the circle, Tikaya Hill holds a 5-4 record and an ERA of 2.57 with 65.1 innings pitched.

The Golden Eagles are 8-3 in matchups outside of Hattiesburg, including neutral-site games, and 4-3 in road contests thus far this season. Southern Miss looks to improve to 5-2 in midweek tilts with a pair of wins over the Lady Tigers. The Golden Eagles enter Tuesday with a record of 22-3 over Jackson State in the all-time series and a 3-1 record in Jackson.

Southern Miss travels to Jackson, Miss. for a doubleheader against the Jackson State Lady Tigers. First pitch for game one is slated for 3 p.m., followed by 5 p.m. start for game two. Fans can follow live stats by following the link on the Southern Miss softball schedule page.

Follow the Southern Miss softball team on social media, @SouthernMissSB on Twitter, @southernmisssb on Instagram and at facebook.com/SouthernMissSB.

Inside the Matchups | Headlines
Scouting Jackson State
-Jackson State enters this Tuesday's doubleheader with a record of 14-13, with a 5-4 record in Southwestern Athletic Conference play.
-The Lady Tigers last took the field for a weekend series against the Alabama State Lady Hornets. JSU finished the weekend with a 1-2 record in the series, dropping the first and final games to ASU in Montgomery, Ala.
-JSU looks to defend their home field against the Golden Eagles with a record of 4-4 in Jackson, Miss.
-The Lady Tigers currently hold the 220th spot in the latest NCAA RPI rankings. JSU is the second-highest ranked program in the SWAC, behind Bethune-Cookman.
-Jackson State is led in the circle by Tikaya Hill, who holds a 5-4 record and an ERA of 2.57 with 65.1 innings pitched.
-The Lady Tigers serve as Southern Miss' second SWAC midweek doubleheader, as the Golden Eagles previously defeated the Southern Lady Jaguars in February. Southern Miss was slated to face UAPB on the road earlier in March, but both contests were canceled.

Southern Miss-Jackson State Series
-Southern Miss and Jackson State have faced off 25 times in the all-time series, which dates back to 2003.
-The Golden Eagles hold a 22-3 advantage on the Lady Tigers. Southern Miss is 3-1 in contests played in Jackson.
-The Black & Gold head to Jackson, Miss. for the first time since 2012, when USM & JSU split a doubleheader at the JSU Softball Field.
Southern Miss, 22 | Jackson State, 3
Home: 15-2
Away: 3-1
Neutral: 4-0
Last Meeting: 10-0 Southern Miss (2/23/21)

Last Time Out (vs. UAB)
-The Golden Eagles last took the field against the UAB Blazers, as they were swept in a three-game series.
-Southern Miss dropped three contests, two in extra innings, falling to 1-8 in Conference USA play.
-Hannah Borden and Paige Kilgore both recorded home runs in Saturday's tilt, ultimately falling by a score of 4-2.

D Brown Makes History
-Graduate student Destini Brown broke Chrystal Brown's long-standing stolen bases record on Friday, Feb. 11 in Southern Miss' season-opener against North Alabama.
-The McComb, Miss. native racked up three steals in the first five games of the Black & Gold's season and now sits at 102 career bases stolen over her sparkling tenure.
-Last season, Brown led Conference USA in stolen bases with 35 and finished the 2021 season ranked No. 9 in the nation in the statistic.
-The 2021 C-USA First Team selection will look to extend her record throughout the 2022 season.
-Brown became the first Golden Eagle in program history to eclipse the 100 steals milestone on March 11 against North Texas.

Down Goes No. 4 Florida
-The Golden Eagles shocked the college softball world on March 2, as Southern Miss defeated the previously-undefeated Florida Gators in Gainesville, Fla.
-Southern Miss toughed out a 5-4 victory on the road, picking up its first win against a ranked foe since 2018 and its first top-five win since the 2000 Women's College World Series.
-Home runs from Jana Lee and Maria Smith propelled Southern Miss to one of the biggest victories in program history. Morgan Leinstock led the way in the circle, holding Florida's potent offense to four runs in a stunning upset.
-Southern Miss became the first unranked program to take down a top-five opponent this season.

Leinstock brings the Heat
-Junior pitcher Morgan Leinstock has been relied on for big performances in 2022.
-The Scottsdale, Ariz. 13 strikeouts against Alcorn State on Feb. 25, the most in a single game in her collegiate career.
-She finished the week of Feb. 20 with three wins, with a shutout along with an ERA of 0.67 and just two earned runs in 27 innings pitched.
-Leinstock has had one of the busiest schedules in college softball, as she has pitched 131.2 innings thus far this season.
-She recorded her first win over a ranked opponent on Wednesday, March 2 against No. 4 Florida.

Golden Eagles Travel for Doubleheader Against Jackson State

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Hannah Borden

Destini Brown

Paige Kilgore

Jana Lee

Morgan Leinstock

Maria Smith