Rebs use late rally to down Arkansas State

OXFORD, Miss. -- The first six innings were pretty frustrating for Ole Miss on Wednesday, but the swings finally started to produce with just enough time to spare.

After that, Ole Miss put it away easily

The No. 11 Rebels (22-4) erased a two-run deficit with a five-run seventh inning and added three runs in the eighth to beat Arkansas State (16-10), 10-4, and get back in the win column before going to Florida for a three-game series this weekend.

During the pivotal frame to take the lead, six straight Rebels reached base including four singles that plated the five runs.

"We hung in there," Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco said. "We didn't score early and didn't do some things, but we kept our composure and put two big innings together to win it."

Austin Anderson tied it with a two-RBI single, scoring Tanner Mathis and Auston Bousfield, who singled and walked, respectively. A wild pitch moved the runners into scoring position with one out.

Then, the singles continued, as Stuart Turner and Sikes Orvis followed Anderson with base hits to surge the Rebels to a three-run lead. Andrew Mistone also had a sacrifice fly.

Orvis was 3-for-4 on the night and has seven hits in his last nine at-bats. The Rebels had 13 total hits.

Freshman Brady Bramlett (4-0) got the win for Ole Miss, getting the last two outs in the sixth and pitching a perfect seventh inning for the Rebels. He struck out one and retired all four batters faced.

Left-hander Matt Denny struck out the side in the eighth, and Jeremy Massie pitched the ninth inning.

Ole Miss starter Josh Laxer lasted 4.2 innings and gave up three hits and two runs. He struck out three and had a walk. Arkansas State scored two runs in the second inning off Laxer with a one-out double and a two-out infield single.

"I thought all the pitchers were doing their jobs tonight and really pitched well," Bianco said.

The inning before Ole Miss broke through was the biggest wasted opportunity, as the Rebels loaded the bases in the sixth with no outs, but Will Allen struck out swinging and on a Holt Perdzock fly ball, Turner tried to tag but was thrown out at the plate to end the inning. Perdzock was pinch hitting for Will Jamison.

The Red Wolves went ahead 4-2 that same inning off left-hander Austin Blunt, when, after a leadoff single, a sacrifice bunt turned into trouble, as Orvis made a bad toss toward first base, and the ball went into right field, allowing ASU to move two runners to scoring position. Separate singles scored the runs.

Turner scored the Rebels' first run with a sacrifice fly in the opening inning, and Preston Overbey hit a two-out RBI single in the second.

Bousfield had a two-run single and Anderson drove in one with a single in the eighth.

"We stuck with the approach and waited for the big inning," Orvis said.