NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Belmont Softball breaks up its Ohio Valley Conference slate with a pair of non-conference midweek games. The Bruins (21-11) host in-state rival Middle Tennessee State (25-15) on Tuesday before traveling for a single game at Ole Miss (19-16) on Wednesday evening.
The Blue Raiders have dropped five of their last seven contests to stand at 25-15 overall. Summer Burgess leads the team at the plate, batting 402 with 53 hits, five doubles and 13 RBI.
Inside the circle, Cori Jennings has thrown the lion's share of time, logging 105.0 innings to the tune of a 2.33 ERA with 69 strikeouts and a 12-7 record.
MTSU leads the all-time series, 25-5. One year ago, the teams split the home and home series with each winning on their home fields.
Ole Miss has won three of its last five outings to stand at 19-16 on the season. The Rebels have three players batting over .300 led by Kaylee Horton. She leads batting .318 with 28 hits, two doubles and 10 RBI.
Kaitlin Lee leads the pitching corps, tossing 116.2 innings. She has recorded 57 strikeouts with a 2.16 ERA to the tune of a 12-7 record.
Ole Miss leads the all-time series, 12-0. The teams last faced off in 2016 in Oxford with the Bruins falling, 8-0, in five innings.
Belmont has four batters hitting over .300, led by senior Lexi Rouse (Macon, Ga.), batting .371 with eight homeruns, 33 hits, nine doubles, a triple and 24 RBI. Classmate Jess Andree (Darien, Ill.) follows, sporting a .323 batting average with 32 hits, three doubles, one triple, six home runs and 19 RBI. Junior Taylor Hargrove (Greenbrier, Tenn.) is right behind them both, batting .321 with 17 hits and two RBI.
Inside the circle, sophomore Brooklin Lee (Burns, Tenn.) remains the Bruins' ace, tossing 123.1 innings, recording a whopping 152 strikeouts to the tune of a 1.48 ERA and an 11-5 record with eight shutouts. Rouse sports a 6-1 record and a 2.79 ERA after tossing 42.2 innings with 16 strikeouts. Freshman Alicia Veltri (Clarksville, Tenn.) rounds out the pitching corps, throwing 49.2 innings to the tune of a 2.96 ERA, a 4-5 record and 36 strikeouts.
Several players have distinguished themselves in national statistical categories, including Lee, who is No. 6 in shutouts and 22nd in strikeouts along with juniors Hayley Baker (Rockwall, Texas) and Chelsea Thomas (Hot Springs, Ark.), who are both ranked 12th in sacrifice flies.
Tuesday's first pitch versus the Blue Raiders is slated for 6 p.m. while Wednesday's game at Ole Miss is set for a 6 p.m. start. Live stats will be available for both. Fans can tune into SEC Network+ to watch the game on Wednesday.
