Missouri run-rules Ole Miss to clinch series, set up sweep opportunity

Ole Miss came into the weekend tied with Missouri for last place in the SEC, but the Tigers are now two games ahead of the Rebels after a 13-3 seven-inning rout on Friday.

Ole Miss (24-23, 5-18 SEC) is last in the SEC by those two games, while Missouri (27-19, 7-16 SEC) is trying to catch Mississippi State for SEC Tournament inclusion. The loss, with seven league games remaining, historically eliminates the Rebels from NCAA at-large possibility.

No SEC team has ever made the NCAA Tournament with 18 regular season conference losses. Mississippi State -- 12-17 in 2006 -- is the only team to get in with 12 wins.

Ole Miss will try to avoid a sweep in Columbia Saturday at 2 p.m.

The Rebels posted double-digit hits for the fourth game in a row but were only able to score three runs, all coming after the fourth inning.

Jacob Gonzalez, Kemp Alderman, Will Furniss, and Peyton Chatagnier each had two hits in the game.

The Rebels only went down in order in the third inning, putting runners on base in every inning of the game, but went 3-for-15 with runners in scoring position on the night.

Missouri scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning on a two-RBI home run from Luke Mann. Rebel starting pitcher JT Quinn settled in after the long ball and retired nine of the next 10 hitters he faced, keeping the Tigers off the board in the second and third innings.

With one out in the fourth and a runner on first, an error by Gonzalez at shortstop opened the doors for a six-run rally for Missouri. The Rebels made two errors and issued three free bases as the Tigers took an 8-0 lead.

Ole Miss scored their first run of the game in the fifth inning as Chatagnier opened the inning with a double, moved to third on a groundout by TJ McCants and scored on a RBI-groundout by Gonzalez.

The Rebels gave up three more home runs over the next two innings as Missouri jumped out to a 13-1 lead. They were able to rally for two runs in the top of the seventh but could not escape the run rule, ending the game after seven innings of play.