HATTIESBURG, Miss. (March 8, 2026) – The University of North Alabama baseball team fell in the final game against No. 10 Southern Miss on Sunday afternoon, 9-2 at Pete Taylor Park. 

The original start time for game three of the series was pushed back from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. due to rain in the area. 

North Alabama (7-9) scored two runs in the top of the eighth off a hard-hit single from Nash Rippen, and the next at-bat saw a wild pitch score Bryant Loving. 

Four of the five hits came with runners on the base path for UNA. Lions earned five walks on the day, nearly doubling the first two games combined in this series. 

Southern Miss (14-2) opened with a two home-run shot coupled with a solo shot in the first inning and never looked back. 

After the second inning, the Golden Eagles held a 4-0 lead before adding four in the seventh and one in the eighth to win. 

John Allen Stogner went five innings with three strikeouts before Justin Battle, Landon Scruggs, Kelly Crumpton and Justus Agosto closed out the other four innings. Battle and Crumpton earned a strikeout each. 

Rippen continued his strong season with a 2-for-4 day and an RBI. Loving, Jackson Westmoreland and Petey Craska secured the other three hits for the afternoon. Westmoreland and Loving plated both the runs in the eighth inning.
 

Pitchers of Record
W – McCarty English (1-0)
L – John Allen Stogner (1-1)
S – N/A
 

COMING UP NEXT
North Alabama returns home to host Jacksonville State at Mike D. Lane Field at Bank Independent Stadium on Tuesday, March 10 with a start time of 3 p.m.

For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.