Ole Miss Drops Second Game of Doubleheader to Hawaii, 9-1
HONOLULU — Ole Miss baseball fell 9-1 to the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors in the second game of the doubleheader on Saturday.
The Rebels (2-1) won the first game of the double header, 5-2, after taking the opening game Friday, 5-4.
Hawaii (1-2) jumped out to an early 2-0 advantage in the first inning over the Rebels Saturday and never looked back. The Rainbow Warriors got a double from Austin Machado and a single from Ben Zeigler-Namao off sophomore Ole Miss pitcher Grayson Saunier, and it would be the fifth inning before the Rebels would respond with their lone run of the game.
Head coach Mike Bianco met with the media after the game and discussed the doubleheader.
“We felt like we didn’t show up. Credit Hawaii. I thought they were really good offensively. A lot of the pitching plans and things we did over the first two days, it looks like they (Hawaii) may have made adjustments. It happens in baseball where it is just their day offensively and today it looked like that.”
Coach Bianco on the 9-1 loss to Hawaii
The Rebels offense had trouble against the Rainbow Warrior right-handed pitcher Isaiah Magdaleno. Magdaleno allowed a walk to Luke Hill, and Jackson Ross reached on an error by short in the first.
“I thought Magdaleno pitched really well. I thought we needed to compete and have some better at-bats and not make it so easy for him early in the game.”
Coach Bianco on Hawaii pitcher Isaiah Magdaleno
Saunier allowed a two-out walk to Hawaii’s Jared Quandt in the second.
“I thought Grayson was uncharacteristic of what he has done through the fall and early spring where he really commanded four different pitches and didn’t do that (tonight), Bianco said postgame. “That made it tough, especially in the first inning…He settled in after that and pitched pretty well.”
Ole Miss’ Hill got on base on an error in the third as the lone base runner.
In the home half of the third, Saunier notched a quick 1-2-3 frame.
Hawaii added three runs in the third as Matthew Miura scored on a base knock by Quandt and then Jake Tsukada delivered a two-RBI single. The ‘Bows went up 5-0 in the fourth over the Rebels.
Bianco made the call to the bullpen for Mitch Murell in the fourth with two outs. Murrell tossed 0.2 innings, and allowed two runs on three hits before turning the ball over to Liam Doyle in the fifth.
Saunier finished the day working 3.2 innings, allowing five runs on four hits with three walks and five strikeouts.
In the top of the fifth, Ole Miss got runners aboard via a hit by Judd Utermark and a walk by Will Furniss. Reagan Burford got the Rebels their first score of the game on an RBI single that brought Utermark home.
Hawaii made a pitching change in the fifth with two runners on base and no outs as Itsuki Takemoto took the mound. Takemoto got Luke Hill to strike out.
Ole Miss loaded the bases with two outs as Ross walked. Treyson Hughes went down on strikes to close the frame.
Magdaleno’s day came to end after 4.0 innings, surrendering a run on two hits with two walks and five strikeouts.
In the bottom of the fifth, Hawaii’s Kyson Donahue delivered a three-run home run to go up 9-1 over Ole Miss.
Ole Miss and Hawaii will close the series out on Sunday at 5:05 p.m. CT.
Adam Brown
Adam Brown joins The Rebel Walk as the Managing Editor after being on the Ole Miss beat as a Sports Editor for over 11 years. He is a lifelong Oxford resident. Brown graduated from the University of Mississippi with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.
Prior to The Rebel Walk, Brown was the sports editor of HottyToddy.com covering every Ole Miss sport and local high school sports in the community.
