Ole Miss Baseball: The Rebels dominate William & Mary in Game 3 to take the series

OXFORD — Ole Miss shows up with an amazing offensive performance in game three that they we’re so desperately trying to find in game two. Brady Bramlett proves he is back and healthy again as the Rebels win the series against William & Mary.

Brady Bramlett, who missed all of last season recovering from injury, started on the mound for Ole Miss in game three of the series against William & Mary on Saturday. The sophomore right hander put on a stellar performance and picked up the win, after completing 6.0 innings of work, allowing only four hits, two earned runs, no walks, and eight strike outs through 22 opponent batters.

Unlikely the previous two games, Ole Miss was able to get on the board first in game three and dominated from there. Things started for the Rebels in the bottom of the first when freshman center fielder J.B. Woodman opened things up with a double offensively. Sophomore shortstop Robinson would pick up an RBI-single, advancing to third on a throwing error, and Woodman made it safely home to give the Rebels an early 1-0 lead.

Things really started to heat up for the Rebels offensively in the bottom of the third inning. It started with a single from junior right fielder Cameron Dishon, who reminded us of his speed from last season by stealing second during the next Ole Miss at bat. Sophomore center fielder J.B. Woodman executed a well placed sacrifice bunt to advance Dishon to third. Robinson would then add another RBI-single on the day. Ole Miss then led, 2-0, but were far from done in the inning.

Robinson would advance to second after a single down the right field line by sophomore catcher Henri Lartigue. Senior first baseman Sikes Orvis then picked up his first hit of the series on a RBI single to right. Sophomore third baseman Colby Bortles then picked up an RBI single, scoring Lartigue. Bortles advanced to second and Orvis to third on the play after a throwing error by William & Mary’s shortstop.

Next: Ole Miss Drops Game 2 Against William & Mary

Junior DH Holt Perdzock would then haul in an RBI single, scoring Orvis on the play, with Bortles advancing to third. Freshman outfielder Kyle Watson, who had an amazing opening day performance in opening day, hauled in his third RBI double of the series, extending the Rebels lead to 6-0 with still just one out.

Junior outfielder Josh Watkins then picked a two RBI single down to right, scoring Watson and Perdzock, ending the Rebels impressive offensive run that they had been searching for all day. After just three innings of play, Ole Miss led 8-0.

The Tribe looked to answer in the top of the fifth inning, down 8-0. Bramlett found himself in his first and only jam of the game. After William & Mary opened the inning up with a single, a double to right-center advanced the led off runner to third. On the next play, another double would haul in The Tribe’s only two runs in the game.

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By the bottom of the seventh, Ole Miss led William & Mary 12-2, and looked to add on more. After a lead off double by Woodman, Robinson picked up his third RBI of the game off of a single, but would advance to second on a fielding error during the play. Then after a walk and ground out, Colby Bortles, brother of NFL pro Blake Bortles, blasted a three run homer into left-center, extending Ole Miss’ led (and the eventual deciding score) to 16-2.

Sophomore lefty Wyatt Short picked the save for the Rebels, after 1.0 innings of work and ended things with a pair strikeouts in the ninth. The amazing performance by Ole Miss in game three ended with William & Mary’s final batter striking out while swinging.

No. 18 Ole Miss completes the opening weekend of the 2015 baseball season with a 2-1 record, dropping the loss earlier in game one of the double header on Saturday. Next up for the Rebels, they will host Arkansas State at Swayze field on Tuesday with a 4:00 p.m. CST first pitch.
Be sure to stay glued to OleHottyToddy.com and our Twitter account for tonight’s coverage of the anticipated matchup between Ole Miss and No. 24 Arkansas in men’s basketball. The Rebels will host the Razorbacks at the Tad Pad in Oxford with a scheduled 8:00 p.m. CST tip-off.