Ole Miss pitcher Hudson Calhoun started Saturday's game against Mississippi State at Swayze Field. | Dylan Cohron, HottyToddy.com Images
Ole Miss pitcher Hudson Calhoun started Saturday's game against Mississippi State at Swayze Field. | Dylan Cohron, HottyToddy.com Images

Ole Miss Rides Home Runs, Pitching to Road Win Over Tennessee

BY Taylor Hodges

If you want to understand why Ole Miss can be dangerous once tournament time arrives, Friday night offered a clear example.

No. 25 Ole Miss wasn’t perfect in its 7-4 win against Tennessee. However, the Rebels’ had the home runs flying and its pitchers shutting down the Volunteers. It was a solid showing on the road and sets up the Rebels for a chance to lock up the series win on Saturday.

On the Mound

Some jokes lose their punch the more you tell them. The one about Hunter Elliott only locking in after something goes wrong is getting there, not because it is untrue, but because it keeps happening.

So, when Tennessee’s Reese Chapman hit a solo homer in the first inning, at least one person watching (this writer) had the same familiar thought: Alright, now he will settle in.

And he did. Elliott did not allow another run until the fifth and gave up only two hits through six innings. He finished with five strikeouts, three walks, and two hit batters.

It was not spotless, but it was absolutely ace-level in terms of response. Even when he gave up a leadoff single in the seventh and Mike Bianco came to get him, Elliott looked like a guy who had more to give and wanted to give it.

Ole Miss then handed the ball to two of its most trusted bullpen arms, Hudson Calhoun and Walker Hooks. Outside of a solo shot off Calhoun, Tennessee did not have much left in the tank. The Volunteers never mounted anything that resembled a real threat.

This is the kind of pitching script that plays in tournaments: a starter who absorbs the early punch and settles into command, followed by a bullpen that keeps the game on track.

Pair that with a competent offensive night and Ole Miss becomes the kind of team nobody wants to see in a bracket. Speaking of which…

At the Plate

Everyone knows the deal by now: Ole Miss lives by the home run and dies by the strikeout.

When the ball is flying, the strikeouts fade into the background. When it is not, those empty at-bats are hard to ignore.

Friday was one of the nights where the trade-off was worth it.

The Rebels struck out 10 times, but the damage came early enough that nobody cared.

 Hayden Federico kept his hot streak alive with a 359-foot shot to tie the game in the second. An inning later, Tristan Bissetta and Judd Utermark went back-to-back to make it 3-1.

That was it for the long balls, but the offense did not shut down. Ole Miss added three more runs in the fourth and fifth, all on singles or a ground-ball double play.

It was not loud, but it was productive, and that is the part that should make opponents uneasy. Tennessee did not throw a midweek arm out there. The Rebels did this against one of the Volunteers’ better options.

If Ole Miss can mix this kind of situational hitting with its usual power and pair it with the pitching they got Friday, the ceiling gets a lot higher. On nights like this, they are a problem for anybody.

Pitching Decisions

  • WP: Hunter Elliott (4-1), 6 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 3 HP, 88 TP, 57 ST
  • LP: Landon Mack (3-3), 5.1 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 2 HP, 104 TP, 65 ST
  • S: Walker Hooks (3), 1 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 R, 14 TPO, 8 ST

Ole Miss Batting Leaders

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

Next Up

Ole Miss and Tennessee will continue their weekend series earlier than expected due to the threat inclement weather in the Knoxville area Saturday night. First-pitch is now set at 3 p.m. on SECN+

Saturday Starting Pitchers

RHP Cade Townsend vs. RHP Tegan Kuhns

  • Townsend: 3-1, 2.02 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 35.2 IP, 27 H, 11 R, 8 ER, 8 BB, 54 SO, .201 Opp. BA
  • Kuhns: 2-3, 3.77 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 45.1 IP, 42 H, 21 R, 19 ER, 9 BB, 54 SO, .237 Opp. BA

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