HATTIESBURG, Miss. — Southern Miss softball (9-8) topped Chattanooga (8-9-1) 6-0 Friday evening in the first game of the Hub City Classic at the Southern Miss Softball Complex.
Kayla Giardina pitched a complete game shutout for the Golden Eagles, striking out seven batters over seven innings. The sophomore improved her record to 5-2 and threw 85 pitches. This marked her fourth complete game of the season, following her recent performance at Nicholls.
Six different Golden Eagles recorded RBIs in the victory. Madison Johnson opened the scoring with a sacrifice fly to center, bringing Jolie Hays home. Giardina, who also pitched well on offense, started strong with an opening strikeout and two fly outs to close the top of the first inning. She continued her dominance in the second and third innings, fanning a batter each time and retiring three straight batters in both frames.
The Golden Eagles’ offense exploded in the bottom of the sixth. Jolie Hays drew a walk, and Kinsley Gordon-Sivley reached on a bunt single. Julia Glasgow reached on an error, loading the bases. Emma Day then brought in Hays with a fielder’s choice. Hannah Christian and Carrie Green each drew bases-loaded walks, and Abbi Troquille singled to add to the lead. Kayce Bennett capped the inning with a sacrifice fly, pushing the score to 6-0.
Giardina finished her shutout with a strikeout and a foul out in the top of the seventh. The Mocs managed only three hits in the game, with Chattanooga’s Taylor Long taking the loss, dropping to 3-5. The game was the 11th errorless outing of the season for the Golden Eagles, tying last year’s total through 52 games.
Southern Miss leads the Sun Belt in sacrifice flies (11) and is tied for first in sacrifice hits (12). The team also ranks second in walks with 69. The Golden Eagles continue their season Saturday against Lamar at 2 p.m.
