A late rally came up just short for No. 1/4 Tennessee on Friday night, as the Lady Vols fell 3-2 to No. 16 Ole Miss at the Ole Miss Softball Complex.
The Rebels (34-12, 10-9 SEC) capitalized early with a three-run second inning. After a hit-by-pitch and a walk put two runners aboard, an infield single down the third-base line brought home the game's first run. Ole Miss executed a squeeze bunt to plate its second, followed by an RBI groundout to cap the inning.
Tennessee (37-11, 12-7 SEC) responded in the sixth.
Freshman
Saviya Morgan sparked the offense with a bunt single, and
Kinsey Fiedler followed with a triple to right-center to drive her in.
Taylor Pannell cut the deficit to one with a sacrifice fly to score Fiedler.
The Lady Vols threatened again with back-to-back two-out walks in the sixth but couldn't cash in. In the seventh, UT put two runners on but was unable to push across the tying run.
IN THE CIRCLE
Karlyn Pickens started for Tennessee, allowing three runs on one hit in two innings. The junior walked one and struck out three as she took the loss, moving to 18-6 on the season.
Freshman
Erin Nuwer was strong in relief, tossing four shutout innings while allowing just one hit. She struck out five and walked two.
CHECK THE STATS
Fiedler's triple was her eighth of the season, tying her with Lady Vol legend and recent Tennessee Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Lindsay Schutzler for the program's single-season record.
Pannell extended her reached-base streak to 19 games with a single in the first inning. She is now one game shy of matching her career-best streak of 20, set earlier this season.
DUE UP
Tennessee and Ole Miss return to the diamond on Saturday for Game 2 of the series. First pitch is set for 3 p.m. ET and will be available for streaming on SEC Network+.