Ole Miss falls 5-4 in walk-off fashion to A&M; Rebs drop third consecutive SEC series
COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Following the Rebels’ first conference win of the 2023 season Saturday night in College Station, Ole Miss looked to take its first conference series Sunday against A&M. The Rebels powered out to an early 3-0 lead in the rubber game but fell 5-4 as A&M walked it off with a home run from Ryan Targac. Â
Ole Miss drops to 1-8 in the Southeastern Conference and 16-11 overall.
“We’re close, but we’re not close enough,” Bianco said in postgame.
“In this league, I know I sound like a broken record, but this league is so unforgiving and if you don’t play well, you don’t win. You don’t go, ‘Hey wow, we didn’t pitch well today, but we were able to win the game or we didn’t swing it really well (and all that).’ The teams in this league are too good. That why when you look, at the end of the day, the championship is usually won by a a game, the West is won by a game. Teams usually don’t make the tournament by a game. It comes down to, although you play 30 of them, it comes down to who plays the best the most, and we haven’t done that well enough, obviously.“
Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco
Ole Miss freshman starter JT Quinn pitched five-plus strong innings, allowing just four runs on six hits. On a Sunday in the SEC, that outing should pay dividends.
Defensively, the Rebels recorded three double plays and Quinn picked a runner off at first.
.@peytonchat5 with the glove flip for the third double-play of the day 🤧 pic.twitter.com/v9SIYikhpT
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) April 2, 2023
Pick 'em off, strike him OUT! 🔥
Pickoff at first and a K on the board for @quinnjt1 in the bottom of the third pic.twitter.com/BOFuTdwMiR
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) April 2, 2023
Catcher Calvin Harris and center fielder Ethan Groff each had doubles to lead off the game, with Harris scoring on the Groff double and Groff advancing to third on an errant throw by the A&M right fielder and scoring via a Jacob Gonzalez sacrifice fly.
Harris notched his second extra base hit of the game when he homered to right center field in the third inning. It was the Iowan’s fourth home run of the year.Â
Sound OFF 🤩🤩🤩 @Calvin_Harris33 pic.twitter.com/jNxUonP1vC
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) April 2, 2023
The other big threat for Ole Miss came in the 5th inning when the Rebels loaded the bases. Unfortunately, they were unable to plate a run.
The three early runs were all the Rebels could muster until the top of the ninth when they plated one to tie it up. Anthony Calarco led off the frame being hit by a pitch. Lege then hit one through the middle that moved Utermark, pinch running for Calarco, to third.Â
Reagan Burford then hit a SAC fly to center that scored Utermark and made it 4-4. That was it for the Rebs in the 9th, but they had new life.Â
That hope ended quickly as A&M’s Ryan Targac blasted a walk-off home run that would give the Aggies the game and the series.Â
“It’s tough to put into words this quickly after the game, especially when you tie it up in the bottom of the ninth and they get it back in the bottom,” Bianco said postgame.
“It’s one of those days where we had an opportunity to win and should’ve won. But we just didn’t do enough. We didn’t have good enough at-bats when it meant the most. We didn’t have enough pitches when it meant the most. Credit (Texas A&M), they seemed to get all the big hits. The team that wins in the Southeastern Conference is the team that makes the big pitches and gets the big hits. We didn’t do that enough today.“
Coach Bianco
In relief, Mason Nichols held the Aggies at bay, pitching 2.1 innings and facing the minimum until the 9th when Targac homered.Â
.@masonichols11 got him l👀king pic.twitter.com/7w4w6MWmef
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) April 2, 2023
What’s Next for Ole Miss?
The Rebels complete their five-game road trip Tuesday at 6 p.m. vs. Memphis at FedEx Park Avron Fogelman Field. Entering play Sunday, the Tigers had an overall record of 16-12 and 10-7 at home. The game can be viewed on ESPN+ or heard on the Ole Miss Radio Network.
Chris Muller
Chris is our Director of Baseball Content and Senior Baseball Writer. Muller is a 1995 Graduate of Ole Miss. He is a collegiate recreational sports professional currently residing in Arlington Texas with his wife of 25 years, Amber, and German Shorthaired Pointer, Sophie. Chris is an avid Ole Miss Baseball and Football fan. His hobbies include watching college football and baseball and playing poker with his friends.
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