Freshman Taylor Ebbs has been a big contributor for UK this season. (Photo by Vicky Graff)
Freshman Taylor Ebbs came up with the big hit Kentucky has been needing.
The Cats had lost four of their last five Southeastern Conference games but Ebbs’ three-run, pinch-hit home run was part of a six-run sixth inning Sunday in a 9-5 win over Mississippi State.
Kentucky is now in a four-way tie for sixth place in the SEC with an 11-10 league mark — the same record Auburn, Georgia and LSU have. Florida is 13-11 in fifth place and Georgia 11-9 in fourth place. Kentucky ends regular-season play next weekend at South Carolina (2-19 in SEC play). Auburn plays at No. 12 Tennessee, LSU is at Mississippi State and Georgia will host Ole Miss.
Ebbs has played in 47 of UK’s 48 games with 43 starts. She is hitting .306 with seven home runs and 24 runs batted-in.
She was the Gatorade Player of the Year in Oregon and grew up dreaming of playing for the Ducks, a national softball power. However, a visit to Kentucky changed her mind when she felt needed by coach Rachel Lawson and her team.
Ebbs had a career .574 batting average in 69 high school games with 14 home runs and 126 RBI’s. She had a monster 2018-19 season when she hit .662 with 57 RBI’s.
“She is awesome. She is one of my favorite freshmen,” Lawson said earlier this season. “She is strong, knows the game and is incredibly athletic.”
Ebbs was the 40th-ranked player in her recruiting class and played both infield and outfield in high school. She’s now playing first base for Kentucky.
“She is so coachable and is all about the team winning,” Lawson said. “She was the Oregon Gatorade Player of the year but is all about team and winning games. She is not about herself.”
Lawson likes how she accepted her role and kept confidence in her ability to produce against high level SEC competition.
“I knew she would be a main player in our offense,” Lawson said. “You need to be strong at the bottom of the batting order to turn the lineup over and production from her really has helped us.”
