The Ole Miss baseball team (3-0) got the brooms out as they swept the visiting Delaware Blue Hens (0-3) in a three-game opening weekend series.
Coming off last season’s College World Series title run, it looked as if the Rebels picked up right where they left off, both from pitching and offense.
Left-hander Hunter Elliott got the start in Game 1 and had a very solid outing. He pitched for five innings and struck-out nine batters, three of which came in the first inning.
Elliott did find himself in a little bit of trouble in the fourth inning. He gave up two walks, two hits and two runs that included a solo-home run. But, he regained his footing by striking out the side in the next inning.
“Everything was working early,” Elliott said after Game 1. “I came out pretty hot in the first (inning). Fastball, changeup, slider all felt pretty good. Hit a little bump in the fourth (inning) and just kept going.”
In the bottom of the second inning, catcher Calvin Harris got the bats started as he collected the first hit of the new year for Ole Miss. Third baseman Ethan Lege then hit a double and the Rebels had runners on second and third base with transfer first baseman Anthony Calarco at the plate.
Calarco delivered with an RBI-single and Ole Miss was on the board 1-0. But that wasn’t all.
Second baseman Peyton Chatagnier hit a three-run home run to ignite the beer showers in the outfield as the Rebels’ lead grew to 4-0.
Chatagnier said after the game that he didn’t think his home run ball would carry over the wall.
“I was sprinting all the way to second base because I thought it was just going to be a sac-fly,” Chatagnier said. “And I saw the guy (outfielder) just run further back and (I was thinking), ‘Maybe he’ll drop it’, and everyone just started screaming.”
The Rebels eventually got the win in Game 1 with a score of 11-2. Head coach Mike Bianco said he was really proud of the way the new guys played in a new environment.
“We knew that (Jacob) Gonzalez and (Peyton) Chatagnier and those guys would be fine,” Bianco said after Game 1. “We’re worried that sometimes for the new guys, can they get it going? And they certainly did it today.”
Speaking of new guys, freshman right-hander Grayson Saunier was on the mound for Game 2 of the series.
Saunier, a native of Memphis, pitched well for it being his first collegiate game. The freshman threw for four innings, allowed one hit, gave up four walks and struck out five batters. The walks did bite him as it drove up his pitch count, but he still delivered when he needed to and didn’t allow a run.
“I got a little tired there,” Saunier said about his performance in his last inning of work. “Velo went down a little bit. Arm felt a little tired, but I think that’s the most pitches I’ve thrown so far. Felt a little tired, but for the most part, good.”
Taking a look at the game’s bullpen, someone who really pitched lights-out was junior right-hander Jack Dougherty.
In 2.1 innings of work, Dougherty didn’t give up a walk or hit and struck out five of the seven batters he faced.
“Everything for the most part (was) working,” Dougherty said about his outing in Game 2. “I didn’t really feel like any facet of my game was down today.”
In the seventh inning, freshman Judd Utermark came in to pinch-hit and hit a three-run home run in his first Rebel at-bat to extend Ole Miss’ lead to 8-0.
Ole Miss would eventually win Game 2 of the series 10-0 after Garrett Wood hit a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning due to the run rule.
In Game 3, left-handed pitcher Xavier Rivas got the start to try and capture the series sweep for the Rebels.
Rivas, a transfer from the University of Indianapolis, definitely knew how to rack up the strikeouts.
Through 4.1 innings of work, Rivas gave up one hit, four walks and struck-out eight Delaware hitters.
“Stuff was good,” Rivas said about his performance after Game 3. “I thought (my) fastball had life, slider was good, curveball was good. Didn’t throw any changeups today, didn’t need to.”
Rivas went on to say, “Only thing, looking back, that I want to get better is no walks, especially with that big of a lead, there’s no reason. Just pound the zone.”
The offense absolutely exploded with their bats in Game 3. A big contributor came from Jacob Gonzalez.
The shortstop went 2-for-4 at the plate, hit a grand slam in the bottom of the second inning and tallied a career-high seven RBIs.
“My first at-bat, he threw me a slow breaking ball,” Gonzalez said after Game 3 about what went through his head before hitting the grand slam. “I didn’t realize how slow it actually was so I took the first swing at it.”
Gonzalez went on to say, “So then I knew that if I get another one, I’ve got to wait a little longer and I saw it out of the hand, it was the first pitch, and so I just swung.”
The Rebels would beat Delaware 14-4 after seven innings due to the game being called by the run rule, giving Ole Miss their second consecutive run rule victory.
Over the three-game series, Ole Miss scored a staggering 35 runs while allowing just six.
It felt as if Chatagnier produced every time he stepped up to the plate during the series.
Over the weekend, the second baseman went 5-for-8 (.625 BA) with five RBIs, three walks, two home runs and a stolen base.
The same can also be said for Gonzalez, who erupted on Sunday.
Over the three-game series, Gonzalez went 4-for-12 (.333 BA) with a double, a grand slam, eight RBIs and two walks.
“Double-digit runs and starting pitchers all performed,” Bianco said about the team’s performance as a whole during the opening series. “No errors in three games…everybody played great defense this weekend.”
Ole Miss will host Arkansas State (3-0) on Tuesday, Feb. 21. First pitch is at 4 p.m. CST and the game can be streamed on SEC Network+.
