By: W. Brandon Kolditz, Assistant Director
MEMPHIS – The University of Memphis softball team will host a fall exhibition with Ole Miss on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Tigers Softball Complex. Admission to the game is free.
The meeting will be the first for the two schools on the softball diamond since the Tigers’ inaugural season in 2006. Memphis won 11-0 in a match-up that was played in Lafayette, La., at the Louisiana Classic.
The game will also mark the first time Memphis will face its former head coach Windy Thees who started the Tigers’ program in 2006 and guided the team to its first NCAA Regional appearance in 2011. Following the 2011 season, Thees left to take over the program at Ole Miss. Current Ole Miss assistant coach Julie Meyer also coached at Memphis in 2011.
Only five players remain from Memphis’ 2011 NCAA Regional team: Ashley Ford, Libby Goranson, Ijiah Hargrove, Amber Lindahl and Ellen Roberts.
Natalie Poole took over the Memphis program in 2012 and is entering her third year at the helm. Through two seasons, Poole is 44-73 overall with the team finishing 24-36 in 2013.
Memphis is 4-1-1 through six exhibitions this fall. An upper classman led pitching staff has been dominant thus far, striking out 64 batters in 43 innings while allowing just six walks and posting a 1.63 ERA.
Senior RHP Ellen Roberts has yet to allow an earned run in 14 innings of work and is averaging just over two strikeouts per inning with 29 K’s to just one walk. Junior RHP Jordan Richwood is 3-0 in the fall with a 1.75 ERA and 23 strikeouts in 12 innings of work.
The Tigers are led offensively by a pair of freshmen. Center fielder Lindsay Crowdus leads the team through six games with a .533 batting average (8-for-15) and has scored seven runs and hit one home run. Shortstop Brittany Vaughn is hitting .529 (9-for-17) with 10 RBI and four extra base hits. As a team, the U of M is hitting .295 and has outscored its opponents 35-12.
Wednesday’s game is the first of three home dates for the Tigers this week to conclude fall play. Memphis will host CBU at 4 p.m. on Friday and then hold a three-game tournament with Rhodes College and Harding on Sunday.
