Rebel Rewind: Ole Miss baseball bounced back and blitzed Texas A&M. Here's what it looked like.
OLE MISS ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS | On Friday night, Ole Miss baseball accomplished what it hadn’t been able to on Thursday night – come back from three runs down after the top of the first to win a baseball game.
The Rebels beat Texas A&M 14-6, and the series stands at one win each heading to Saturday afternoon’s finale.
Starter Hunter Elliott, who gave up three runs on three hits with a walk and a hit batter in the first, pitched three masterful innings following his early struggles. Before he walked the first Aggie batter in the fifth and Jack Washburn came in to pitch, Ole Miss had put up five runs for a 5-3 lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
But the Rebels (32-20, 14-15 SEC) had only begun to score. With postgame fireworks already in the plans, they added nine more the rest of the way in an impressive victory.
The Rebels, aided by four Aggie errors in the contest, scored in the first five innings, a one spot in the first being the fewest runs in any of those frames.
When they didn’t score in the bottom of the sixth, the Rebels led 11-6. Through seven, Ole Miss had built its lead to a comfortable eight runs.
Way back in the first, Ole Miss had begun its comeback. Justin Bench doubled and Jacob Gonzalez singled, followed by a Tim Elko fly out to right to get Bench home
Elliott then went to work and allowed only one hit through the next three-plus innings. Meanwhile, RBI singles in the second by Hayden Dunhurst and T.J. McCants tied the game at 3-3.
In the third, an Elko walk and a Kevin Graham single were followed by a Kemp Alderman double, and the Rebels led 5-3.
Ole Miss, which ended the night with an impressive 17 hits, kept rolling in the fourth with three more runs as a Gonzalez single drove in a run and a Graham base hit scored two.
After the Aggies (34-17, 18-11 SEC) put up a two spot in the fifth, Ole Miss came back with three runs in the bottom of the frame on a Bench two-run single and a Graham RBI single. A&M’s last run came in the sixth.
In the bottom of the seventh, a solo homer by Gonzalez and a two-run round-tripper by Alderman wound up the scoring in this one.
The Rebels’ Washburn (5-2) got the win. Josh Mallitz, who pitched the last three and a third for Ole Miss, got his first save of the campaign.
Ole Miss and Texas A&M will play for the series on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. CT. The game can be streamed on SEC Network +, with the call available through the Ole Miss Radio Network. Prior to the start of the game, Ole Miss will recognize its senior class for Senior Day.
