Kyra Aycock suffered her second loss in the Texas A&M series Sunday.
Ole Miss fought hard Sunday on the softball diamond, but the end result was much too the same, as Texas A&M walked out of Oxford with a nip-and-tuck, 10-9 victory over the Rebels and a three-game sweep.
Ole Miss dropped to 26-18 overall and to a 2-13 start in SEC play. Granted the Rebels’ first five series have been against the likes of nationally-ranked teams Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas A&M, but the sledding really doesn’t get much easier. Ole Miss has SEC series remaining versus LSU, Auburn and Mississippi State. After being swept this weekend by Texas A&M, Ole Miss cannot finish above .500 in the final SEC standings, though the Rebels are currently projected for an at-large spot in the NCAA Tournament.
SUNDAY’S HAPPENINGS
Ole Miss chugged but just couldn’t find the juice to top the Aggies. Trailing 7-1 heading into the bottom of the fifth, the Rebel bats awoke. Ole Miss scored five runs in the bottom of the fifth to pull within 7-6 of the lead. First baseman Persy Llamas’ two-run homer over the right field wall highlighted the five-run outburst.
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Just as it seemed momentum had swung back to the Red and Blue, the Aggies struck for three runs in the top of the sixth to move up 10-6. Texas A&M’s Micaela Wark provided the fireworks with a three-run round-tripper of an offering from Ole Miss reliever Emilee Boyer.
The Rebels, however, would not go away. Ole Miss plated two runs in the bottom of the sixth and one in the seventh to move to within 10-9 of the lead before A&M closer Sidne Peters struck out the last two Rebel hitters to end the game.
Ole Miss starter Kyra Aycock (10-9) suffered her second loss of the series. Aycock lasted just the first two innings. Boyer worked four innings of ineffective middle relief before Lilly Whitten tossed a scoreless top of the seventh for the Rebels.
In addition to Llamas’ swing that left the park, Rachel Connors also hit a solo home run to help the Ole Miss attack. Mackenzie Pikens, Llamas and Ryan Starr each had multiple-hit games.
NEXT UP
Ole Miss hosts North Alabama at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The game will be televised on the SEC Network+.