Lily Green
The Ole Miss Baseball team, coming off a series loss to the University of Tennessee Volunteers, welcomed the Austin Peay State University Governors for a midweek game on Tuesday, March 26. After a tumultuous beginning, which saw the Diamond Rebels go down 4-0 early, Ole Miss battled to win 13-9.
The Ole Miss Baseball team, which entered this game 17-8 overall and 3-3 in the SEC, faced the formidable Governors, who hold an overall record of 15-8 and a 4-2 record in the Atlantic Sun Conference, in a nine-inning dogfight that tested the pitching, hitting and overall gumption of the Rebel team.
Ole Miss won 13-9:
The Rebels struggled at the beginning, allowing back-to-back home runs from Austin Peay’s first two batters. The Rebels also gave up two more runs, which resulted in a comfortable 4-0 lead for the Governors in the top of the first inning.
Ole Miss fired back in the bottom of the first inning, though. With the help of an error from Austin Peay, shortstop Luke Hill was able to get on second base as the leadoff batter for the Rebels. Then some hits from third baseman Andrew Fischer and first baseman Jackson Ross allowed Hill to score with no outs.
The Rebels ended up tying the game in the first inning, matching Austin Peay’s early energy.
After the back-and-forth nature of the opening inning, Ole Miss gave up a triple on the first batter in the top of the second inning. This allowed another runner to reach home when an Austin Peay outfielder singled to bring in outfielder Clayton Gray, making the score 5-4.
In an effort to halt further momentum, Ross made an impressive double play that helped the Rebels end the second inning.
Ole Miss tied the game once again when a wild pitch from the Governors allowed second baseman Brayden Randle to score. After a quiet remainder of the second inning, the score stood at 5-5.
With the help of right-handed pitcher Mitch Murrell, the Rebels handed the Governors their first scoreless inning in the top of the third.
Ole Miss broke the tie and extended the gap to a wide margin. The Rebels had four runs in the bottom of the third inning, putting them in the lead for the first time at 9-5.
The Rebels held the Governors once again in the top of the fourth inning and added to their lead. Ole Miss only scored one run in this inning despite having many runners on base, also losing a run due to an interference call. However, Ole Miss still led 10-5 after four innings.
Ole Miss continued the scoring party with a solo home run from Ethan Lege in the sixth inning and a triple for Hill, who scored on a wild pitch. This extended the lead to 12-5.
The Rebels allowed the top of the ninth inning to drag out far longer than anticipated, with four runs from the Governors. However, Ole Miss clinched the win, moving its season record to 18-8.
What’s next?
Ole Miss will continue this stretch of home games by welcoming the University of Kentucky Wildcats for a three-game series March 29-31. The first game will be on Friday, March 29 at 6:30 p.m. and will be streamed on SECNetwork+.
