OXFORD | Ole Miss played with midweek fire but finished well thanks to Judd Utermark’s extra-inning walk-off home run.
The Rebels beat Arkansas State, 4-2, in 10 innings to move to 3-1 on the season. Utermark hit the first pitch over the left-center wall with two outs and a runner on first. Luke Hill had an infield single with one out.
“It was a big curve, and credit to the guys beforehand relaying things to me from their at-bats,” Utermark said. “It was up in the zone, and I got good contact on it.”
Ole Miss used five different arms to blank the Red Wolves through eight innings before Connor Spencer allowed two runs in the ninth to tie the game. Owen Paino had an error, and then Spencer walked a batter and hit a batter to load the bases with no outs.
A fielder’s choice and a fly out tied the game. Spencer was ahead of the batter he walked 1-2, and the batter he hit, 0-1.
“He’s got to get in the strike zone a little more,” Mike Bianco said. “Obviously you want to catch the ball, too, in the ninth in a close game. For him he needs to be in good counts and land offspeed pitches.”
Gunnar Dennis pitched around trouble in the 10th, using a nifty turn at second from Hayden Federico on a double play.
Ole Miss yielded three hits and three walks which kept ASU from many opportunities through eight innings. The Red Wolves only had three at-bats with a runner in scoring position and went 0-for-7 with runners on base – and never put the leadoff batter on first until the ninth.
The win and the pitching in all but one inning masked a difficult time for Ole Miss at the plate. The Rebels, two days after putting up 15 in seven innings against Clemson, had just three hits and went 1-for-14 with runners on and 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position during regulation.
Despite having a leadoff runner on five times, the Rebels’ only runs came on a stolen base at home and a double play that scored a run.
“I hate to say tried too hard, but our swings got big in the wrong moments,” Bianco said. “A day like this isn’t where you want bigger and long swings. Fly balls are bad today. We blew opportunities. We didn’t need hits; we needed guys to move the ball with runners on base.”
ASU walked seven Rebels and hit a batter but pitched out of major trouble multiple times, partly thanks to three double plays.
Ole Miss starter Alex Canney opened his Rebel career with three scoreless innings. The Tampa product struck out four and scattered a hit and a walk over 43 pitches, 28 of which were strikes. Canney’s velocity was a little down, sitting mostly 87-90 MPH, but he located well and worked in offspeed effectively. It was a quality initial effort in cold weather.
“It’s tough with the Florida kid; I don’t know how many days he’s pitched in stuff like this,” Bianco said. “My guess is none. He also threw in the pen this past weekend. I’m proud of him and the pitchers. They won it for us.”
Owen Hancock, one of the top-rated signees in the freshman class that ranked fourth nationally, went an inning with a walk and strikeout and flashed up to 94 MPH with his fastball.
Brayden Jones worked an easy inning and then got in trouble in the sixth with a single and a walk after a strikeout. Hudson Calhoun entered and got a fielder’s choice and a line out around a hit by pitch to strand the bases loaded.
Calhoun lived off a mid 80s slider and retired five of the six batters faced. Walker Hooks, who pitched well on Saturday against Texas, threw a scoreless eighth inning which included seven of eight pitches for strikes.
Utermark walked to start the fourth inning, and Mitch Sanford followed with a walk, and after a double play moved Utermark to third, he stole home to give the Rebels’ their first run. Third base coach Mike Clement noted the pitcher’s slow delivery and lack of look over, giving Utermark the go-ahead to steal.
The Rebels tacked on another run in the seventh on a double play that allowed a runner to score from third. Freshmen Paino and Federico, respectively walked and singled with no outs. Smithwick grounded into a 4-6-3 double play, but it brought in Paino after he’d gone first to third on Federico’s hit.
Ole Miss had the best opportunity to break it open in the fifth, after Paino singled. Federico reached on a hit by pitch and Campbell Smithwick walked, all with no outs. The meat of the order came up next, but Luke Hill and Isaac Humphrey both struck out, and Utermark flew out to shallow left field.
Hill didn’t look comfortable at the plate. He fouled out in his first at-bat and struck three times until the infield hit in the 10th inning.
Ole Miss hosts Eastern Kentucky for a three-game set starting Friday at 4 p.m. and continuing at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday and noon on Sunday.
“It’s nice to win when you don’t play well,” Bianco said.
