The University of Mississippi Athletics
Sunday, June 5
Coral Gables, Fla.
2 PM
Ole Miss
34-22
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Miami
40-19
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Miami (FL)
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Ole Miss
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Baseball Pulls Out Pitcher’s Duel, Heads to Regional Final
6/5/2022 | Baseball
Elko’s Clutch Double Pushes Rebels to 2-1 Win Over No. 6 Miami
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Ole Miss and No. 6 Miami traded scoreless frames back-and-forth until the sixth inning, when the Hurricanes took a brief lead and the Rebels responded in kind to pull out a 2-1 win Sunday night and head to the NCAA Coral Gables Regional Final at Mark Light Field.
Taking the hill in the postseason for the first time in his career, true freshman Hunter Elliott looked anything but a rookie. The Tupelo, Mississippi, native tossed five frames with just one run allowed, striking out eight. Fellow freshman Mason Nichols retired all seven batters he faced before handing the ball to Brandon Johnson, who locked up his 11th save of the season, second in as many days.
As a staff, the Rebels held the ACC champion Hurricanes to a season-low four hits on the night, striking out 14. In 18 innings at the Coral Gables Regional, Rebel pitchers have racked up 35 strikeouts.
Coming through when he was needed most, captain Tim Elko led the charge for the Rebels offensively. The senior reached all four times at the dish, going 2-for-2 with a pair of walks and the game's biggest knock.
Elliott had to work his way out of trouble in the early going, allowing the Hurricanes to load the bases in the first inning on a bunt single and a pair of walks. However, the freshman escaped the jam brilliantly, striking out three of the last four batters.
After that, the rookie settled into a pitcher's duel with Miami hurler Carson Palmquist. The two lefties traded zeroes into the middle innings, when the Hurricanes finally broke through.
Following a walk and a wild pitch, Hayden Leatherwood was unable to hang onto a liner to right field, putting runners at the corners with nobody out. That brought Nichols out of the bullpen, and the true freshman worked well to limit the damage, surrendering a single run on a sacrifice fly.
Ole Miss looked set to respond in the bottom half, putting two in scoring position on Jacob Gonzalez's leadoff single, Tim Elko's walk and a wild pitch. However, the Rebels couldn't cash in, leaving the bases loaded as three strikeouts ensued.
While the opportunity slipped in the sixth, it didn't in the seventh as the Rebs put together a two-out rally. After Justin Bench and Gonzalez notched back-to-back singles, Tim Elko shot a ball the other way into the right-center gap to bring both home. Just like that, a 1-0 deficit became a 2-1 lead.
With the lead in hand, Nichols got the first out of the eighth inning, and from there, it was Johnson's time.
After collecting the final two outs of the eighth, a one-out double in the ninth put the tying run on for the Hurricanes. With his back against the wall, Johnson produced the goods, striking out back-to-back Miami batters to send the Rebels into the Regional Final.
Following the conclusion of tonight's game between Arizona and Miami, Ole Miss will take on the winner Monday afternoon at Noon CT. The TV designation for the game is yet to be determined but the call can be heard through the Ole Miss Radio Network.
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss baseball on Twitter at @OleMissBSB, on Facebook at Facebook.com/OleMissBaseball, on Instagram at Instagram.com/officialolemissbsb and on TikTok at @olemissbsb. Also, follow head coach Mike Bianco on Twitter at @CoachMikeBianco.
Taking the hill in the postseason for the first time in his career, true freshman Hunter Elliott looked anything but a rookie. The Tupelo, Mississippi, native tossed five frames with just one run allowed, striking out eight. Fellow freshman Mason Nichols retired all seven batters he faced before handing the ball to Brandon Johnson, who locked up his 11th save of the season, second in as many days.
As a staff, the Rebels held the ACC champion Hurricanes to a season-low four hits on the night, striking out 14. In 18 innings at the Coral Gables Regional, Rebel pitchers have racked up 35 strikeouts.
Coming through when he was needed most, captain Tim Elko led the charge for the Rebels offensively. The senior reached all four times at the dish, going 2-for-2 with a pair of walks and the game's biggest knock.
Elliott had to work his way out of trouble in the early going, allowing the Hurricanes to load the bases in the first inning on a bunt single and a pair of walks. However, the freshman escaped the jam brilliantly, striking out three of the last four batters.
After that, the rookie settled into a pitcher's duel with Miami hurler Carson Palmquist. The two lefties traded zeroes into the middle innings, when the Hurricanes finally broke through.
Following a walk and a wild pitch, Hayden Leatherwood was unable to hang onto a liner to right field, putting runners at the corners with nobody out. That brought Nichols out of the bullpen, and the true freshman worked well to limit the damage, surrendering a single run on a sacrifice fly.
Ole Miss looked set to respond in the bottom half, putting two in scoring position on Jacob Gonzalez's leadoff single, Tim Elko's walk and a wild pitch. However, the Rebels couldn't cash in, leaving the bases loaded as three strikeouts ensued.
While the opportunity slipped in the sixth, it didn't in the seventh as the Rebs put together a two-out rally. After Justin Bench and Gonzalez notched back-to-back singles, Tim Elko shot a ball the other way into the right-center gap to bring both home. Just like that, a 1-0 deficit became a 2-1 lead.
With the lead in hand, Nichols got the first out of the eighth inning, and from there, it was Johnson's time.
After collecting the final two outs of the eighth, a one-out double in the ninth put the tying run on for the Hurricanes. With his back against the wall, Johnson produced the goods, striking out back-to-back Miami batters to send the Rebels into the Regional Final.
Following the conclusion of tonight's game between Arizona and Miami, Ole Miss will take on the winner Monday afternoon at Noon CT. The TV designation for the game is yet to be determined but the call can be heard through the Ole Miss Radio Network.
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss baseball on Twitter at @OleMissBSB, on Facebook at Facebook.com/OleMissBaseball, on Instagram at Instagram.com/officialolemissbsb and on TikTok at @olemissbsb. Also, follow head coach Mike Bianco on Twitter at @CoachMikeBianco.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Nichols, Mason (1-0)
L: Alex McFarlane (3-2)
S: Johnson, Brandon (11)
Batting:
2B: Zach Levenson 1
RBI: Jacob Burke 1
SF: Jacob Burke 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Yohandy Morales 1
SB: Jacob Burke 1
Batting:
2B: Elko, Tim 2
RBI: Elko, Tim 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Bench, Justin 1 ; Gonzalez, Jacob 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
3b/cf
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
IF/OF
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballIF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
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