Ole Miss Falls to Southern Miss, 7-6

OXFORD, Miss. – This game just did not go down in favor of the Rebels, as the team falls to Southern Miss for the second consecutive time this season and the fourth straight time in the series. This was also the last mid week game of the season and didn’t turn out the way we all wanted.

The Rebels started the game with a commanding four run lead that would be dropped midway through the game. The team stuck their first runs in the bottom of the first inning. In a two out rally, Sikes Orvis pushed the first run across the plate with a RBI single, then Errol Robinson hit a two RBI single that gave the Rebels an early 3-0 lead.

In the bottom of the third inning, the Rebels would extend their lead after Austin Anderson scored on a sacrifice fly out by Sikes Orvis. This brought the game score to 4-0 in favor of the Rebels.

The problem for the Rebels last night was not the offense, it was the defense. A poor pitching display added with enough errors kept Southern Miss alive in the game. Ole Miss took over the lead three different times in the game, but just couldn’t not hold the Golden Eagles of Southern Miss from answering each time.

You could immediately tell Mike Bianco’s strategy was to save arm strength for the upcoming weekend series against Arkansas. The entire Rebel bullpen saw action on the mound in an unsuccessful attempt to close out Southern Miss. Jacob Waguespack, Austin Blunt, Preston Tarkington, Scott Ashford, Cheyne Bickel, Hawtin Buchanan, Scott Weathersby, Josh Laxer and Wyatt Short all followed in relief to freshman starter Evan Anderson. Short would be the one to pick up the loss.

Here are Coach Mike Bianco’s comments on the loss to Southern Miss:

"It’s just disappointing. Somebody has to get them out besides the guys that pitch on the weekend all the time. We were a little limited today, but the other guys are supposed to get them out too. We gave up runs in five of the last six innings, and you’re not going to win baseball games doing that."

This isn’t just another midweek loss we should just shrug our shoulders at and move on. The Rebels are in a current fight to be a national seed host, and need all RPI boosts they can get. The Rebels RPI is currently 4th in the nation (very impressive), but the team just lost to Southern Miss who is ranked No. 67 in the RPI rankings.

With the loss, the Rebels fall to 33-13 overall. The team will rebuild to host Arkansas in the upcoming weekend series. There are only three weekend series and one midweek game left in the regular season. It is time for the Rebels to crunch in and pull together the national seed host they deserve. We will see you at Swayze Friday night with a first pitch scheduled at 6:30 p.m. CT.