Brady Feigl is 'super dominant' as Rebels clinch series against Tulane

OXFORD | Brady Feigl’s day was only spoiled by his own offense.

The junior was called “super dominant,” a term head coach Mike Bianco has only used for pristine performances from starting pitchers over the years. And that outing Saturday helped Ole Miss clinch the series with a 9-1 victory that came with the wind blowing hard out to left-center at Swayze Field.

Feigl allowed two hits and one unearned run during six innings of three-pitch dominance that included six strikeouts and no walks. He threw 73 pitches but was lifted because the Rebels put together a marathon half inning that included five runs and four different Tulane pitchers.

"They help us stay warm, but in the end the offense scored too many runs," Feigl said.

Ole Miss (6-0) goes for the sweep at 1:30 p.m. Sunday. James McArthur is expected to start for the Rebels against Tulane right-hander Keegan Gillies. The Wave is 3-2 on the season.

[Related: Ole Miss takes game one, 5-4]

The right-hander hasn’t allowed an earned run this season in 12 innings, and the one run Saturday came after a passed ball on a strikeout and an error on first baseman Cole Zabowski during a pickoff attempt.

“I thought we was super dominant against what I consider a really good offense,” Bianco said. “On what I consider a tough day to pitch because of the wind blowing out and our park doesn’t play that small. I thought he was electric and maybe the best outing he’s had here, and that’s saying a lot.”

Three of his strikeouts came in that first inning, and he faced the minimum in four of the next five innings, stranding a single in the fifth frame.

Feigl’s wipeout slider was a factor early, and the fastball spotted for strikes when necessary. The final time through the order he went with his changeup, which has become a versatile option in any count.

“When they started sitting on fastball or slider we mixed in the change, and I could get that in for a strike,” Feigl said. “That was the biggest thing because you don’t need all the movement if it’s in the zone. It helped speed them up and slow them down.”

While Feigl did his part, Ole Miss gave him an early run with a Grae Kessinger home run to start the game and then ran Tulane lefty Ross Massey before hammering the Wave bullpen.

It was the Rebels’ first leadoff home run in the first inning since Tate Blackman did it against Arkansas last season. Kessinger had two hits, a double to add to his first home run of the season and two RBIs — joining Chase Cockrell as the only Rebels with multiple hits.

Ole Miss had 10 hits total and took the lead with a run in the fourth and two in the fifth before the five-run sixth ended any potential drama.

The noteworthy sixth inning was set up by singles to start the inning from Thomas Dillard, Will Golsan and Tim Elko. Brendan Cellucci replaced reliever Ben White and allowed two runs on a wild pitch and passed ball, respectively.

That ended Cellucci’s afternoon, but two more pitchers would be required to finish the inning, as a Cockrell single and a Ryan Olenek double brought in more runs.

The Rebels were 4-of-9 with runners in scoring position and 5-of-13 with runners on base.

Massey, who is trying to return to form from a nine-plus ERA last season, took the loss and allowed four runs on five hits.