Ole Miss softball The tarp is pulled over the infield as lightning suspended play in the top of the fifth inning of the semifinal game between Missouri and Tennessee in the SEC Tournament, Friday, May 13, 2022, at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium in Gainesville, Florida. The Tigers were up 2-0 over the Lady Vols when play was suspended. [Cyndi Chambers/ Special to the Sun] 2022 Sec Softball Semifinals

On Wednesday, the Ole Miss Rebels softball team fought tooth and nail with the LSU Tigers. Tied 3-3 in the top of the 10th inning in the first round of the SEC softball tournament, the Rebels sought a hero, and Paige Smith emerged.

Smith hit a go-ahead two-run home run that barely cleared the fence to end a deadlock from the sixth inning. The clutch home run from the senior infielder sent the Rebels into a frenzy, as Ole Miss shocked the 14th-ranked team in the country.

“CHECKMATE,” the official NCAA softball account tweeted. “Paige Smith sneaks a two-run shot over the wall in the top of the 10th inning to put @OleMissSoftball ahead for good in a 5-3 upset of No. 14 LSU.”

During a trip to Missouri last month, a chess tournament occurred in the hotel the Ole Miss softball team was staying in. They took the Queen (chess piece), highlighted on the broadcast and shown being brandished by one of the players in the dugout before Smith’s clutch home run.

The Tennessee Volunteers secured the SEC regular season championship, but that doesn’t mean Ole Miss should be counted out, especially after a massive win over a ranked opponent. The Rebels will face 15th-ranked Auburn in the SEC Tournament Quarterfinals on Thursday, May 11. Perhaps, that chess piece will bring some more good luck for a team determined to make a postseason run.

[NCAA Softball]

About Sam Neumann

Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.