The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
7-3
Northern Illinois
3-6
Lopez, Guachino Spin Shutouts as Softball Rolls to Sunday Sweep
2/16/2025 | Softball
LAFAYETTE, La. – Behind a pair of shutouts from Brianna Lopez and Miali Guachino, the Ole Miss softball program swept a pair of games against Northern Illinois and Louisiana to wrap up the Ragin’ Cajuns Invitational on Sunday at Lamson Park.
The Rebels (8-3, 0-0 SEC) opened the day with a 6-0 shutout of the Huskies (3-6, 0-0 MAC) and made their second chance against Louisiana (6-4, 0-0 Sun Belt) count, rolling to a 5-0 win.
GAME ONE | Ole Miss 6, Northern Illinois 0
Taking the circle was the veteran Brianna Lopez, who proved to be locked in from the start on a windy day in Lafayette. Lopez struck out the first batter of the day and generated two quick outs to open the game. From there, her offense picked her up, as a leadoff walk by Taylor Malvin set the tone for her to come home on a wild pitch later in the frame.
Lopez continued to tear through the Huskies, generating strikeouts and a lot of weak contact. That gave the offense time to get going. Singles by Taylor Roman and Lexie Brady gave the Rebels an opportunity and Angelina DeLeon would not disappoint, driving in a run with an RBI double to make it 2-0.
The offense continued to gain momentum in the fourth inning and were once again kick-started by a Malvin walk. Persy Llamas and Aliyah Binford teamed up for back-to-back doubles, with Binford driving in both runs to build a 4-0 advantage.
The Rebels would tack on two more runs in the next inning, as Jaden Pone ran wild. Pone reached on a fielder’s choice and promptly stole second, forcing an errant throw to allow Mackenzie Pickens to score. Pone would steal third, before coming home on a wild pitch to increase the lead to 6-0.
Lopez returned to the circle in the sixth inning with a no-hit bid intact. However, the Huskies earned their first hit with one out in the sixth to break up the bid. Nevertheless, Lopez continued to cruise and would ultimately polish off a seven-inning, three-hitter, while striking out six.
GAME TWO | Ole Miss 5, Louisiana 0
After a heartbreaking loss on Friday, the Rebels got another crack at the Ragin’ Cajuns, as Miali Guachino took the circle. The freshman sensation got out to a scorching start with a pair of first inning strikeouts.
Louisiana got an early opportunity in the third inning after opening with an infield single and bunt. The Rebels were able to recover though, as an interference call and fly out helped stifle the chance.
Neither side could generate any offensive momentum until the fifth inning, when Ashton Lansdell jumped on a 1-1 pitch for a double. Pone promptly singled and stole second, before Lansdell was driven home on a Malvin sacrifice for a 1-0 lead. From there, the dynamic duo of Llamas and Binford broke through, as the former tallied an RBI double and the latter an RBI single to make it 3-0.
Guachino continued to hold the Ragin’ Cajuns at bay, while the offensive jolt by the Rebels carried over into the sixth inning. After originally being ruled hit-by-the-pitch, Jamie Mackay was sent back to the plate with the ruling changed to a swing. Mackay took the second chance and made the hosts pay for the challenge, blasting a two-run home run down the left field line to increase the lead to 5-0.
Guachino faced some resistance in the sixth inning, but worked around trouble to keep the Cajuns off the scoreboard. Entering the seventh inning at nine strikeouts, Guachino worked around a Ragin’ Cajun double to polish off the first complete game shutout of her young career.
Ole Miss returns to action next week, as they travel to Huntsville, Ala., for the Rocket City Softball Showcase. The Rebels will face ETSU and Louisiana Tech on Thursday, Feb. 20 at 1 and 4 p.m. CT.
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For all Ole Miss softball news and information, go to OleMissSports.com and follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissSoftball, on Facebook at Ole Miss Softball and on Instagram at @olemisssoftball. Also, follow head coach Jamie Trachsel on Twitter at @Jamie_Trachsel.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Lopez, Brianna (4-0)
L: Danielle Stewart (1-2)
Batting:
2B: Llamas, Persy 1 ; Binford, Aliyah 1 ; DeLeon, Angelina 1
RBI: Binford, Aliyah 2 ; DeLeon, Angelina 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Malvin, Taylor 2 ; Llamas, Persy 1 ; Strain, Taylor 1 ; Pickens, Mackenzie 1 ; Pone, Jaden 1
SB: Pone, Jaden 2
CS: Brady, Lexie 1
