Ole Miss junior third baseman Luke Hill hit a go-ahead two-run home run in the 12th inning Saturday against Kentucky, and the No. 9 Rebels defeated the Wildcats 5-4 in the rubber match between the teams. The Wildcats won the first game of Friday’s double header – which also went into extra innings – and the Rebels won Game 2.
Trailing 5-3 in the bottom of the 12th, Kentucky’s Cole Hage led off the inning with a home run. The Wildcats got runners to second and third with one out, but senior reliever Alex Canney retired the final two batters of the game – including a swinging strikeout of Griffin Cameron to end the outing.
Freshman designated hitter Hayden Federico drove in a go-ahead run for the Rebels (24-7, 8-4 SEC) on a bases-loaded groundout in the 11th, but with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning, Kentucky’s (18-11, 5-7 SEC) Luke Lawrence hit a single that drove in the tying run. The would-be winning run was thrown out at home by senior right fielder Mitchell Sanford on the same play, however, sending the game to the 12th.
Senior centerfielder Isaac Humphrey drove in two runs in the game, including a solo home run. Senior Mason Nichols started the series finale and allowed two earned runs over 3 2/3 innings with four strikeouts and a walk.
Humphrey’s sacrifice fly in the top of the second gave the Rebels an early lead, though the Wildcats tied the game in the bottom of the inning. Kentucky took a 2-1 lead in the third on a two-out RBI single from Patrick Herrera, though a second runner trying to score was thrown out at home by Humphrey. Humphrey tied the game with his towering home run in the fifth.
The Wildcats got runners to second and third with one out in the sixth and attempted to bunt a run home on a squeeze, but junior first baseman Collin Reuter cleanly fielded the play and got the ball to sophomore catcher Austin Fawley in-time to tag the runner at the plate. Ole Miss got the go-ahead run to third base with two outs in the eighth, but Sanford grounded out to end the threat.
With runners on second and third with one out in the bottom of the inning, the Rebels turned to senior Connor Spencer. Spencer proceeded to strike a batter out and force a groundout to second. He retired the side in order in the ninth, sending the game to extras. Spencer pitched a perfect 2 2/3 innings with two strikeouts.
The first three Ole Miss batters reached in the bottom of the eleventh, eventually loading the bases for Federico. Federico grounded out toward first, but it was enough to drive in freshman Ethan Surowiec from third. Junior Brayden Jones walked the first two batters of the bottom of the inning, bringing junior Ryne Rodriguez in. After a bunt advanced the runners to second and third, junior Landon Waters came to the mound and walked the first batter he faced. After Waters induced a shallow flyout, Lawrence squared up a pitch from Waters and tied things up, though Sanford extended the game with his throw from right.
Hill hit his second home run of the series in the 12th on the first pitch he saw from Robert Hogan. It was his second longball of the series.
Ole Miss plays at Memphis today at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
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