Rebels rout Vanderbilt to open weekend in Nashville

Ole Miss survived some early scares and missed chances before pouring it on Vanderbilt to open the weekend in Nashville. The Rebels beat up the Commodores, 11-3, on Friday to move to 29-6 overall and 8-5 in the Southeastern Conference. Vanderbilt is 20-14 and 7-6 following the loss.

Ryan Olenek has terrorized SEC pitching, and he set up plenty of offense for the Rebels on Friday.

The junior reached base five times via four hits and a walk to run his conference batting average to .500 in 53 plate appearances. He scored four times, with Nick Fortes and Thomas Dillard each picking up multiple hits right behind Olenek in the lineup.

Fortes was likely the MVP of night, finishing a home run short of the cycle and putting up three RBIs on three hits including a two-out, two-run triple to provide breathing room against Vandy reliever Chandler Day.

Fortes was also excellent behind the plate, handling the turf infield well and using his arm and defensive quickness to corral a speedy Commodores lineup that tries to force the issue on the bases.

Dillard had three hits, as well, helping those three spots in the order to a combined 10-for-16 night.

"The hits are evenly dispersed throughout our lineup," Olenek said. "You don’t have to feel pressure that you have to get a hit. Our entire team is seeing it well right now."

Will Golsan, who had two hits and reached base three times, hit his first home run of the season, and Ole Miss had 14 or more hits for the fourth straight game.

Ole Miss forced Vanderbilt ace Drake Fellows into a lot of bad counts and ran his pitch count up, eventually ending his night in the sixth after 95 pitches. He was all over the place with five walks and eight hits allowed. He also hit Tyler Keenan and was tagged for six runs.

Ole Miss was 6-for-16 with runners in scoring position while holding Vanderbilt to 1-for-7 in the same category.

Ryan Rolison and Brady Feigl flipping spots in the rotation lasted just one week, and Rolison gave a solid effort in his return to Friday night.

The Ole Miss sophomore scattered six hits and gave up two runs in 5.2 innings. He struck out eight and walked three on 108 pitches, 66 strikes. Rolison gave up three straight singles to start the game but after Vanderbilt plated two runs in the frame, the right-hander shut them down for the next 4.2 innings.

"He minimizes and only gives up the two, and then he was pretty special after that," Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco said. "Maybe this is the turning point for him."

He only had one 1-2-3 inning but was effectively wild with his fastball to both sides of the plate, keeping hitters from keying on anything. He effectively used his slider, especially against right-handers. He backdoored it for called strikes and coaxed weak swings.

For the second straight week, Rolison made big pitches when necessary and found rhythm from the stretch. It wasn't the cleanest outing, but it was tough and gutsy and effective. That was more than enough for Ole Miss on Friday.

Will Ethridge gave up a run in 2.1 innings, and Max Cioffi threw a perfect ninth. Cioffi hasn't allowed a run in 11 innings as a freshman.

Playing a series from ahead hasn't been a common thing for Ole Miss this SEC season, as the Rebels had lost the series opener in three of the four weekend prior to Friday. The Rebels' first chance at taking the series is at 2 p.m. CT Saturday, but heavy showers are expected all day in the Nashville area. Sunday's first pitch is currently scheduled for a 4 p.m. start that can be seen on ESPNU.

Ole Miss is up to No. 4 in total RPI and is one of three teams nationally with at least 29 overall wins. Florida beat Missouri Friday for its 30th victory, and Duke is tied with Ole Miss at 29 after a win against Florida State.

The Rebels and Arkansas are tied for the SEC West lead at 8-5. The Razorbacks lost to South Carolina on Thursday, and the two teams will play a doubleheader Saturday after a rainout Friday. Florida leads the SEC at 10-3, two games ahead of Georgia in the East.