Texas A&M softball is set to host Ole Miss for a three-game series at Davis Diamond beginning Friday, April 16. This series will be the Aggies’ fifth conference series of the season, surpassing the halfway point.
The maroon and white are coming off a 8-0 victory over Sam Houston on Wednesday, April 14. Junior Makinzy Herzog accumulated 13 strikeouts on the night, a new career high, and held the Bearkats to only two hits all night.
Junior Haley Lee and sophomore Shaylee Ackerman led the team offensively in home runs with 17 and 11, respectively. Lee is currently ranked third in the NCAA for home runs this season.
A&M coach Jo Evans looked ahead to the series and acknowledged a few things the team will have to execute well to be successful against the Rebels.
“We’ve got to play defense. We’ve got to have our feet on the ground,” Evans said. “We need our pitchers to get out there and attack the strike zone to give us a chance. I think offensively we’ve shown that we can put up runs so for me, I just really want our kids to play with this calm confidence and have fun while they’re playing. I think we can win this series.”
While the Aggies currently sit at 27-11 overall, 5-7 in conference play, Evans said she doesn’t think the team has reached its full potential yet. Evans went on to say she’s not displeased with the record of wins and losses, but wants to see improvement in the way A&M plays.
“I think we’re not as good as we’re going to be, measuring what we’ve done so far up to this point, and not necessarily wins and losses, more so how we’re playing the game,” Evans said. “I didn’t like the way we played the game against Alabama when we dropped that series, and I just want to see us be a more confident, composed, together team.”
A&M has defeated Ole Miss the past 11 matchups, with the two most recent wins being shut outs at Davis Diamond in 2018. However, Ole Miss has a new head coach in Jamie Trachsel this season. Evans said the Rebels should not be underestimated, and the Aggies have their work cut out for them as they take the field this weekend.
“Ole Miss’s RPI right now is 20. They’ve had some really quality wins,” Evans said. “I think they’ve surprised some people in our conference. You know, they had a little turnover and got a new coach, and she’s done a really great job.”
Evans said she considers the series to be a great opportunity for the team to continue to progress collectively and make a name for themselves.
“We believe we’re a team that should play in [the] postseason, and we’re just trying to chalk up as many wins against quality opponents as we can,” Evans said. “Fortunately, playing in the SEC, every single game that we have is an opportunity to get a quality win.”
A&M and Ole Miss will take the field on Friday night and face off for the first time since 2018. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Davis Diamond.