No. 24 Ole Miss defeated No. 22 Southern Miss at Swayze Field on Tuesday, Feb. 25, securing their third ranked win of the season with a score of 15-8.
Will McCausland started the game off hot on the mound, handling the Golden Eagles in the top of the first. Ole Miss struck first when Judd Uttermark singled left and scored Hayden Federico and Luke Hill.
The Rebels had a quiet second inning with each team runless after both attempts at bat. The Golden Eagles slipped in a run at the top of the third, when Davis Gillepsie scored Jake Cook to shrink the lead to one.
The Rebels answered and had a massive bottom of the third. Will Furniss singled to score Utermark, and Austin Fawley hit a home run to add three to the Rebels scoreboard, closing out the third inning 6-2.
Fawley had a big offensive day in the Rebels win. He finished with one home run, three walks and four RBI’s.
Ole Miss lost some ground in the top of the fourth when the Golden Eagles went to bat. Matthew Russo hit a home run and Joey Urban singled to score Tucker Stockman. Ozzie Pratt hit a sacrifice fly to score Cook, bringing the score to 6-5.
The Rebels made up for it in the bottom of the fourth with a one-out-double by Ryan Moerman, followed by a walk from freshman Owen Paino. This allowed Sanford to score, giving Ole Miss some breathing room with an 8-5 lead.
Gunnar Dennis came in for McClausland at the start of the fifth. McClausland finished his time on the mound with four strikeouts and four runs allowed.
The score was 10-6 at the bottom of the fifth, with Sanford double scoring on Hill and Isaac Humphrey.
Paino hit his first career home run as a Rebel, bringing the Rebels up 11-7 to round out the sixth inning. Braydon Jones took the mound for the Rebels to start the seventh.
After a scoreless seventh inning, Moerman hit a two run homer, and Sanford hit one home run in the eighth that secured the Rebel’s win 15-8.
The Rebels proved their offensive dominance, adding their third ranked win on the season.
Who’s Next?
Ole Miss will host Wright State at Swayze Field Feb. 28-March 2. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. and will be streamed on SEC Network+.
