MOBILE, Ala. – Shelby Sloan's seventh-inning double tied the game and Abby Krzywiecki's eighth-inning two-run homer put the University of South Alabama softball team ahead for good as the Jaguars rallied back to defeat Southern Mississippi, 4-2 in eight innings Tuesday night at the USM Softball Complex.

Olivia Lackie (14-6) pitched all eight innings for her 11th complete game of the season. The freshman struck out 14, her sixth double-digit strikeout game of the spring.

UP NEXT
- South Alabama (23-13) will return home to take on ULM in a three-game Sun Belt Conference series beginning with a doubleheader on Saturday. First pitch of game one is set for 1 p.m. at Jaguar Field.

SOUTH ALABAMA at SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI
Date: 4/20
Place: USM Softball Complex (Hattiesburg, Miss.)

Final Score: South Alabama 4, Southern Mississippi 2 (8 inn.)
Records: South Alabama (23-13), Southern Mississippi (20-20)
Pitchers of Record: WP – Olivia Lackie (14-6)  LP – Mackenna Pierce (2-8)
Home Runs: USA: Abby Krzywiecki (6); USM: Alyssa Davis (7)

GAME FACTS
- Caroline Nichols reached on an error to start the game, and the junior outfielder moved into scoring position with her 11th stolen base of the spring. Morgan Leinstock though was able to record the next two batters and leave the Jag runner stranded.
- Heather Hill dropped in a single in shallow left to start the bottom of the second. Hannah Borden then doubled off the wall in right center to put both runners in scoring position, but Lackie held the game scoreless as she struck out the next three Southern Miss batters swinging to work out of the jam.
- Karsen Pierce led off the USM fourth with a single to left, and with two outs in the inning, pinch runner Columbia Holeman stole second, but Lackie was able to get a foul out to Meredith Keel at third and leave the Golden Eagle runner in scoring position.
- Cronan walked on four-straight out of the zone for the second time in as many plate appearances to start the Jaguar fifth, and after trailing early in the count, Kamdyn Kvistad worked the count full before drawing a walk. With two outs and runners at the corners, Keel reached on an infield single, which allowed Cronan to score from third and give South the 1-0 advantage.
- USM leadoff hitter Destiny Brown drew a walk to start the bottom of the sixth, who then stole second – her 27th of the season – and advanced to third on a Jaguar throwing error. Davis put USM up 2-1 on the next pitch as she drove a ball over the wall in left.
- Kamdyn Kvistad walked to start the seventh and was pinch run for by Jordyn Calderon, who was then sacrificed over by Belle Wolfenden. Shelby Sloan then lined a double to the gap in right center to plate Calderon and tie the game up at 2-2.
- Southern Miss placed runners at first and second with one out in the bottom half of the seventh, but Lackie was able to get a fly out to left and a ground out to second to end the inning.
- Mackenzie Brasher led off the eighth with a single back up the middle and two batters later came around to score on Krzywiecki's two-run home run to center (4-2).
- Hannah Borden's one-out single to left the next half inning brought the tying run to the plate, but Lackie was able to record her 14th strikeout of the game and get a ground out to short to seal the come-from-behind victory.

NOTES
- With her 14 strikeouts, Lackie now has six double-digit strikeout games this season. The six double-digit strikeout games are the most by a freshman in a season.
- Of the 14 strikeouts, five came looking as she now has 47 this season.
- Her 179 total strikeouts are just four shy of matching Devin Brown's freshman mark in the category, and are eighth most on the career list at South.
- Lackie struck out the side in the second and sixth innings, marking the 15th and 16th times, she has done so this season.
- The Walker, La., native was able to get ahead 0-2 to nine Southern Miss batters Tuesday evening and retired the side in order in the first, third and fifth innings.
- The two-hit performance marked the 12th multi-hit game of the season for Keel, which leads the team, and was the 24th of her collegiate career.
- Keel has had five hits in her last two games and leads the team with 40 this spring.
- With her fifth-inning pinch-hit single, Camryn McLemore now has three of South Alabama's seven pinch hits on the year.
- Krzywiecki home run was her sixth of the season and the 15th of her career, moving her into a tie for 10th on South's career list in that category.
- It was also the Brighton, Mich., native's 17th career multi-RBI game, moving her into a three-way tie for 17th all-time on that list.
- The extra-inning contest was the third of the season for South, as the Jaguars are now 2-1 in those games.
- The home run by Krzywiecki marked the fourth-straight game in which South Alabama has homered, and the longest such streak since doing so four times during the 2019 season.

THEY SAID IT
Outfielder Shelby Sloan
- On her game-tying at-bat in the seventh:
"In my previous at-bats, I had gone to the plate with the same approach of just looking for the ball up. I knew I couldn't try to do too much with it being a pressure situation. I kept calm and it worked out for me."
- On this team continuing to battle:
"A game like tonight just shows how much fight this team has. We could have very easily given in, because Southern Miss is a good team. Liv [Olivia Lackie] was fighting for us in the circle and I feel defense and offense were helping each other. We didn't give up and were able to string together some at-bats late. We all came to the plate with a good approach."

Infielder Abby Krzywiecki
- On her eighth-inning go-ahead two-run home run:
"I wasn't trying to do too much during that at-bat. I had been struggling my previous three at-bats, so I wasn't trying to be the hero. I just tried to go up to the plate with a calm and easy approach. The ball looked like a beach ball for me."
- On this team continuing to battle back:
"We're good at being able to come back. We just kept chipping away and were able to get the win the pitches in the eighth inning. Being able to come back the way we did tonight shows that we are a hard-working team and that we are able to put things together at the end."

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the Bullpen Club, the softball specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund.  Members have access to purchase parking passes and receive Jaguar Softball gear.  All donations to the Bullpen Club go directly to support the South Alabama softball program.  For more information on how you can join visit:  jaguarathleticfund.com/bullpenclub.

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