No. 22 Gamecocks Earn Road Sweep at Ole Miss

OXFORD, Miss. – The No. 22 ranked South Carolina softball team (26-10, 3-6) earned a series sweep on the road Sunday afternoon (March 31), as the Gamecocks took down Ole Miss (20-14, 3-9) 4-0.

Riley Blampied capped off the weekend 2-for-3 at the plate with three RBIs and a home run. Kianna Jones was perfect at the dish, going 3-for-3. Zoe Laneaux also earned a pair of hits on the day to finish 2-for-3.

Alana Vawter (10-5) threw final five innings in relief, scattering four hits and striking out five. She finished the weekend tossing 15 shutout innings over all three games. Jori Heard started for Carolina, throwing two innings, and allowing two hits.

Carolina jumped out in front in the third inning. Jen Cummings was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and on the next pitch, Riley Blampied connected on her third home run of the season. The ball initially hit off the Ole Miss left fielder’s glove, but then bounced over the wall for a home run. The Gamecocks looked to have added to their lead when Marissa Gonzalez homered later in the inning, but the runner on first was called out for leaving early after a review.

South Carolina doubled its lead, pushing across a pair of runs in the fifth. Brooke Blankenship drew a walk to lead off the inning and Cummings tripled off the wall to bring her home. Blampied scored Cummings on a sacrifice fly to left field.

The Rebels put a runner on in the seventh, but the Gamecocks turned their sixth double play of the weekend to cement the victory.

It’s the first road sweep in SEC play for Carolina since 2013 when they swept Mississippi State.

South Carolina returns home to begin an eight-game homestand when it hosts Winthrop Wednesday at 6 p.m.

For the latest on South Carolina Softball, visit GamecocksOnline.com or follow the team’s social media accounts on Twitter @GamecockSoftbll, Facebook /GamecockSoftball, and Instagram @GamecockSoftball.