Friday, March 21
Hattiesburg, Miss. / Southern Miss Softball Complex
6 p.m.
Southern Miss
15-15, 0
6
vs
4
Troy
20-11, 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Troy
0
0
2
0
2
0
0
4
9
1
Southern Miss
0
0
3
2
0
1
X
6
8
0
Softball Secures First Home Conference Win with 6-4 Victory Over Troy
3/21/2025 10:16:00 PM | Softball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Southern Miss Softball (15-15, 2-2 Sun Belt) secured its first home conference win of the season Friday night, defeating Troy (20-11, 2-2 Sun Belt) in a 6-4 battle at the Southern Miss Softball Complex.
Senior pitcher Jana Lee anchored the Golden Eagles in the circle, delivering a complete-game performance. She surpassed 200 career strikeouts in the contest, recording her second-highest single-game total with 10 punchouts. Lee threw 123 pitches, the second most of her career, en route to earning her seventh win of the season.
Offensively, freshman Hannah Christian led the charge with three hits and two RBIs, while fellow freshman Kayce Bennett delivered the go-ahead two-run home run in the third inning.
After two scoreless innings, Troy struck first with an RBI double from Taylor McKinney and then tacked on another run on a sacrifice from Kayden Dunn.
Southern Miss responded in the bottom of the inning as Maddie Weeks doubled, then stole home for the team's first run. Moments later, Bennett launched a two-run homer, her third of the season, to put the Golden Eagles ahead 3-2.
After turning a double play in the fourth, the Golden Eagles continued gaining momentum at the plate, starting the bottom half with a leadoff single from Claire Ginder and a walk from Natalie Taylor. Christian capitalized with a two-RBI single up the middle, pushing the lead to 5-2.
While Troy narrowed the lead to one in the fifth with a two-run homer of their own from McKinney, Lee struck out two Trojans as the Golden Eagles defense sat down Troy in order in the sixth.
Southern Miss added an insurance run in the sixth, stringing together three consecutive hits. Carrie Green singled to center, Christian notched her third hit of the night with a single over first base, and Weeks followed with an RBI knock to bring the score to 6-4.
With the tying runs on base in the seventh, Lee shut the door on a Trojans comeback, sealing the victory with her tenth strikeout.
Up Next
Southern Miss continues its series against Troy tomorrow at 2 p.m.
For the latest information on Southern Miss Softball, follow the program on Facebook (facebook.com/SouthernMissSB), Twitter (@SouthernMissSB) and Instagram (@southernmisssb).
Senior pitcher Jana Lee anchored the Golden Eagles in the circle, delivering a complete-game performance. She surpassed 200 career strikeouts in the contest, recording her second-highest single-game total with 10 punchouts. Lee threw 123 pitches, the second most of her career, en route to earning her seventh win of the season.
Offensively, freshman Hannah Christian led the charge with three hits and two RBIs, while fellow freshman Kayce Bennett delivered the go-ahead two-run home run in the third inning.
After two scoreless innings, Troy struck first with an RBI double from Taylor McKinney and then tacked on another run on a sacrifice from Kayden Dunn.
Southern Miss responded in the bottom of the inning as Maddie Weeks doubled, then stole home for the team's first run. Moments later, Bennett launched a two-run homer, her third of the season, to put the Golden Eagles ahead 3-2.
After turning a double play in the fourth, the Golden Eagles continued gaining momentum at the plate, starting the bottom half with a leadoff single from Claire Ginder and a walk from Natalie Taylor. Christian capitalized with a two-RBI single up the middle, pushing the lead to 5-2.
While Troy narrowed the lead to one in the fifth with a two-run homer of their own from McKinney, Lee struck out two Trojans as the Golden Eagles defense sat down Troy in order in the sixth.
Southern Miss added an insurance run in the sixth, stringing together three consecutive hits. Carrie Green singled to center, Christian notched her third hit of the night with a single over first base, and Weeks followed with an RBI knock to bring the score to 6-4.
With the tying runs on base in the seventh, Lee shut the door on a Trojans comeback, sealing the victory with her tenth strikeout.
Up Next
Southern Miss continues its series against Troy tomorrow at 2 p.m.
For the latest information on Southern Miss Softball, follow the program on Facebook (facebook.com/SouthernMissSB), Twitter (@SouthernMissSB) and Instagram (@southernmisssb).
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Lee, Jana (7-6)
L: Faircloth, Alyssa (9-4)
Batting:
2B: Boswell, Makaley 1 ; McKinney, Taylor 1
HR: McKinney, Taylor 1
RBI: McKinney, Taylor 3 ; Dunn, Kayden 1
SH: Dunn, Kayden 1 ; Oney, Reaghan 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Boswell, Makaley 1 ; McKinney, Taylor 2 ; Howard, McKinnon 1
Batting:
2B: Weeks, Maddie 1
HR: Bennett, Kayce 1
RBI: Christian, Hannah 2 ; Weeks, Maddie 1 ; Bennett, Kayce 2
SH: Green, Carrie 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Weeks, Maddie 1 ; Valdivia, Ryanna 1 ; Bennett, Kayce 1 ; Ginder, Claire 1 ; Taylor, Natalie 1 ; Green, Carrie 1
SB: Weeks, Maddie 1
CS: Christian, Hannah 1
HBP: Valdivia, Ryanna 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
0
H
3
RBI
2
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
2
AB
2
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C/OF
/ SoftballOF
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
INF
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