Riley Maddox Gives Strong Performance on Mound but Mistakes Doom Ole Miss as Kentucky Takes Series Opener
OXFORD, Miss. – Riley Maddox gave Ole Miss everything the Rebels could have asked for in his first SEC start, but a series of critical mistakes would prove too much to overcome, as Ole Miss fell 5-3 to No. 24 Kentucky to open the series.
The loss drops Ole Miss to 18-9 overall, and 3-4 in SEC play, while the Wildcats improve to 22-4, 6-1 in conference play.
Maddox makes first SEC start
It was a less than ideal first pitch for Maddox, as he promptly plunked leadoff man Ryan Waldschmidt to give the Wildcats an early baserunner. A passed ball would then move Waldschmidt to second base with nobody out, and the Rebels were in some early danger. But Maddox would bounce back, getting Emilien Pitre to strike out for the first out of the inning.
Kentucky led the SEC in stolen bases entering the weekend, so it was only a matter of time before they would try to swipe a base, and Waldschmidt wasted no time attempting to take third. But Campbell Smithwick had other plans.
Just realized Campbell Smithwick’s initials are CS. 🤔@campbellrsoup | SECN+ pic.twitter.com/2VZ2q5u8mS
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 29, 2024
The caught stealing would erase the runner, and Maddox would then get Devin Burkes to go down swinging to end the first half inning.
Miscues Lead To Runs
After smooth sailing in the second inning, Maddox would get the first out of the third on a ground out. After a Grant Smith one-out single, Ryan Waldschmidt would walk, putting two on with one out for the Wildcats. Emilien Pitre would then hit a tailor-made double play ball right back to Maddox, who would make the throw to Luke Hill at second base for the first out. But Hill would then throw it away attempting to turn the double play, and Kentucky would score a run on the shortstop’s error to take a 1-0 lead into the bottom half.
In the home half of the third, Ole Miss would get a leadoff single from Campbell Smithwick, who would then take second base on a passed ball. Brayden Randle would lay down a perfect bunt to advance him to third, and Luke Hill would then walk, giving the Rebels corners with one out. Kentucky pitcher Trey Pooser would then make an errant throw attempting to pick off Hill at first, allowing Smithwick to score, tying the game at 1-1.
Riley Rolling
Despite the early struggles, Maddox settled into a groove after the first inning and showed no fear on the mound. Though Kentucky managed a few baserunners, Maddox calmly worked around all of them through five complete innings, during which he allowed just four hits, struck out four and walked just two.
Nasty fourth K of the night for @riley_maddox1 😶🌫️
📻 SECN+ pic.twitter.com/AkweBPIURV
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 30, 2024
“I think early on, (Riley was) just so adrenalized. He’s a position player, he’s a competitor, and sometimes those things work in your favor. You see him bounce off the mound, swinging bunts, good pickoff moves, we knew he’d be able to control some of that running game. But also I think some of that competitiveness comes out… you can see when he’s living down in the zone he can make it really hard on right handers and left handers.“
– Mike Bianco on Riley Maddox
Defensive Letdown
After Maddox rolled through five innings, he allowed a leadoff single in the sixth. A groundout would move the runner to second, and a bunt would then move him to third. With two outs, the Rebels would intentionally walk Nick Lopez to get to Mitchell Daly, who was hitting just .277. Maddox would get the count to 1-2, a pitch away from escaping the jam. Unfortunately, a wild pitch would score the runner from third, making it 2-1, Wildcats.
Daly would then be hit by a pitch, and a fielding error on Jackson Ross would allow Kentucky to score another run, making it 3-1. Mason Nichols would then come on to replace Maddox, but a passed ball would allow the Wildcats to tack on one more, making it 4-1 heading to the bottom of the sixth.
Lege Light Show To Answer
In the home half, Jackson Ross would lead off with a single for the Rebels. That would set the stage for Ethan Lege to cue the showers.
Absolute laser from Lege 🚀@_ethanlege | SECN+ pic.twitter.com/OVEitfXpI2
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 30, 2024
Lege has been consistent at the plate all season, and that bomb, his eighth of the year, came at a crucial time to get Ole Miss back in the game. The Rebels would get two more on after a hit-by-pitch and a walk, but a Brayden Randle strikeout would leave them stranded, marking six runners left on base through six innings for Ole Miss.
Welcome To Sportscenter Top 10, Mr. Groff
After Mason Nichols recorded a strikeout to start the seventh inning, Grant Smith would hit a long fly ball to left center field, tailing away from Ethan Groff. But Groff would make a spectacular diving catch, saving at least a double, possibly a triple.
ETHAN. GROFF.@ethangroff12 | SECN+ pic.twitter.com/horqIgB6uf
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 30, 2024
“I got a pretty good jump on it, read it pretty well. It was a really tough play, but it was pretty fun to dive and make a play for the team.”
-Ethan Groff on his diving catch
Nichols would then get another flyout to end the inning, keeping the score 4-3 Kentucky.
Stranded Runners Bite the Rebs
After stranding six baserunners in six innings, Ole Miss would get Luke Hill to second base with one out in the bottom of the seventh, representing the tying run. But once again, they would fail to score, leaving the score 4-3 in favor of the Wildcats headed to the eighth.
Kentucky was 18-0 when leading after seven innings entering the night, and they promptly made Ole Miss pay for stranding Hill. Emilian Pitre would lead off the eighth with a solo homer, giving Kentucky an insurance run as they extended the lead to 5-3.
Mitch Murrell would then replace Mason Nichols. Murrell would allow a double but nothing more, keeping it a two-run deficit headed to the home portion of the eighth.
The Rebels would go quietly in the home half, getting only a Trenton Lyons single. The game headed to the ninth inning with Kentucky holding a two-run lead.
The stranded runners theme would strike for a final time, however, in the bottom of the ninth. Ole Miss would load the bases with just one out, getting a golden opportunity to complete a comeback. But once again, the Rebels were unable to cash in, and Kentucky would hold on for the 5-3 win, taking game one of the series in Oxford.
The story in this one? Three passed balls, two wild pitches, three errors, and most importantly, eleven runners left stranded by the Rebels, including the three biggest runners of the night in the ninth inning. You won’t win many SEC baseball games with numbers like that, as Coach Bianco emphasized postgame.
“It’s frustrating to think that it was two earned runs out of the five. It’s tough to win any ballgame when you’re giving up three unearned runs, especially on a Friday.”
-Mike Bianco on the tough night for the defense
Looking Ahead
Liam Doyle (2-0, 4.12 ERA), who has been superb in back-to-back starts, recording 10 strikeouts in each, will take the mound for the Rebels on Saturday as Ole Miss looks to even the series. First pitch is set for 1:30 PM on the SEC Network+.
Austin Eldridge
Austin has more than ten years in sports media, including sports talk radio, play-by-play broadcasting and journalism. He has followed Ole Miss athletics for his entire life and has covered the Rebels and the rest of the SEC while working in the Memphis media market. Outside of sports media, Austin is a musician and outdoorsman. Before a serious accident forced him to be medically discharged, he was a multi-media journalist with the Mississippi National Guard.
