Strong performances on the mound and three home runs propel Ole Miss to 5-3 win over Memphis
OXFORD, Miss. — The ‘red-hot’ Ole Miss Rebels rallied behind the pitching staff Wednesday night, taking down the Memphis Tigers 5-3 in the midweek matchup.
Wednesday Win ✅ pic.twitter.com/3DC0busxPG
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 7, 2024
On the mound
Junior Riley Maddox got the midweek nod, marking his third start of the year so far.
Right away the Rebel starter got a quick first out; however, a walk and a single followed, putting a runner in scoring position for the Tigers. Two more singles then followed, allowing Memphis to take an early 2-0 lead before Maddox could get out of the jam.
“Some of that was just bad fortune. That happens sometimes with sinker-ball guys. Some of it was…where I thought he was too adrenalized and too pumped up to start…his misses were up…he just has to stay at the bottom of the zone, and he did that really well from the second to the fifth.“
~ Coach Bianco on Riley Maddox’s start
After giving up a two-spot in the first frame, Maddox sat down the next six Memphis batters, 1-2-3 in the second and third. Through the next two frames, Maddox put up another pair of zeros on the board for the Rebels while only allowing three hits.
Five Ks through four, three straight scoreless innings for @riley_maddox1. pic.twitter.com/JCXApji8F8
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 7, 2024
The Tigers threatened in the top of the fifth, but a perfect double play was executed by Andrew Fischer and Reagan Burford to take the pressure off Maddox which allowed him to put up his fourth-straight scoreless inning.
Five, four, three ✌️@sirfischer3 ➡️ @burford_reagan ➡️ @Jackson_Ross55 pic.twitter.com/Kh377KJbOX
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 7, 2024
Brayden Jones was called out of the pen to start the top of the sixth in place of Maddox. The junior starter finished with five innings of work, allowed just two runs, one walk and added six Ks as well.
Jones cruised through the next two frames, sitting down all six batters he faced as he looked unhittable. Freshman Austin Simmons came to the bump to take over for Jones to begin the eighth. The Rebel reliever posted two innings of work and did not allow any runs, hits or walks while also adding four strikeouts.
Four strikeouts over two perfect frames for @bt16jones pic.twitter.com/dRckTqvfQN
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 7, 2024
“I like the bullpen. I think we’ve been outstanding besides a couple of hiccups here and there. We’ve played 14 games now and the bullpen has pitched a ton of innings…with that I think it has been the strength to this point. It’s nice to see (Connor) Spencer come out and look dominant. It’s nice to see (Austin) Simmons get off the field. It’s not always perfect. It’s not always going to look like what (Brayden) Jones did.”
~ Coach Bianco on the bullpen to start the season
Simmons struggled a bit; the freshman walked a pair in the frame which later resulted in Memphis plating a run on a passed ball. However, he was able to calm the storm and get Ole Miss out of it holding onto a two-run lead.
Conner Spencer trotted out to the bump to begin the ninth, replacing Simmons after just the one frame for him. The Rebel closer shut the door on the Tigers after giving up a leadoff single, sitting down the next three batters in order to secure the save.
At the plate
Ole Miss couldn’t capitalize with runners in scoring position their first go-round at the plate. In the bottom of the second, Captain Reagan Burford decided he didn’t need any base runners to plate a run for the Rebels as he blasted a solo shot to left to make it 2-1 though two played.
HR by @burford_reagan to put the Rebs on the board!
📺 SECN+ pic.twitter.com/aW2QctkCah
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 7, 2024
Still down a run, Rebel center fielder Ethan Groff looked to change that in a hurry as he sent a ‘screamer’ into the left field bleachers to tie the game. Ole Miss did not stop there, though; Jackson Ross would then single up the middle which set up Ethan Lege. The Rebel clean-up hitter then sent another home run into the left field stands; a ‘no-doubt’ shot that gave the Rebels a 4-2 lead through three played.
Groff ties it up!@ethangroff12 | SECN+ pic.twitter.com/9thdottM06
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 7, 2024
Lege drops another bomb 💣@_ethanlege | SECN+ pic.twitter.com/dVmKpeQd7M
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 7, 2024
“He’s the kid we thought he’d always be…I have been impressed that he’s played left and little bit of second. He’s super aggressive, but handles all pitches in the zone, he hits it all over the field, he gets hit…the thing I respect the most about him was the phone call we had in July where he called and said ‘I want to come back, I want to go to Omaha,’ and when you have older guys who are that committed it makes a difference.“
~ Coach Bianco on Lege’s performance at the plate this season
The Rebels put up zeros in the next two frames as the bats cooled off, leaving a pair of runners on the base in that span. The scoring drought ended in the sixth with Campbell Smithwick leading things off with a double to the rightfield corner. Ross would later hammer a two-out, RBI-double to left which scored Smithwick to make it 5-2, Rebels.
RBI Ross 🫡@Jackson_Ross55 | SECN+ pic.twitter.com/3e3e0B91jG
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 7, 2024
Despite swinging it well, the Rebels were only able to put up five runs Wednesday night. The story of the night for Ole Miss at the plate was runners being left on, as the home team stranded twelve runners during the course of its victory.
The Rebels did, however, have five extra-base knocks which proved to be the difference against the Tigers. Ole Miss also continued to have great patience at the plate as the Rebs came into the game second in the SEC in drawn walks with 107, coming away with nine more drawn tonight.
Three Ks closes it out! @connor44spencer pic.twitter.com/jlsQV0uAep
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) March 7, 2024
Up Next
The Diamond Rebels will host the Morehead State Eagles starting Friday to begin the final weekend of non-conference play. First pitch for the series opener is scheduled for 6:30 pm CT on March 8th at Swayze Field.
Kameron Wicker
Kam is an undergraduate 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.
