LOS ANGELES — In its first NCAA tournament Super Regional game, the No. 12 Ole Miss softball team was a strike away twice from taking Game 1, but rallies by No. 5 UCLA gave the home team an 8-7 victory Thursday night at Easton Stadium.
In a game that took four hours, five minutes, the Rebels (43-19) trailed early on, but rallied back for a five-run sixth to take a 5-4 advantage. The Bruins (46-13) were down to their last out in the seventh when a wild pitch tied it up. Ole Miss again took a two-run lead in the 10th before the Bruins tied it back up and eventually walked off in the 11th.
Ole Miss junior right-hander Kaitlin Lee (23-11) and UCLA’s Rachel Garcia (21-7) went the distance, as Lee threw 191 pitches and Garcia threw 232.
Alyssa Gonzlaez entered as a pinch hitter and went 3-for-3 with four RBIs, while Brittany Finney added the other two RBIs off a two-run blast in the sixth.
Garcia helped herself by putting UCLA on the board in the second when she hit a solo shot to center field. UCLA scored three more runs in the third after a bunt created a defensive mishap, a sacrifice fly, and miscommunication on a delayed steal making it a 4-0 game through three.
Garcia had a no-hit bid going through five before the Rebels rallied. Miranda Strother broke up the no-hitter to lead off the sixth before Finney crushed a two-run shot to left-center field. Ashton Lampton then singled up the middle. Kaylee Horton then singled through the left side. After a bunt that was popped up, Paige McKinney walked. A wild pitch scored Alex Schneider from third to make it 4-3. Gonzalez then ripped a two-run single up the middle to give the Rebels a 5-4 advantage.
That scored held through the sixth, and through most of the seventh, as the Bruins put a leadoff runner aboard with a single that dropped just inside the right-field line. A wild pitch moved the runner to second before Lee got a pop up and groundout. But another wild pitch tied the game.
In the 10th, the Rebels got on the board again after Courtney Syrett led off with a single, and McKinney reached on a sacrifice bunt and E5 to put two on with no outs. After a wild pitch moved the runners up 60 feet, Gonzalez came through again with a line drive off the wall in left-center, pushing the lead back to 7-5. The Rebels went on to tally two more hits after the clutch hit, but a pair of strikeouts ended the rally.
So, for the second time, Ole Miss headed into the home half needing just three outs to seal the deal. This time, Lee gave up a leadoff single, but got a 4-6-3 double play behind her. From there, the Bruins strung together two-straight singles, before a double went off the wall in right field, again tying it up, 7-7. Lee worked out of it stranding the runner at third, sending the contest to the 11th.
UCLA drew a leadoff walk, before a sacrifice bunt moved the game-winning run to second. After another walk, Lee worked a strikeout, before a single got through to right field scoring the winning run.
Lee walked only three and struck out just one in her school record 13th-straight complete game. She allowed seven earned runs off 14 hits, while Garcia got the win after striking out 12 despite five walks with 11 hits surrendered.
Game 2 of the best-of-three series will be at 8 tonight (ESPN).
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