Sunday, April 10
Charlotte, N.C.
11 A.M.
Southern Miss
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Southern Miss Secures Series Against Charlotte with 5-4 Victory
4/10/2022 1:54:00 PM | Softball
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Southern Miss softball team overcame adversity to secure its first Conference USA series win of the season against Charlotte on Sunday afternoon. Five runs over the span of the second and third innings led the Golden Eagles to a 5-4 win to close out a successful road trip.
Morgan Leinstock pitched her 18th complete game of the 2022 season and improved to 15-6 in the circle with today's win. Jana Lee recorded her fourth home run of the season, while Southern Miss (23-16, 3-9 C-USA) recorded its first series win over Charlotte since 2017.
Seven different Golden Eagles recorded hits in Sunday's victory, and Scout Jennings and Lee both picked up a pair of runs. Â
"We faced a little adversity in those middle innings, but that's part of the game," head coach Brian Levin said. "We just had to go out and weather the storm, and that's what we did. I'm proud of the way we responded."
Graduate outfielder Destini Brown opened the contest with a leadoff bunt for a single, but the Golden Eagles were unable to bring her home, as Charlotte sent the next three Southern Miss batters back. The 49ers put two runners on base, but the Golden Eagle defense stood strong as the game remained scoreless following the first inning.
In the top of the second, the Golden Eagles placed two runners on base following a single from Scout Jennings and a walk for Lee. Natalie Hurdle advanced Lee and Jennings to second and third, respectively, and a sacrifice fly from Paige Kilgore brought in the first run of the contest. A single moments later from Natalie Taylor extended the Southern Miss lead to 2-0.
Charlotte was blanked in the bottom of the second frame, leaving a runner on base as the Golden Eagles continued to lead by two. Southern Miss went back to work on offense, as back-to-back hits from Hannah Borden and Jennings placed runners on second and third with one away. Lee went to work with a 2-2 count, and the Albany, Ga. native crushed a three-run homer over the right field fence.Â
Charlotte responded in the bottom of the third with a solo shot to cut the Southern Miss lead to four runs. However, the Golden Eagles closed out the inning with a 5-1 lead heading into the fourth frame.Â
The 49ers trimmed Southern Miss' lead to three runs in the bottom of the fifth following another solo home run. Charlotte proceeded to load the bases with one out, bringing in two more runs before the end of the frame. The Golden Eagles led 5-4 as the sixth approached.
The Golden Eagles were unable to respond in the top of the sixth, leaving a runner at third. Southern Miss held Charlotte off the board in the bottom of the inning, and the Golden Eagles clinched the win in the bottom of the seventh, following a stellar effort from Brown in the outfield.
"That's Destini at her best," Levin said of Brown's play in the seventh. "We're kind of spoiled by it. That's a play that she makes that a lot of other players don't. It was a game-saving play, that's her competitive greatness."Â
The Black & Gold won the hit battle against the 49ers, 8-7 and secured its first Conference USA series win since 2019. Southern Miss improves to 18-8 against Charlotte in the all-time series.
Up Next:
The Golden Eagles return to the Southern Miss Softball Complex for another Conference USA series against the UTEP Miners from Thursday, April 14 to Saturday, April 16. All three contests will be streamed on CUSA.tv.
For the latest information on Golden Eagle Softball, follow the program on Facebook (facebook.com/SouthernMissSB), Twitter (@SouthernMissSB), and Instagram (@southernmisssb).
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Morgan Leinstock pitched her 18th complete game of the 2022 season and improved to 15-6 in the circle with today's win. Jana Lee recorded her fourth home run of the season, while Southern Miss (23-16, 3-9 C-USA) recorded its first series win over Charlotte since 2017.
Seven different Golden Eagles recorded hits in Sunday's victory, and Scout Jennings and Lee both picked up a pair of runs. Â
"We faced a little adversity in those middle innings, but that's part of the game," head coach Brian Levin said. "We just had to go out and weather the storm, and that's what we did. I'm proud of the way we responded."
Graduate outfielder Destini Brown opened the contest with a leadoff bunt for a single, but the Golden Eagles were unable to bring her home, as Charlotte sent the next three Southern Miss batters back. The 49ers put two runners on base, but the Golden Eagle defense stood strong as the game remained scoreless following the first inning.
In the top of the second, the Golden Eagles placed two runners on base following a single from Scout Jennings and a walk for Lee. Natalie Hurdle advanced Lee and Jennings to second and third, respectively, and a sacrifice fly from Paige Kilgore brought in the first run of the contest. A single moments later from Natalie Taylor extended the Southern Miss lead to 2-0.
Charlotte was blanked in the bottom of the second frame, leaving a runner on base as the Golden Eagles continued to lead by two. Southern Miss went back to work on offense, as back-to-back hits from Hannah Borden and Jennings placed runners on second and third with one away. Lee went to work with a 2-2 count, and the Albany, Ga. native crushed a three-run homer over the right field fence.Â
Charlotte responded in the bottom of the third with a solo shot to cut the Southern Miss lead to four runs. However, the Golden Eagles closed out the inning with a 5-1 lead heading into the fourth frame.Â
The 49ers trimmed Southern Miss' lead to three runs in the bottom of the fifth following another solo home run. Charlotte proceeded to load the bases with one out, bringing in two more runs before the end of the frame. The Golden Eagles led 5-4 as the sixth approached.
The Golden Eagles were unable to respond in the top of the sixth, leaving a runner at third. Southern Miss held Charlotte off the board in the bottom of the inning, and the Golden Eagles clinched the win in the bottom of the seventh, following a stellar effort from Brown in the outfield.
"That's Destini at her best," Levin said of Brown's play in the seventh. "We're kind of spoiled by it. That's a play that she makes that a lot of other players don't. It was a game-saving play, that's her competitive greatness."Â
The Black & Gold won the hit battle against the 49ers, 8-7 and secured its first Conference USA series win since 2019. Southern Miss improves to 18-8 against Charlotte in the all-time series.
Up Next:
The Golden Eagles return to the Southern Miss Softball Complex for another Conference USA series against the UTEP Miners from Thursday, April 14 to Saturday, April 16. All three contests will be streamed on CUSA.tv.
For the latest information on Golden Eagle Softball, follow the program on Facebook (facebook.com/SouthernMissSB), Twitter (@SouthernMissSB), and Instagram (@southernmisssb).
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Leinstock, Morgan (15-6)
L: Amelia Wiercioch (6-3)
Batting:
2B: Jennings, Scout 1
HR: Lee, Jana 1
RBI: Lee, Jana 3 ; Kilgore, Paige 1 ; Taylor, Natalie 1
SH: Taylor, Natalie 1
SF: Kilgore, Paige 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Holeman, Columbia 1 ; Jennings, Scout 2 ; Lee, Jana 2
Batting:
2B: Lexi Wagner 1
HR: Bailey Vannoy 1 ; Ella Chancey 1
RBI: Bailey Vannoy 1 ; Ella Chancey 1 ; Cori Henderson 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Bailey Vannoy 1 ; Grace Johnson 1 ; Ella Chancey 2
SB: MaKalah Mitchell 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
P/INF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
INF
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