Chris Ellis releases a pitch during a game against Georgia State on Friday. Ellis pitched a complete game shutout. Photo: Alex Edwards, The Daily Mississippian.
Friday: Ole Miss 3, Georgia State 0
Junior right-hander Chris Ellis tossed a complete game shutout and the Ole Miss offense provided three runs of support to propel the Rebels to their fifth win of the season, 3-0 over Georgia State Friday night. Ellis only gave up five hits in the game and struck out four.
“Chris (Ellis) was terrific,” Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco said. “In 13-plus years, not too many complete games, not too many shutouts here. Tonight he was excellent. He had three pitches in the strike zone. That’s a very good offense. Georgia State was ranked in the top five in runs scored. They got good swings off tonight, even as good as Chris was on the mound.”
With the win Ellis improved to 2-0 on the year and has now thrown 15 innings without surrendering a run.
It wasn’t the most conventional way to score, but Ole Miss was able to plate three runs on seven hits. An RBI single from junior Will Jamison that allowed junior Sikes Orvis to score in the second inning got things started for Ole Miss. Jamison was thrown out trying to take second, but an errant throw allowed for senior Preston Overbey to also score on the play, pushing the lead to 2-0. Then Braxton Lee drew a bases loaded walk in the fourth to cap the scoring at 3-0.
Saturday: Ole Miss 9, Georgia State 1
A five run fifth inning and a four run sixth inning pushed Ole Miss to a 9-1 victory over Georgia State Saturday afternoon. The win clinched the series for the Rebels. Redshirt sophomore left-hander Christian Trent turned in seven solid innings of work on the mound, giving up just one run on three hits in the win.
“Christian (Trent) was terrific,” Bianco said. “He pitched very similar to how Chris (Ellis) did last night. Just a great mix of three pitches and it really kept them off balance. He was super dominant. It was a great performance and another great defensive game.”
Not only did the Rebels get a good outing on the mound, they also pounded the ball at the plate and racked up 17 hits.
Georgia State got on the board first with an RBI single in the second, but after that the Panther offense was held in check. Ole Miss responded with two home runs in the bottom half of the fifth. First, a solo shot by junior Auston Bousfield, followed by a three-run homer by junior Sikes Orvis into the student section in right field. Bousfield then drove in another run in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI single.
The bats continued to stay hot in the sixth with senior Preston Overbey recording an RBI triple, Orvis an RBI single, and Bousfield knocking in two on a single. Six Ole Miss players finished the game with multiple hits, while two, Orvis and Bousfield, drove in four runs on the day.
Sunday: Georgia State 6, Ole Miss 4
Ole Miss suffered their first loss of the season Sunday afternoon, falling to Georgia State 6-4 and pushing their overall record to 6-1.
Junior right-hander Sam Smith got the start for Ole Miss going 5 1-3 innings and giving up three runs on nine hits. Smith was in line for the win when he exited the game, but the bullpen wasn’t able to hold the lead in the loss.
“I thought it was tough on all the pitchers today,” Bianco said “They are very good offensively and I think it was just a tough day to pitch today. You have to hand it to Sam (Smith). He battled them. Sam gave us a chance to win, just like he always does on Sunday, leaves the game with the lead, and with nine outs to go we’re not able to hold it. That’s tough.”
Both teams jumped on the board early, scoring two runs in the first. Georgia State plated their first run on a delayed steal of home, which worked with a throw down to second base. Next an RBI double pushed the lead to 2-0. However, Ole Miss responded with a two run double from senior Will Allen in the bottom half of the frame.
Ole Miss would take the lead in the second on an RBI single from junior Will Jamison, but Georgia State would tie things up in the fifth on an RBI triple.
The back-and-forth battle continued, but Ole Miss scored their last run in the fifth on a single from senior Austin Anderson. Georgia State would continue to produce at the plate.
The Panthers would benefit from a two-run home run in the seventh and a solo shot in the eighth on their way to the 6-4 win.
Georgia State also got a complete game from their starting pitcher Matt Rose, who gave up just eight hits and allowed four on the day to an Ole Miss offense that had been rolling.
“Rose was tremendous,” Bianco said. “It looked like early on we were going to be able to get to him, we got some good swings off his fastball, but then it kind of stopped and we weren’t getting as many good swings off. He started to roll, and then you could see there at the end in the eighth and the ninth just attacking the strike zone.”
Next up for Ole Miss will be a two-game home series with Louisiana Monroe Tuesday and Wednesday. Both games are set to begin at 4 p.m.
— Matt Sigler
mcsigler@go.olemiss.edu
