HATTIESBURG, Miss. — Southern Miss softball (13-8) completed a sweep of the Hub City Classic on March 1 at the Southern Miss Softball Complex, defeating Chattanooga and Jackson State. This marks back-to-back tournament sweeps for the Golden Eagles, who previously achieved the feat in 2023 under the Hub City Challenge name.
Head coach Natalie Poole praised her team’s pitching performance. “We pitched really well this weekend,” Poole said. “They gave us the chance we needed to be in the games and stay in the games. We focused on minimizing walks, improving our WHIP, and executing better with runners on base. I’m proud of the team’s effort and our 6-0 week.”
Madilyn Graham delivered her second consecutive complete game shutout, blanking Lamar on Feb. 28 and earning her third win of the season in her start against Chattanooga. Graham allowed three hits, struck out four, and did not walk a batter in five scoreless innings.
In the second game, Southern Miss topped Jackson State 4-1. Briley Whittington earned her third start of the season, pitching two perfect innings before being replaced by Kayla Giardina, who closed out the game with a strikeout for her first save of the year. Kinsley Gordon-Sivley and Abbi Troquille led the offensive effort with key hits, and Hannah Christian contributed with a sacrifice fly.
The Golden Eagles’ defense continued to excel, ranking 21st nationally with a .981 fielding percentage and tied for 28th in shutouts with three. They also rank eighth nationally with eight triples and are among the leaders in assists and sacrifice flies.
Southern Miss will next face Alcorn State on March 3. For updates, fans can follow the team on Facebook, X, and Instagram.
