Thursday, March 6
Hattiesburg, Miss. / Southern Miss Softball Complex
7:20 p.m.
Southern Miss
vs
University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Softball Kicks Off Golden Eagle Classic Thursday
3/5/2025 11:02:00 PM | Softball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Southern Miss Softball (8-12, 0-0 Sun Belt) concludes its homestand with the Golden Eagle Classic, hosting Maryland-Eastern Shore and North Dakota State from Thursday through Sunday at the Southern Miss Softball Complex.
Due to forecasted inclement weather this weekend, the Golden Eagles will now open the tournament a day early, facing UMES on Thursday at 7 p.m.
Southern Miss continues play on Friday with back-to-back games against NDSU and UMES at 12 and 2:30 p.m., before closing out the weekend on Saturday with a 12:30 p.m. matchup against the Bison.
Tournament Homepage: https://smttt.info/goldeneagleclassic2025
The Golden Eagles look to build on their strong home performance, boasting a 6-2 record at the Southern Miss Softball Complex, including three straight wins.
Southern Miss beat Southeastern for the first time since 2017 Wednesday night in a 6-2 decision, led by senior designated player and pitcher Jana Lee's standout performance.
Just days after tossing a complete game against Jacksonville State, Lee once again controlled the game, erupting for a career-high 11 strikeouts. She threw 128 pitches, allowing six hits, one walk, and no earned runs en route to her fourth win of the season.
Lee also provided the game's biggest moment at the plate, crushing her first career grand slam and first home run of the season over the centerfield wall in the first inning.
Southern Miss Notes
Scouting The Competition
University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Series History
Southern Miss will meet UMES for the second time, following their first meeting at the North Alabama Tournament last season, where the Golden Eagles prevailed 10-1 in six innings.
North Dakota State
Series History
The Golden Eagles will play the Bison for the first time since their first meetings in 2014. Southern Miss and North Dakota State split their first two meetings at the Renegade Classic in Tallahassee, Fla., with the Golden Eagles last winning 7-6.
For the latest updates on Southern Miss Softball, follow the team on Facebook (facebook.com/SouthernMissSB), Twitter (@SouthernMissSB), and Instagram (@southernmisssb).
Due to forecasted inclement weather this weekend, the Golden Eagles will now open the tournament a day early, facing UMES on Thursday at 7 p.m.
Southern Miss continues play on Friday with back-to-back games against NDSU and UMES at 12 and 2:30 p.m., before closing out the weekend on Saturday with a 12:30 p.m. matchup against the Bison.
Tournament Homepage: https://smttt.info/goldeneagleclassic2025
The Golden Eagles look to build on their strong home performance, boasting a 6-2 record at the Southern Miss Softball Complex, including three straight wins.
Southern Miss beat Southeastern for the first time since 2017 Wednesday night in a 6-2 decision, led by senior designated player and pitcher Jana Lee's standout performance.
Just days after tossing a complete game against Jacksonville State, Lee once again controlled the game, erupting for a career-high 11 strikeouts. She threw 128 pitches, allowing six hits, one walk, and no earned runs en route to her fourth win of the season.
Lee also provided the game's biggest moment at the plate, crushing her first career grand slam and first home run of the season over the centerfield wall in the first inning.
Southern Miss Notes
- Lee's 11 strikeouts against Southeastern marked a career-high and the most by a Southern Miss pitcher since Morgan Leinstock struck out 13 batters at Georgia State on May 6, 2023. Lee has thrown five complete games this season, posting a 4-1 record in those outings.
- Maddie Weeks extended her hitting streak to seven games with her two-hit performance against Southeastern, marking the longest of her career at Southern Miss and the team's longest active streak.
- Southern Miss became just the third team this season to hold Southeastern without a stolen base, joining LSU and Florida State. The Lady Lions entered the match ranked seventh in the nation with 3.53 stolen bases per game.
- Southern Miss pitchers combined for a 2.00 ERA last weekend in the Black & Gold Challenge. Natalie Herrington, Kayla Giardina and Lee each threw complete games in the Golden Eagles' three victories. Herrington notched her first career complete game shutout, holding UAPB to two hits while tying a career-high four strikeouts. Giardina shut down Lamar's comeback effort, matching a career-high seven strikeouts and throwing a personal-high 114 pitches. Lee allowed just four hits and no earned runs while striking out three in the win over the Gamecocks to close out the weekend on a high note.
- Southern Miss recorded a season-high 11 hits in its walk-off win against Lamar last weekend, with Weeks, Lee, Ryanna Valdivia and Carrie Green each collecting two hits. Green also launched her first career home run in the fourth inning on a solo shot to put the Golden Eagles ahead.
- Freshman infielder Abbi Troquille delivered the walk-off hit against Lamar, coming off the bench to rip her first career extra-base hit on a game-winning RBI double. She also recorded her first career hit earlier in the weekend with an RBI single against UAPB.
Scouting The Competition
University of Maryland Eastern Shore
- UMES is led by second-year head coach Aaron Robinson.
- Jaycee Holt leads the Haws with nine hits and three RBI with a .310 batting average. The junior outfielder has also stolen nine bases, tied for most in the MEAC.
- Kassidy Oneail leads UMES' pitching staff with a 3.91 ERA in 10 appearances. The freshman pitcher has thrown 28 innings, giving up 42 hits, 21 walks and 16 earned runs with 18 strikeouts.
- Freshman Araceli Manzo recently picked up MEAC Rookie of the Week honors for her performance at the Scotsman Invitational, hitting .571 with four hits in seven at-bats.
Series History
Southern Miss will meet UMES for the second time, following their first meeting at the North Alabama Tournament last season, where the Golden Eagles prevailed 10-1 in six innings.
North Dakota State
- North Dakota is led by Darren Mueller, who is in his 24th season as the program's head coach and 30th year overall with the Bison. Mueller has led NDSU to ten Summit League tournament championships and is a six-time Summit League Coach of the Year.
- Rylee Henderson leads the Bison with 18 hits, including a team-high five doubles, hitting .391 with a .500 slugging percentage. Bella Dean leads the team with four home runs.
- Savy Williams has thrown 32 innings, posting a team-high 19 strikeouts. Kaitlyn Dunford leads the bullpen with a 3.76 ERA in eight appearances with a 2-0 record, giving up 12 earned runs with 11 strikeouts in 22 innings.
Series History
The Golden Eagles will play the Bison for the first time since their first meetings in 2014. Southern Miss and North Dakota State split their first two meetings at the Renegade Classic in Tallahassee, Fla., with the Golden Eagles last winning 7-6.
For the latest updates on Southern Miss Softball, follow the team on Facebook (facebook.com/SouthernMissSB), Twitter (@SouthernMissSB), and Instagram (@southernmisssb).
Players Mentioned
RHP
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OF
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RHP
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INF
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INF
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INF
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