Ole Miss holds off Southern Miss in a slugfest to claim the Oxford Regional
A day after letting an early lead fade to force a decisive contest on Sunday, the Ole Miss baseball team held off Southern Miss down the stretch to claim the Oxford Regional on Monday at Swayze Field.
With the 12-9 win, the Rebels advance to take on Arizona in a Super Regional in Tucson this weekend.
Ole Miss right-handed closer Taylor Broadway pitched two scoreless innings to close out the game for his third save of the Oxford Regional.
Ole Miss senior designated hitter Tim Elko, playing with a torn ACL in one of his knees, hit his second grand slam of the Oxford Regional in the second inning. In the fourth, he hit a solo shot to push the Rebels’ lead to 10-2.
“The legend continues for Tim Elko,” Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco said. “I’m proud of our guys for hanging in there. It wasn’t easy.”
There were a total of 11 home runs hit Monday — six by Southern Miss and five by Ole Miss.
Ole Miss, Southern Miss use top pitchers
Elko was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Oxford Regional after hitting three home runs total over four games.
Both Ole Miss and USM used their best pitching options on Sunday despite them having thrown plenty of pitches earlier in the tournament.
Ole Miss ace lefty Doug Nikhazy lasted 1⅓ innings, giving up two runs on two hits — both home runs.
USM went to senior standouts Hunter Stanley and Walker Powell in relief. Both performed well, holding Ole Miss in check after the Rebels jumped out to a 9-0 advantage.
Stanley threw three innings, giving up three runs on three hits. He struck out two and walked one.
Powell tossed the final two innings, holding the Rebels scoreless over that stretch with three strikeouts and one walk.
“They’re ballers. They’re the soul of this team,” USM freshman center fielder Reed Trimble said. “To work on short rest like they did, it shows they’re not just good baseball players, but what kind of people they are. They put their health on the line just to pitch and help us get this win. We just fell short.”
Reed Trimble sparks USM
In the fifth, the Golden Eagles’ lineup came to life with three home runs — a solo shot by Blake Johnson, a two-run homer by Reed Trimble and another two-run shot just over the left field fence by Reece Ewing to cut the Ole Miss lead to 10-7.
Trimble, who had 14 RBIs in the regional, finished 3-for-4 Monday with two homers, four RBIs and three runs scored.
Elko was named the regional’s Most Outstanding Player, but no player had a more impressive performance than Trimble over the course of four days.
“(He showed me) he’s probably going to play in the big leagues one,” USM coach Scott Berry said. “He’s a five-tool guy and he showed that. He’s an outstanding talent in everything he does. He’s an electric ballplayer, one we’re fortunate to have. We’re grateful he’s on our team. He’s a very, very good player.”
Trimble will be eligible to be selected when the MLB Draft begins on July 11, but he wasn’t ready Monday to commit to a decision on what he plans to do for next season.
“I love Hattiesburg. I love where I am,” Trimble said. “Whatever comes, comes. I’ll do a lot of praying and talking with family. If I don’t get what I want, I’ll be back in Hattiesburg … I just don’t know.”
The Ole Miss lead was cut to 10-7 before first baseman and nine-hole hitter Calvin Harris hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth to push the Rebels’ lead to 12-7.
Ole Miss went to Nikhazy with two down and the bases loaded in the top of the sixth. The All-SEC performer struck out USM pinch hitter Slade Wilks to hold the Eagles scoreless in the inning.
With two out in the top of the seventh, the Golden Eagles got to Nikhazy with back-to-back solo home runs by Danny Lynch and Will McGillis to cut the Rebels’ advantage to 12-9.
In the end, Broadway proved too much for the Golden Eagles to overcome down the stretch.
Much like it was in Sunday night’s contest, the first inning proved to be problematic for Southern Miss.
Starting pitcher Ben Etheridge allowed a pair of two-run home runs to Peyton Chatagnier and Justin Bench to allow the Rebels to jump out to a 4-0 advantage.
Ethridge lasted one inning, giving up four runs on four hits.
This story was originally published June 7, 2021 at 9:35 AM.
