University of Memphis Athletics
Friday, February 7
Memphis, Tenn.
3 PM
University of Memphis
1-0
21
vs
1
Rust College
0-2
1
2
3
4
5
R
H
E
Rust College
0
0
0
1
0
1
1
9
Memphis
6
9
1
5
X
21
17
0
Photo by: Matthew A. Smith
Adebayo’s Six RBIs Lead Tigers to Two Victories on Opening Day
Feb 07, 2025 | Softball
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis softball team has begun the Trena Prater era with two statement wins against Rust College and Lindenwood on Friday, outscoring its opponents 29-to-3.
GAME ONE: Memphis 21, Rust College 1
HOW IT HAPPENED
NOTABLES
GAME TWO: Memphis 8, Lindenwood 2
HOW IT HAPPENED
NOTABLES
UP NEXT
Memphis will continue the 901 Classic with two games on Saturday. The Tigers will play Hampton at 3 p.m. and Lindenwood at 5:30 p.m.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For complete information on Memphis Tigers Softball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
GAME ONE: Memphis 21, Rust College 1
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Rylee Dugar earned the victory over three innings of work, recording six strikeouts.
- Jericho Tate entered in relief, striking out four batters over the final two innings of the game.
- The Tigers recorded six runs in their first hitting frame of the 2025 season.
- The Tigers took advantage of an early error on a Kayla Clement bunt that scored herself and teammate McKaylee Polk.
- Five different Tigers recorded an RBI in the bottom of the first, highlighted by an RBI triple by Zoe Adebayo.
- Memphis then held Rust scoreless before plating nine more runs in the second inning.
- The Tigers took advantage of errors, as eight of the nine runs scored were unearned.
- After another scoreless inning for the Bearcats, Neely Taylor would double down the left field line, scoring Shelby Durbin as the Tigers took a 16-0 lead after three innings.
- With the bases loaded, Kamryn Sariah would reach on a fielder's choice, plating the lone run for Rust College for the afternoon.
- In the fourth, the Tigers would again take advantage of defensive miscues, leading to Memphis' final five runs to bring the score to 21-to-1.
NOTABLES
- It is the largest margin of victory for a home game in program history, surpassing a 19-0 victory against Grambling State in 2006.
- Six Tigers had multi-hit performances, with four recording extra base hits.
- Offensively, six Tigers made their Memphis debut, combining for five hits and eight runs scored.
- Memphis' six stolen bases were the most in a single game since 2019 when Memphis recorded seven against Alcorn State.
- In the circle, the Tigers tied their previous season's single-game high with 10 strikeouts as a staff.
- The 17 hits recorded by Memphis were the most since 2022, where the Tigers tallied 19 hits en route to a 23-5 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
GAME TWO: Memphis 8, Lindenwood 2
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Tigers kicked off the scoring in their second game of the day on a bases-loaded RBI single by McKaylee Polk.
- Lindenwood answered back in the third inning with two runs on a wild pitch and a Jolie McMinn single.
- Memphis knotted the game at two runs apiece on a double by Kennedy Semien that scored Taniyah Brown.
- The game remained tied until the bottom of the sixth when Zoe Adebayo hit a home run on the first pitch of the frame, giving Memphis a narrow lead.
- The Tigers built off Adebayo's momentum and plated five more runs during the inning, including two RBI single by Adebayo after Memphis batted around.
- Sophomore pitcher Taniyah Brown went the distance for Memphis. Brown went the full seven innings, only allowing three hits and one earned run, while inducing 13 ground outs.
NOTABLES
- This marks Memphis' first victory against Lindenwood in program history.
- The last time Memphis won its first two games to begin a season was in 2018 when the Tigers began the season 3-0.
- Taniyah Brown's complete game was the first complete game victory since 2024 when she also pitched a full seven innings in a 5-2 win over Jackson State.
UP NEXT
Memphis will continue the 901 Classic with two games on Saturday. The Tigers will play Hampton at 3 p.m. and Lindenwood at 5:30 p.m.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For complete information on Memphis Tigers Softball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Dugar, Rylee (1-0)
L: Ashanti Murrell (0-1)
Base Running:
RUNS: Kayla Townsend 1
HBP: Leona Joshua 1
Batting:
2B: Brown, Taniyah 1 ; Durbin, Shelby 1 ; Taylor, Neely 1
3B: Adebayo, Zoe 1
RBI: Cox-Cole, Arianna 2 ; Brown, Taniyah 1 ; Durbin, Shelby 2 ; Semien, Kennedy 2 ; Taylor, Neely 1 ; Thomas, Drue 1 ; Adebayo, Zoe 3 ; Williams, Aubrey 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Polk, McKaylee 2 ; Bennett, Lyrical 1 ; Clement, Kayla 1 ; Brown, Faith 2 ; Cox-Cole, Arianna 2 ; Brown, Taniyah 1 ; Gex, Josie 1 ; Brown, Mia 1 ; Durbin, Shelby 2 ; Morris, Presley 1 ; Semien, Kennedy 3 ; Taylor, Neely 1 ; Adebayo, Zoe 2 ; Williams, Aubrey 1
SB: Cox-Cole, Arianna 2 ; Gex, Josie 1 ; Brown, Mia 1 ; Semien, Kennedy 1 ; Williams, Aubrey 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
2
AB
2
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
2
R
2
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
3
H
2
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
1B/C
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
2B/SS
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballC/OF
/ Softball
3B
/ Softball
UTL
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballJSU vs. Memphis Softball
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