OXFORD, Miss. – Alabama softball secured the series victory over Ole Miss with a pair of wins in a Friday doubleheader, defeating the Rebels 5-3 in game one before a 13-2 victory in six innings in game two.

Alabama (22-0, 2-0 SEC) took the lead twice over Ole Miss (18-7, 0-2 SEC) in the opening game only to see the Rebels tie the score in the next half-inning each time. A pair of bases-loaded walks in the fifth put the score at 5-3, which ultimately proved final as Jocelyn Briski (7-0) and the defense retired nine of the final 10 batters they faced to close out the game. The Crimson Tide scored nine unanswered across the first three innings of game two before a four-run sixth eventually put the game within run-rule distance.

Brooke Wells was a combined 6-for-6 with two walks, three runs scored and four RBIs. Ana Roman also drove in four RBIs on the day, three of which came on a second inning home run in game two. Lauren Johnson hit her second home run of the season as part of a 3-for-5 day at the plate while Ambrey Taylor launched her third overall and her second that has come in a pinch-hit opportunity.

In the circle, Briski got the complete-game win in game one while Kaitlyn Pallozzi (5-0) got the win in relief in game two.

“It’s very difficult to win an SEC series on the road, especially with a doubleheader. I thought the pitchers came through. That was Kaitlyn Pallozzi’s best outing of the year in my opinion. We’re going to need that, we’re going to need a true pitching staff and she provided good innings for us today. I thought offensively we did a better job of driving in people from scoring position in the second game. The only blip on the day was I thought we left too many on base in the first game but otherwise it was a really good day.”

Highlights

• Alabama improves to 22-0 on the season, tied for its fifth-best start in program history and its best since setting the school record in 2019 with a 33-0 start
• The Crimson Tide is now 70-7 all-time vs. Ole Miss, including a 33-4 mark in Oxford
• Brooke Wells was a combined 6-for-6 on the day with two walks, three runs scored and four RBIs
• Alexis Pupillo’s hitting streak ended at 13 games with a 0-for-2 day in game one, but her reached base streak now sits at 19 games
• Wells, Pupillo and Ana Roman now sit in a three-way tie for the team lead with eight home runs each
• Jocelyn Briski threw a season-high 113 pitches in the complete-game win in Friday’s opening contest, striking out seven to improve to 7-0 on the year
• Ambrey Taylor hit her third home run of the season and her second in a pinch-hit situation, previously doing so in her first career at-bat in the season opener vs. Villanova (Feb. 5)

Game One Scoring Summary

• T2 | Lauren Johnson hit a two-run home run to left (2-0, 2 Out)
• B2 | Ole Miss tied the game with another two-run home run (2-2, 2 Out)
• T3 | Brooke Wells led off the third with a solo shot to right (3-2, 0 Out)
• B4 | The Rebels tied the game on a sac fly RBI (3-3, 1 Out)
• T5 | Salen Hawkins drew a bases-loaded walk (4-3, 2 Out)
• T5 | Abby Duchscherer followed with another bases-loaded walk behind Hawkins (5-3, 2 Out)

Game Two Scoring Summary

• T1 | Ana Roman drew a bases-loaded walk (1-0, 1 Out)
• T1 | Brooke Wells scored from third on an RBI groundout (2-0, 1 Out)
• T2 | Wells drove in Lauren Johnson from second with an RBI single up the middle (3-0, 0 Out)
• T2 | Ana Roman blasted a three-run home run to the gap in right (6-0, 2 Out)
• T3 | Wells drove in two with a bases-loaded single to right (8-0, 1 Out)
• T3 | Audrey Vandagriff scored from third on a sac fly (9-0, 1 Out)
• B3 | Persy Llamas singled to right to bring in Ole Miss’ first run of the game (9-1, 0 Out)
• B3 | The Rebels added another with an RBI fielder’s choice (9-2, 0 Out)
• T6 | A single and an error brought home two runs for Alabama (11-2, 0 Out)
• T6 | Ambrey Taylor hit a two-run pinch hit home run (13-2, 2 Out)

Up Next: at Ole Miss (Oxford, Miss.)

• Sunday, March 8 – 1 p.m. CT