Southern Miss loses to Ole Miss, 6-2
|Jack Duggan, Assistant Athletic Director/Media Relations
Pearl, Miss. - No. 14 Ole Miss scored in each of the first four innings to lead the Rebels to a 6-2 baseball victory over Southern Miss Tuesday night at Trustmark Park.
The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for the Golden Eagles (22-8) over the Rebels.
Dylan Burdeaux and Hunter Slater led Southern Miss with two hits apiece.
After giving up five runs over the initial 2 2/3 by starter Mason Walley, four Golden Eagle relievers limited the Rebels to just two hits and one unearned run the rest of the way.
The Rebels strung three singles together to start the game with the third coming from Tate Blackman to left, which plated the game’s first run.
Ole Miss then added two more runs off of Walley in the second on three more hits, with Ryan Olenek driving in both with a single up the middle.
The lead increased to 5-0 for the Rebels in the third on a two-run single from Connor Cloyd and then the visitors added one final run in the fourth on a wild pitch by reliever Nick Sandlin.
The Golden Eagle relievers, though, retired 13 in a row before giving up a single in the eighth to help keep the game within distance.
Southern Miss managed just two hits over the first four innings off of Rebel starter James McArthur. The Golden Eagles then added a pair of singles and a walk in the fifth, but on Burdeaux’s single, Chuckie Robinson was thrown out at the plate to end the frame.
Chase Scott led off the seventh for Southern Miss by reaching on an error and eventually became the squad’s first run of the game as Storme Cooper knocked him in with a single to left-center. Dawson then lined a ball to center and Slater was thrown out on the play to end the threat.
The Golden Eagles rallied once more in the eighth as Burdeaux started the frame with a double followed by a single from Jake Sandlin. Tim Lynch then registered a sacrifice fly to center to cut the gap to 6-2. Tracy Hadley and Scott later walked to load the bases, but a strikeout by pinch hitter Daniel Keating and a lineout by Robinson ended the team’s last rally.
McArthur (4-0) threw six strong innings for the Rebels, allowing no runs on four hits with two walks and five strikeouts, while Walley fell to 1-2 after allowing five runs on nine hits with two walks and two strikeouts.
Southern Miss returns to action this weekend when they entertain Middle Tennessee in a three-game Conference USA series. The teams will play a 6 p.m., contest on Friday, at 2 p.m., Saturday, and at 1 p.m., Sunday.
