Ole Miss completes the sweep of Delaware with 14-4 run-rule win
Oxford, Miss. – Game three of the Ole Miss series vs. Delaware took place on a sunny afternoon at Swayze Field. The Rebels were back in their famous powder blue, picking up right where they left off the previous two days with a 14-4 run-rule win over the Blue Hens that completed the series sweep.
On the Bump
Xavier Rivas, the Rebels’ southpaw transfer from Indianapolis, got the first start of his Rebel career on Sunday. The big lefty looked comfortable from the start, punching out two of the first three batters he faced.
That's a 1-2-3 start for @XavierRivas33's Rebel career! pic.twitter.com/3cTKM6ebOe
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) February 19, 2023
Calvin Harris put an end to the first Delaware baserunner, throwing a rocket to 2nd base to catch his first of the year.
This is your only warning… Don't run on @Calvin_Harris33. pic.twitter.com/BVoo6xJXO2
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) February 19, 2023
Rivas dominated through 4.1 innings pitched, only allowing the Blue Hens to plate one run. The new Rebel pitcher had everything working early, painting the corners and making Blue Hen hitters chase pitches all over the zone. The lefty punched out eight on the day, only allowing one hit and walking four.
Ole Miss Skipper Mike Bianco had high praise for his starter after the game:
“Anytime you put up a bunch of zeros to start the game, you gotta tip your cap and say it was a good day. There are things that he needs to clean up and he understands that. But just excited that on the big stage he performed.”
Coach Bianco on Xavier Rivas
Right-Hander Tommy Henninger was the first Rebel pitcher out of the bullpen on Sunday. The JUCO transfer logged his first appearance for the red and blue with two outs left in the top of the 5th, striking out the first batter he faced.
Delaware scored its first run of the day, singling off Henninger to score a runner left on by Rivas, and it was 9-1 Rebels through five-and-a-half innings. Henninger lasted an inning, walking two, striking out one and allowing only one hit.
Welcome to the show! @henninger_tommy pic.twitter.com/91MfWp5JGo
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) February 19, 2023
Freshman righty Jordan Vera was the final pitcher Coach Bianco called up. Vera came into a bases-loaded situation with two outs left in the top of the 6th, punching out one before allowing back-to-back singles that plated three Blue Hen runners. That made it 10-4 Rebels after the top of the 6th.
Vera finished the game with 1.2 innings pitched, allowing one run, walking one and striking out 3.
At the Plate
Ole Miss got going early on the base paths as Ethan Lege was hit by a pitch for the second time this weekend. Kemp Alderman then singled to center, putting runners on the corners and setting up a SAC fly RBI from Harris that made it 1-0, Rebs.
The bottom of the 2nd was a huge 7-run inning for the Ole Miss.
Anthony Calarco drew a walk, and then came a single from Judd Utermark and a SAC bunt from TJ McCants that rolled down the line to load the bases for Jacob Gonzalez.
The Ole Miss shortstop launched his first home run of the season into the student section. It was the Rebs’ first grand slam of the season.
First grand slam of the season goes to @jakegonzalez717 💣 pic.twitter.com/Q2A6wXBWHU
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) February 19, 2023
Shortly after, Alderman launched another homer the other way out of the yard, plating two more for the defending champs. A double followed by a ground out that advanced the runner to third and allowed Harris to score on an error made it 8-0 Rebs through two innings played.
And that makes two, thanks to @KempAlderman 💣💣 pic.twitter.com/s08bGSDHMp
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) February 19, 2023
After their only scoreless inning of the game, which came in the third, the Rebels were back on the scoreboard in the 4th.
Lege scored his third run of the game off of the second SAC fly RBI of the day from Ole Miss catcher Harris. That made it it 9-0, Rebels, heading to the 5th inning.
Second baseman Peyton Chatagnier hit his second bomb of the weekend, pushing the Rebel lead to 9 in the bottom half of the 5th.
.@peytonchat5 is making Swayze a launching pad🌟 pic.twitter.com/uiJzd3ETk7
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) February 19, 2023
Chatagnier got off to a hot start this weekend for Ole Miss, and Coach Bianco talked about that postgame.
“I think for the last few years he’s gotten off to cold starts and it’s unfortunate [because] he’s played great and at the end of the year, played great in postseason and he did again last year. One of the reasons that we got through that Miami Regional is because of him. It’s nice to watch him get off to a good start.”
Coach Bianco on Chatagnier’s hot start this season
Center fielder Ethan Groff plated another run for the Rebels in the bottom of the 6th, driving in Harris after his triple to the right field corner.
A couple of outs later, Gonzalez continued his strong day with a double down the right field line that cleared the bases and made it 14-4, Rebels.
Weekend Recap
The Rebel bats were blazing hot all weekend. Ole Miss hit eight home runs, scoring 35 total runs in the opening series. Ten of the Rebels’ runs actually came from the three transfers, Lege, Groff, and Calarco. Freshman studs Judd Utermark and Will Furniss also had big weekends, both collecting multiple hits for the series.
Gonzalez caught fire after a slow start through the first two games. The shortstop drove in 7 runs on Sunday, which was half of the Ole Miss runs in game three.
After the game Jacob spoke about his team’s offense.
“We know we have a good offense, this team is usually offensive based…this team is scary offensively.”
Jacob Gonzalez
The Rebel pitching staff only allowed six runs all weekend. The staff as a whole sent a lot of Blue Hens back to the dugout with 41 total strikeouts.
All three Ole Miss starters went 4-plus innings, each collecting their first wins of the season.
Next Up
The Rebs will be back at Swayze for a Tuesday game against Arkansas State at 4 pm. The weekend will see the Rebels hosting the No. 13 Maryland Terrapins. Game one is set to start Friday at 4 pm.
(Feature image credit: Josh McCoy, Ole Miss)
Kameron Wicker
Kam is a senior at Ole Miss, currently pursuing a degree in Journalism. Even though he's from Delhi, Louisiana, that didn't stop Kam from growing up a diehard Ole Miss fan. He's a sports guru who watches and follows all sports at all times. He lettered four years in football and baseball in high school and is an avid Saints, Pelicans, and Astros fan. In his free time, you can find him watching sports or at the rec participating in them.
