JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Southern Miss softball finished the Jacksonville Spring Break Challenge with an 11-6 victory over Presbyterian on Sunday. The Golden Eagles improved to 18-9 on the season, while Presbyterian fell to 11-14, according to team reports.
Southern Miss opened strong with a four-run first inning, highlighted by Madison Johnson’s two-run homer. Hannah Christian led off with a double, advanced on a single by Carrie Green, and scored on a wild pitch. Green stole second and later scored on a groundout, giving the Golden Eagles an early 4-0 lead, according to the game box score.
Presbyterian responded with two runs in the bottom of the first and tied the game at 4-4 in the second. The Blue Hose scored twice in the second inning, aided by an error and a double, before taking a 6-4 lead in the third on RBI singles. Kayla Giardina replaced starting pitcher Olivia Christian and kept Presbyterian off the board for the remainder of the game.
Southern Miss rallied in the fourth and fifth innings. A pinch-hit sacrifice fly from Paris Ferguson tied the game at 6-6. In the sixth, Green doubled in two runs to put the Golden Eagles ahead 8-6. Kinsley Gordon-Sivley and Madison Johnson added RBI singles, extending the lead to 10-6.
In the seventh, Green and others added to the score, with Green knocking in two more runs with a single. Giardina retired the Blue Hose in order to seal the win, earning her eighth victory of the season. Green’s five-hit performance led all players and included four RBIs, team reports said.
Southern Miss has now won 11 of its last 12 games and prepares for a midweek game against Southeastern Louisiana in Hammond, Louisiana, set for 5 p.m. at North Oak Park, according to the team’s schedule.
