OXFORD, Miss. (03/3/09) ? The Arkansas State Red Wolves out-hit 14th-ranked
Ole Miss 12-9 Tuesday night, but the Rebels (4-3) made the most of their
opportunities on the bags and handed the Red Wolves (2-4) an 11-5 loss at Oxford-University
Stadium/Swayze Field.
The Rebels broke a 2-2 tie with four runs in the bottom of the
third to take the lead for good.
“We had opportunities in the game early,” said ASU Head Coach
Tommy Raffo. “Very slim doors that were
open and we didn't go through. We did
battle late and I liked the competitive at-bats we had.”
The Red Wolves took a 1-0 lead in their first at-bat. Third baseman Guy Brown got aboard with a
one-out single, advanced to second on a single from center fielder Todd Baumgartner
and came home when Ole Miss starter Drew Pomeranz issued back-to-back walks to
ASU first baseman Brandon Eller and right fielder Derrick Coleman.
Ole Miss answered quickly, getting a pair of runs in the bottom of
the first. Center fielder Logan Power
delivered a two-run double just inside the left field line, sending home left
fielder Taylor Hashman, who led off with a walk, and first baseman Matt Smith,
who also got aboard with a walk off of ASU starter Jett Jones.
Arkansas State tied the game at 2-2 in the top of the third when
designated hitter Murray Watts delivered a two-out double and scored on single
from first baseman Brandon Eller, but a four-run outburst in the bottom of the
inning put the Rebels back on top 6-2.
Second baseman Tim Ferguson singled and eventually scored on a passed
ball for Ole Miss' first run of the frame, and a three-run home run from right
fielder Jeremy Travis did the remainder of the damage.
Travis drove in another run with a ground-out in the fifth to
extend the Ole Miss advantage to 7-2, and the Rebels added four more in the
sixth to stretch the Ole Miss lead to 11-2.
Arkansas State used an RBI single from catcher Lawson Hipps, a
sacrifice fly from second baseman Giovanni Garcia and an RBI double from
shortstop Jordan Kimball to trim the Rebel advantage to 11-5 in the eighth, but
could not close the gap any further.
Jones (0-1) took the loss for ASU, giving up six runs on four
hits, with four strikeouts and a walk in three innings on the mound. Phillip Irwin (1-0) picked up the win for Ole
Miss, working four innings while giving up one run on four hits with two
strikeouts and no walks.
Eller and Hipps led ASU with two hits and an RBI each, while Power
had two hits and three runs driven in to lead the Rebels.
The Red Wolves will return to action Wednesday afternoon when they
travel to Murray, Ky., to take on the Thoroughbreds of Murray State. Game time is set for 2:00 p.m.
