Ole Miss' Tristan Bissetta celebrates his grand slam home run Friday night against No. 2 Texas. | Ole Miss Athletics
Ole Miss' Tristan Bissetta celebrates his grand slam home run Friday night against No. 2 Texas. | Ole Miss Athletics

Tristan Bissetta’s Grand Slam Stuns No. 2 Texas in Extra-Inning Thriller

BY Taylor Hodges

Ole Miss didn’t play its cleanest game of the season Friday night. Not even close.

When you strike out 16 times and only four players record hits, you usually walk off the field shaking your head, not celebrating.

But baseball doesn’t always follow the script, and the Rebels were more than happy to take the plot twist that unfolded in Austin.

Down three runs. Down to their final out. Down to a Texas team that hadn’t lost a game all year. And then Tristan Bissetta stepped in and flipped the whole night on its head.

His grand slam in the ninth wasn’t just a big swing. It was, but it was also the type of swing that instantly flips the moods of both teams.

Ole Miss went from staring at a 7-4 loss to suddenly leading 8-7, and even though Texas answered in the bottom half to force extras, the tone of the game had already changed. The Rebels weren’t hanging on anymore. They were pushing back.

Bissetta finished 3-for-6 with five RBI, and Judd Utermark matched him in impact if not in fireworks, going 4-for-6 and setting the table all night.

When only four guys get hits and two of them combine for seven of those hits in win, you take it and move on.

The pitching wasn’t perfect either, but it was timely and the bullpen lived up to its growing reputation of being a shutdown unit.

Taylor Rabe handled the ninth and tenth with five strikeouts, keeping Texas from walking it off. Landon Waters closed the door in the 11th with a full-count walk, three straight strikes, and a little bit of swagger.

And credit to the bottom of the order for giving the Rebels one more push in extras. Hayden Federico, Dom Decker, and Utermark loaded the bases with nobody out, and Owen Paino, stepping in for the first time all night, drew the calmest walk of the game to bring home the go-ahead run.

Was it pretty? Not really. Was it needed? Absolutely.

Ole Miss just handed the No. 2 team in the country its first loss of the season, 9-8, on the road, in a game where the Rebels spent most of the night chasing momentum.

That’s the kind of win that sticks with a team. Not because it was flawless, but because it wasn’t.

A win is a win, and this one came with a little extra joy attached.

Pitching Decisions

  • WP: Taylor Rabe (3-0), 2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 5 K, 38 TP
  • LP: Crossland (1-1), 1.1 IP, 1 R, 4 K, 1 WP, 2 HBP
  • S: Landon Waters (1), 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 15 TP

Ole Miss Batting Leaders

  • Judd Utermark: 4-6, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 2B
  • Tristan Bissetta: 3-6, 5 RBI, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 K
  • Hayden Federico: 2-3, 3 R, 2 HBP

Next Up

Ole Miss and Texas will continue their weekend series Saturday. First pitch is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on SEC Network. The Rebels will send right-hander Cade Townsend (2-0, 0.48 ERA, 32 K) to the mound first and the Longhorns will counter with left-hander Luke Harrison (1-0, 3.06 ERA).

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