MOBILE, Ala. – Southern Miss scored a pair of runs in the top of the first and Golden Eagle starter Abby Trahan made the two runs stand as South Alabama fell 2-0 at Jaguar Field Wednesday evening.

UP NEXT
- South Alabama (12-21, 2-9 SBC) will continue its five-game home stand hen the Jags host Coastal Carolina in a three-game Sun Belt Conference series this weekend. USA will take on the Chanticleers at Jaguar Field with game one of the series scheduled for Friday, at 6 p.m. Games two and three will be Sat. (April 6) and Sun. (April 7) at 3 p.m. and 12 p.m., respectively.

Date: 4/3
Place: Jaguar Field (Mobile, Ala.)

Final Score: Southern Mississippi 2, South Alabama 0
Records: Southern Mississippi (19-16), South Alabama (12-21)

Box Score
Photo Gallery

KEY MOMENT OF THE GAME
- With two runners aboard in the bottom of the first, South Alabama's Dayla Gulledge looked as if she had put the Jaguars out in front with a high fly ball to center, but Southern Miss center fielder Destini Brown made a leaping grab at the wall to rob the Jag designated player of a possible home run.

STANDOUT PERFORMERS
- Katelyn Gruich reached base in three of her four plate appearances as she was 2-for-3 at the plate and was also hit by a pitch. Gruich now has four multi-hit games this spring and sevenfor her career.
- Victoria Ortiz also recorded her seventh multi-hit outing of the season as she was 2-for-4 in the loss.
- Freshman righty Samantha Yarbrough pitched three innings of scoreless relief allowing just one hit, while striking out two.
- Jamie Finnical (2-3) took the loss, but after allowing the two first-inning runs on three hits, the sophomore pitched three scoreless innings as well.
- Sarah Van Schaik went 2-for-4 at the plate and Brown drove in the two Southern Miss runs.
- Trahan scattered six hits and picked up the win to move her record in the circle to 9-8 on the year. She also have five strikeouts and walked three.

GAME FACTS
- The Golden Eagles took the early lead scoring two runs on three hits in the top of the first. Madison Rayner and Lacey Sumerlin both singled with one out in the inning and two batters later Brown lined a double off the top of the wall in left to score two and give the visitors the 2-0 advantage.
- South tried to answer back in the bottom half of the frame placing a pair of runners on with two outs after a Golden Eagle error (Ortiz) and a single to left (Gruich), but Brown was able to make a leaping catch at the wall in center to rob Gulledge of a possible home run and preserve the lead for Southern Miss.
- USM threatened to get something going two innings later as they put a pair on after a two-out walk to Sumerlin and a single to Alyssa Davis, but Finnical was able to get a huge strikeout swinging to end the frame and keep the Golden Eagles off the scoreboard in their half of the third.
- South Alabama placed a pair of runners on after two-out singles from Holly Stewart and Gruich in the bottom of the third, but USM's Trahan was able to retire Gulledge with a called third strike after a 10-pitch at-bat.
- The Golden Eagles loaded the bases to start the fourth after a single, a hit batter and a Jag error on a fielder's choice, but the defense came up big as Gruich snagged a line drive off the bat of Karley Nichols and doubled off Van Schaik at third – the second double play turned by South in the contest. After USM loaded the bases for the second time in the inning on another hit, Brittani Reid was able to track down a fly ball in left to get South out of the inning.
- Van Schaik doubled to start the sixth and Samantha Papp then walked on five pitches to start the sixth for Southern Miss. Chase Nelson later walked with two outs to load the bases for the third time in the contest for the Golden Eagles, but Yarbrough was able to get a fly out to right to get out of the jam. B. Reid also added a defensive web gem with a diving catch along the leftfield line for the second out in the inning with two aboard.
- The Jaguars brought the winning run to the plate with two outs in the seventh as Ortiz reached on an infield single and Gruich was hit by a pitch with two outs in the inning, but Trahan induced a grounder to short for a fielder's choice to end the game and pick up the shut out win for the Golden Eagles.

NOTES
- Wednesday night's meeting marked the 22nd in the all-time series. The win was just the second in 11 tries by Southern at Jaguar Field.
- The start at second was the first career start for Caroline Nichols. It also marked the first start by anyone other than Savanna Mayo at the position this spring. Prior to her start, C. Nichols had appeared in 22 of South's first 32 games, all as a pinch runner. Her third-inning at-bat was the first plate appearance of her Jag career.
- With her third-inning infield single, Stewart extended her hit streak to four games and her reached base safely streak to five, both career highs for the freshman first baseman.
- Cronan also extended her hit streak to four games with a leadoff single to begin the Jag fourth.
- The top of the fifth marked the first time the either team was retired in order and was the only half-inning in which ether team didn't have at least one base runner.
- The two teams combined to leave 21 base runners on – South Alabama (11), Southern Mississippi (10).
- The 11 runners left on base were the second-most this season and marked the seventh time South has left 10 or more on in a game.
- The Jaguars left a runner on base each inning, including two in the first, third, fourth and seventh innings.
- Gruich was hit by a pitch for the 11th time this season. The Biloxi, Miss., native has now been hit 27 times during her Jaguar career.
- South Alabama tied a season high with two double plays turned.

THEY SAID IT
Head coach Becky Clark
- On the runners left on base: "I thought we hit with [Southern Miss], we just didn't get the hit when we needed to. That's part of it, you have to string together quality at-bats. When we're hitting well and putting up runs, we are able to string together quality at-bats. We weren't able to do that tonight, and we weren't able to finish. Going into the weekend series versus Coastal Carolina, we have to string those at-bats together and finish the inning."
- On the defensive effort tonight: "I thought besides the first inning, we pitched pretty well. We had a couple of double plays in there, and the defense helped us get out of some big jams. I was glad to see solid defense and solid pitching."

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