Sunday, March 2
Hattiesburg, Miss. / Southern Miss Softball Complex
10:00 a.m.
Southern Miss
7-12
3
vs
1
Jacksonville State University
13-7
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Jacksonville State
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
4
2
Southern Miss
0
0
0
1
2
0
X
3
5
2
Bennett and Lee Shine in Softball's 3-1 Victory over Jax State
3/2/2025 1:26:00 PM | Softball
HATTIESBURG, Miss.-Southern Miss Softball (7-12, 0-0 Sun Belt) concluded its weekend at the Black & Gold Challenge with a 3-1 win over Jacksonville State (13-7, 0-0 C-USA), highlighted by redshirt freshman catcher Kayce Bennett's three-hit performance and senior pitcher Jana Lee's fourth complete game in the circle this season.
Bennett went three for three at the plate Sunday, knocking a single and two doubles, including the go-ahead two-RBI double in the bottom of the fifth inning, which gave the Golden Eagles the advantage it needed for the win. The Watson, La. native is the only Golden Eagle to record three hits in a game twice this season, as she tied a career-high set earlier this season against Marshall.
Meanwhile, Lee led the Golden Eagles through the entirety of the game, giving up just four hits and no earned runs with three strikeouts, all of which helped retire the side in three separate innings. Lee battled with Jax State's Kat Carter, who threw the entire game, receiving just her second loss this season.Â
Southern Miss halted a red-hot Jax State team that had swept the field through the first two days at the Black & Gold Challenge, including a 4-0 shutout against the Golden Eagles Saturday morning.Â
Jax State's lone run of the game came in the third inning on a Southern Miss error before Lee stranded two Gamecocks with a strikeout.
The Golden Eagles gained momentum in the fourth after the outfielders retired the side in order with three quick outs, bringing Bennett up for a leadoff double for her second hit of the game. Shortstop Claire Ginder brought in the tying run with an RBI sacrifice bunt, scoring pinch runner Shelby Allen.
Southern Miss broke ahead in the fifth, setting up a runner in scoring position with consecutive base hits from Maddie Weeks and Paris Ferguson. With two outs, Bennett hit a double to left field, bringing both runners home to push the Golden Eagles ahead to a decisive 3-1 lead.
The Gamecocks managed one hit in the seventh, but the Golden Eagles shortly sealed the match with a groundout to shortstop to earn their seventh victory of the season.
Notes
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Up Next
Southern Miss will host Southeastern Louisiana Wednesday at 6 p.m. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
For the latest information on Southern Miss Softball, follow the program on Facebook (facebook.com/SouthernMissSB), Twitter (@SouthernMissSB) and Instagram (@southernmisssb).
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Bennett went three for three at the plate Sunday, knocking a single and two doubles, including the go-ahead two-RBI double in the bottom of the fifth inning, which gave the Golden Eagles the advantage it needed for the win. The Watson, La. native is the only Golden Eagle to record three hits in a game twice this season, as she tied a career-high set earlier this season against Marshall.
Meanwhile, Lee led the Golden Eagles through the entirety of the game, giving up just four hits and no earned runs with three strikeouts, all of which helped retire the side in three separate innings. Lee battled with Jax State's Kat Carter, who threw the entire game, receiving just her second loss this season.Â
Southern Miss halted a red-hot Jax State team that had swept the field through the first two days at the Black & Gold Challenge, including a 4-0 shutout against the Golden Eagles Saturday morning.Â
Jax State's lone run of the game came in the third inning on a Southern Miss error before Lee stranded two Gamecocks with a strikeout.
The Golden Eagles gained momentum in the fourth after the outfielders retired the side in order with three quick outs, bringing Bennett up for a leadoff double for her second hit of the game. Shortstop Claire Ginder brought in the tying run with an RBI sacrifice bunt, scoring pinch runner Shelby Allen.
Southern Miss broke ahead in the fifth, setting up a runner in scoring position with consecutive base hits from Maddie Weeks and Paris Ferguson. With two outs, Bennett hit a double to left field, bringing both runners home to push the Golden Eagles ahead to a decisive 3-1 lead.
The Gamecocks managed one hit in the seventh, but the Golden Eagles shortly sealed the match with a groundout to shortstop to earn their seventh victory of the season.
Notes
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- Redshirt sophomore Nealy McManus made her first return to the starting lineup since March 1, 2024 after recovering from an injury that sidelined her last season.
- Weeks extended her hitting streak to six games, the longest of her career at Southern Miss and longest active streak on the team. Weeks led the Golden Eagles at the Black & Gold Challenge with seven hits, batting a .500 average and .571 slugging percentage with eight total bases.
- Southern Miss finishes the Black & Gold Challenge with a 3-2 record, picking up wins against UAPB, Lamar and Jax State. The Golden Eagles have posted a 5-2 record at home this season and prepare to host five upcoming games at the Southern Miss Softball Complex next week.
Up Next
Southern Miss will host Southeastern Louisiana Wednesday at 6 p.m. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
For the latest information on Southern Miss Softball, follow the program on Facebook (facebook.com/SouthernMissSB), Twitter (@SouthernMissSB) and Instagram (@southernmisssb).
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Lee, Jana (3-4)
L: Kat Carter (5-2)
Batting:
2B: Jaci Underwood 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Aria Davis 1
Batting:
2B: Bennett, Kayce 2
RBI: Bennett, Kayce 2 ; Ginder, Claire 1
SH: Ginder, Claire 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Weeks, Maddie 1 ; Ferguson, Paris 1 ; Allen, Shelby 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
0
H
3
RBI
2
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
1
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Softball
C/OF
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
INF
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