Ole Miss advances to the College World Series

AUBURN, Ala. (VDN) — 

For the seventh time ever and first time since 2022, No. 18 Ole Miss baseball has punched its ticket to the NCAA College World Series with a 5-3 win over No. 5 Auburn Saturday evening at Samford Stadium-Hitchcock Field at Plainsman Park.

With the win, Ole Miss head coach Mike Biancohas guided the Rebels (41-21) to three CWS in his tenure, which ties the legendary Tom Swayze for the most by a head coach in program history.

It took time for Ole Miss to get its bats going, but the hits it delivered in clutch time were enough to give the Rebels the overall advantage. Will Furniss and Tristan Bissetta hit back-to-back home runs in the eighth inning when the game was tied, which fashioned Ole Miss’ two-run advantage in the game.

Judd Utermark drove Ole Miss’ first two runs home with a double in the sixth inning, upping his career total to 140 runs sent home. Hayden Federico and Brayden Randle contributed a hit each.

Ole Miss garnered only five hits in the game, but Taylor Rabe’s exceptional stretch of play continued against the Tigers on the mound. He worked 7.0 innings, the most by a Rebel this season, fanning eight runners to one walk. He secured his fifth quality start of the season and third in as many appearances despite giving up a pair of runs. He’s struck out 44 batters in his last four games, for an average of 11 per game.

JP Robertson and Walker Hooks pitched an inning each in relief. Robertson earned the win to reach a 5-1 record this season, while Hooks got his second save in the past two days for his ninth of the season. Hooks secured his ninth save of the season, which is the most in a single season by a Rebel since Brandon Johnson had 12 in 2022.

Auburn struck first, but it took four innings to do so. Auburn made its move with baserunners at third and second, hitting a single. However, the runner got caught in a pickle and maneuvered the base path enough to allow the runner at second to score. The Tigers took a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the inning.

The Rebels wouldn’t respond until the sixth inning, but they did so in dynamic fashion. Randle opened the frame with a single, followed by Dom Decker reaching after getting hit with a pitch. In the next at-bat, Utermark drove a ball to deep right center for a double, sending both runners home to knot the game at two.

After Rabe’s strong performance concluded with a solid defensive effort in the seventh inning, Robertson entered in relief. He kept the score as is, utilizing the defense behind him for a quick two outs. Two Tigers reached base, but an athletic catch from Federico in center field shut down Auburn’s chance to take a lead.

With an important frame upcoming, the Rebels delivered in the form of home runs in the eighth inning. With Utermark on base after a walk, Furniss gave the Rebels their first lead of the game by slamming a ball into the stands for a two-run homer.

Ole Miss didn’t stop there, as Bissetta added a solo shot in the next at-bat to provide insurance, giving the Rebels a 5-2 lead with one frame remaining. It marked the seventh time since April that Ole Miss had consecutive home runs in at-bats. For Bissetta, he took sole possession of the second most home runs in a single season with 23, one behind Rebel all-timer Tim Elko’s 2022 mark.

Hooks entered for the second time in the series in the final frame. With two outs after giving up a sacrifice fly that tightened Ole Miss’ lead to two, Utermark delivered the final blow to Auburn’s CWS hopes with a strong throw at third base for a groundout.

Ole Miss will await its next opponent as it preps for its first trip to Omaha since 2022.