March 22, 2002
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of Kentucky softball team will head to Oxford, Miss., the site of UK’s first-ever softball game, for a three-game Southeastern Conference series with Ole Miss starting with a doubleheader on Saturday, March 23. The first pitch will be thrown at 1 p.m. CT.
UK (15-11, 1-2 SEC) enters the series after taking an unscheduled week off. The Cats, who opened SEC play by dropping two of three at Florida last weekend, were scheduled to play their conference home-opener with Tennessee this past Tuesday, but rain caused the first day, and ultimately the entire series, to be cancelled.
“We are ready to get out and play some more games, with the cancellation of our series versus Tennessee we are just geared up to play, ” UK Coach Beth Kirchner said. “In the past Ole Miss has done a good job keeping us in check offensively so one our objectives this weekend is to be aggressive at the plate”
Ole Miss (15-8, 0-3 SEC) also had an unexpected week off as the Rebels’ doubleheader with Tennessee-Martin scheduled for Thursday was postponed due to the heavy rain that had been pounding the area. The Rebels are riding a four-game winning streak having won all four of their contests in the Rebel/Easton Games in Kissimmee, Fla., March 16-17.
UK’s first-ever softball game, a 2-0 defeat at the hands of the Rebels, took place back on Feb. 15, 1997 in Oxford. The Wildcats were actually scheduled to play in a tournament in Arlington, Texas, that first week of the ’97 season, but the tournament was cancelled at the last minute due to rain, forcing UK to adjust its early-season plans. As a result, the Wildcats opened the 1997 campaign in Oxford, dropping a pair of games to both Ole Miss and Missouri in the abbreviated tournament.
The Rebels hold the overall advantage in the series, 10-3, but the Wildcats are on a two-game winning streak. The Cats took the final two in the last season’s three-game series in Lexington. In Oxford, the Cats are just 1-5 with their lone win coming in UK’s last trip down to Oxford, April 14, 2000.
All the games can be followed live on the Internet by going to www.OleMissSports.com.
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