When the calendar turned to May, Peyton Chatagnier was mired in a more-than-month-long slump and had just finished an 0-for-9 weekend in Fayetteville — a trip that saw Ole Miss fall seven games below .500 in the SEC and, at the time, out of postseason contention.

Chatagnier was hitting .132 over his past 76 at-bats, and the Rebels’ spark plug was still emotional and uplifting but struggling to get on base.

But as May arrived, Ole Miss got hot and so did Chatagnier. The Rebels won seven of nine league games to close and snag an NCAA at-large bid. And Chatagnier saved his best onslaught of the season for the opening game of the Coral Gables Regional.

The junior infielder went 3-for-4 with a home run to tie things in the seventh and then a dagger of a two-strike, two-out double in the eighth to carry the No. 3 seed Rebels to a 7-4 win over No. 2 seed Arizona. Ole Miss meets Miami in a winner’s bracket game at 2 p.m. CT on Sunday. The Wildcats face No. 4 seed Canisisus in an elimination game at 10 a.m. CT.

“That was an incredible game and you could tell the vibes were good from the very beginning,” Chatagnier said. “We faced adversity this season by not playing our best and proud of the guys for facing it tonight and getting behind and coming back.”

The Rebels (33-22) have been 2-0 in regional play on the road just once, in 2012, since the NCAA Tournament switched to this format.

Ole Miss loaded the bases with one out in the eighth, tied at four, and after Hayden Dunhurst struck out, Chatagnier got behind 0-2, worked the count to 2-2, fouling off a fastball across the plate in the process and then driving a pitch into the left-field corner to score all three runs. Two of the runs were RBIs, and the scorekeeper ruled Kemp Alderman scored on a fielding error, as the left fielder fumbled the ball.

Chatagnier is hitting .364 since May 1 and has scored at least one run in eight straight games and 10 of the last 12.

Jacob Gonzalez hit a two-run home run in the fourth that tied the game at two apiece after Arizona hit two solo home runs in the second inning.

“You can’t miss against their lineup and if you miss, you have to miss down,” Arizona starter Garrett Irvin said. “I did exactly what I couldn’t do.”

Chatagnier’s heroics, and Ole Miss’ late quality at-bats held up a gutsy, solid start from Dylan DeLucia. The reliever-turned-starter who saved the Rebels season pitched into the seventh inning and struck out 12 with one walk and five hits.

Arizona (37-24) waved at his slider all night. Nine of DeLucia’s strikeouts were swinging.

“We didn’t overthrow (the slider),” DeLucia said. “We wanted to throw it for a strike, and they were fighting at it.”

After the second solo home run, DeLucia retired eight in a row and 12 of 14 before two doubles in the seventh inning gave Arizona a brief 4-2 advantage. The RBI double came after Ole Miss walked Chase Davis and pitched to Tony Bullard who had struck out twice.

Josh Mallitz got the win and was brilliant for two innings. He struck out five of the seven batters he faced and kept things clean until the ninth inning, stranding a single in the eighth.

“He’s been as good as anybody the last month and a half,” Bianco said.

Mallitz has allowed an earned run in only two of his 14 appearances this season.

Closer Brandon Johnson gave up a walk and a hit but struck out the side for his 10th save of the season. All three strikeouts came with two on and the tying run at the plate. He first pumped and yelled at his own dugout following the final out.

Rebel pitchers struck out 20 hitters on the night. The school record is 21 which has been done twice -- in 17 innings against Arizona in 2001 and in a nine-inning game against Minnesota in 2008.

Ole Miss was 4-for-16 with runners on base and 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position, but Chatagnier’s double made up for the missed chances.

Irvin gave up seven runs through only four outs a year ago in the Tucson super regional but kept Ole Miss at bat for most of his 6.2 innings, surrendering the two home runs. The Rebels struggled with his offspeed early before barreling Irvin in the middle innings.

Hitting coach Mike Clement gathered the offense and changed the approach following the third inning. Ole Miss scored in three of next five frames and had solid contact in the other two innings.

TJ McCants injured his left (glove) thumb diving for a ball in the sixth inning and left the game. The outfielder is in a splint and X-rays were negative. McCants couldn’t squeeze his glove shut after the injury, and it’s unknown if he’ll be available against Miami.