Southern Miss ended the game in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday night, defeating Ole Miss 2-1 with a walk-off single at Pete Taylor Park in Hattiesburg.
Tucker Stockman delivered the deciding hit with two outs against Rebel reliever Landon Koenig, giving the Golden Eagles the late victory. The result dropped Ole Miss to 15-3 while Southern Miss continued a strong stretch that has included wins over several Southeastern Conference teams.
The Rebels received strong pitching throughout the night but struggled to produce offense.
Ole Miss managed only three hits and finished the game without a hit in several key situations. The Rebs went 0-for-9 with two outs, 0-for-5 with runners on base and 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position. The team also reached base with the leadoff hitter only once.
Despite the limited offense, the game remained tight from the start.
Southern Miss has now beaten three SEC programs on Tuesday games this season, including Alabama, Mississippi State and Ole Miss.
Ninth-Inning Threat Falls Short
The Rebels had a chance to take control in the top of the ninth inning.
Dom Decker reached base after being hit by a pitch, and Judd Utermark followed with a walk to give Ole Miss two runners with one out.
Will Furniss then hit a deep fly ball to center field with an exit velocity of 101 miles per hour. The ball stayed just inside the park and turned into an out near the wall. Neither runner advanced on the play.
Collin Reuter then struck out, ending the inning and keeping the score tied.
Southern Miss took advantage moments later.
JP Robertson started the bottom of the ninth inning on the mound for Ole Miss and allowed a leadoff single before recording two outs. Koenig entered with two outs but issued a walk.
Stockman followed with a single that brought home the winning run.
The Rebels had two strikes on the final two Southern Miss hitters before the walk-off hit ended the game.
Bissetta Supplies Only Run
Ole Miss scored its lone run in the fifth inning.
Tristan Bissetta broke a scoreless tie with a solo home run that gave the Rebels a brief lead.
Southern Miss responded quickly in the bottom half of the inning. Kyle Morrison opened the frame with a home run against pitcher Owen Kelly, tying the score at 1-1.
The game remained even for the rest of the night until it wasn’t. That ended the game for the Rebs.
Aside from Bissetta’s homer, the Rebs had limited success at the plate. Utermark had a double while Austin Fawley added a single.
Both players also struck out twice during the game.
Rebels Pitching Staff Keeps Game Close
Ole Miss used several pitchers and received effective performances from most of the staff.
Taylor Rabe started the game and worked 2.2 scoreless innings. The right-hander had not pitched in 10 days and was limited in workload while preparing for a potential long relief appearance later in the week.
Rabe allowed no runners and recorded one strikeout while throwing 19 strikes among 24 pitches.
Marko Sipila followed with 1.1 shutout innings as he continues to recover from severe flu symptoms that led to significant weight loss.
Freshman Grayson Gibson pitched 1.2 innings and allowed only a hit batter. Kelly later worked 1.2 innings and gave up three hits and a walk, including Morrison’s home run.
Robertson recorded the final two outs of the eighth inning before pitching into the ninth.
Defensive Plays and On-Base Streak
Ole Miss also made several defensive plays that helped keep the game tied.
The Rebels turned double plays in both the sixth and seventh innings to stop Southern Miss threats.
Decker continued a consistent stretch at the plate by reaching base again. The Ole Miss outfielder has now reached base in 18 consecutive games.
Even with the solid pitching effort and defensive plays, the limited offense prevented the Rebels from securing a win.
The loss came as the team begins a difficult road stretch against several highly ranked opponents.
