Mia Scott delivers to lift Texas over Ole Miss in SEC softball tourney quarters 7-6

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Mia Scott smacked a double off the center field fence to give Texas a walk-off 7-6 win over Ole Miss in the quarterfinals of the Southeastern Conference softball tournament Thursday in Athens, Georgia.

The Longhorns (46-9), seeded third in the tournament, advance to the semifinals Friday to face rivals Texas A&M after the Aggies beat South Carolina 12-4. The start time is dependent on the preceding game but could be around 5:30 p.m. CDT and will be on ESPN2.

It looked as if Texas wouldn't have a problem with the 11th-seeded Rebels after building a 6-1 lead after four innings, but Ole Miss stormed back. The Rebels plated five runs to tie the game in the top of the fifth, chasing Texas starting pitcher Teagan Kavan out of the circle. Citlaly Gutierrez eventually got the Longhorns out of the inning, and all of the runs were charged to Kavan.

The Longhorns were down to their last out in the seventh, and with the game headed toward extra innings, the top of the Texas batting order made things happen. Ashton Maloney hit a line drive that glanced off the shoulder of Ole Miss pitcher Brianna Lopez for a single.

Then Kayden Henry hit a sharp, yet fieldable ground ball that Rebels second baseman Mackenzie Pickens booted to extend the inning for Scott's heroics.

Scott blistered a full-count pitch that sailed over Addison Duke's head in center field, hitting the bottom of the fence. Maloney scored easily from second base for the winning run.

"The game today was an incredible level of emotions. Definitely a rollercoaster," Longhorns head coach Mike White said. "You’re up and you think you have got everything in hand and then they keep fighting and keep fighting and you’ve got to tip your hat to them. They played tremendously well."

Texas scored four runs in the first inning before the Rebels recorded an out. Reese Atwood walked with the bases loaded for the opening marker, and then Katie Stewart lined a 2-run single to right field. Joley Mitchell followed that with an RBI single, scoring Atwood.

Henry hit a 2-run homer in the fourth to give the Longhorns their 5-run lead before the Rebels went on a huge rally to tie the game.

Henry said the team trusted one another after the big lead slipped away.

"You get punched in the mouth, and it is adversity at that point," she said. "It’s being able to make those adjustments, trust each other and make sure to do what we can on the field, and at the point, to be able to push through and get the win."

Scott and Henry had three hits each, and Gutierrez earned the pitching win, allowing no runs on two hits with two strikeouts.