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Ole Miss Athletics
Photo: Ole Miss Athletics
OXFORD, Miss – No. 4 Ole Miss took a big early lead, but No. 22-ranked Southern Miss closed the gap before the Rebels won 11-5 in baseball in midweek.
Ole Miss is now 11-2 this season after the win at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field, while the Golden Eagles are 8-4. The two teams will meet on March 28 at Pearl.
The Rebels led 8-1 in five innings Tuesday night before USM rallied to cut the lead to 8-5. But Ole Miss cut her lead to six to win.
After Southern Miss got a run at the top of the first inning, a Kemp Alderman outburst at deep center with an on board looked like she might come out to give Ole Miss a lead. But it was taken just short of being a home run, and after one it went 1-0 to the Golden Eagles.
In the second USM, the bases were loaded with two outs when Tate Parker failed Jacob Gonzalez to end the frame scoreless.
In the rebel second, Ole Miss added a first right home run by Anthony Calarco to tie things up at 1-1. After there was one in the second, Peyton Chatagnier kicked one left and out of Swayze for a 2-1 Ole Miss lead. That’s how things went after two full games.
After a scoreless third start for USM, the Rebels added a run on a loaded base by relief pitcher Tyler Martin. It was 3-1 Ole Miss heading into fourth.
After rebel starter JT Quinn made quick work of the Golden Eagles in the top of the fourth, Ole Miss added four runs for a 7-1 advantage. Ethan Lege singled to score Chatagnier, who had hit on the pitch. Gonzalez singled, then Ethan Groff doubled for a run and Calvin Harris singled for two more runs.
In the fifth, Ole Miss scored again, this time on a TJ McCants homer to the right field wall for an 8-1 lead. But USM was close to making it a game in the sixth.
The Golden Eagles had already had four runs in the inning, and the bases were loaded with one out when Jackson Kimbrell replaced Mitch Murrell on the mound. But Golden Eagle Slade Wilks would be the only hitter Kimbrell faced in the inning as Wilks hit the ball straight to Kimbrell who then swung home for an out. Calvin Harris completed the end-inning double play by pitching to first for the third out.
With their lead that a few minutes earlier was seven points but now down to three, the Rebels got back to work on offense. Ole Miss had three hits with the last an RBI single for Calarco which scored Harris who had also hit a single. It was 9-5 Rebels after six innings.
After an early walk from Carson Paetow in the top of the seventh, Kimbrell was replaced on the mound by Sam Tookoian. The Golden Eagles did not score in the inning.
Ole Miss added two seventh-inning runs for an 11-5 lead. Gonzalez singled left to score Chatagnier, who had reached on a hit. Riley Maddox, pinched running for Will Furniss who had walked, scored from third as Groff fouled in right field, allowing the runner to score.
Rebel starter Quinn picked up the win to stay perfect at 3-0. USM starter Colby Allen (0-1) was blamed for the loss.
The Rebels continue their non-conference action this weekend at home with a three-game series against Purdue, the fourth Big Ten team Ole Miss faced in 2023. The Rebels are 3-1 against Maryland and 1-0 against Minnesota and Nebraska.