Ole Miss walks off Arizona State in 14th inning of Lincoln Regional opener
By David Wasson
Published:
The Ole Miss baseball team delivered a late-night classic to begin its run in the NCAA Tournament, as the second-seeded Rebels outlasted third-seeded Arizona State 7-6 in 14 innings in the Lincoln Regional.
Ole Miss (37-21) plays Nebraska (43-15), the regional’s top seed and host, which downed South Dakota State 4-1 on Friday, on Saturday night (8 pm ET, ESPNU), while Arizona State falls into an elimination game against South Dakota State earlier Saturday.
The 18th-ranked Rebels advanced Friday night in epic fashion when Brayden Randle roped a bases-loaded single through the left side of the Arizona infield to score Luke Romine and walk it off at 1:16 am local time.
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Randle’s clutch hit came after six innings of scoreless baseball, as Arizona State smacked homers in the fifth and seventh innings to erase an early Ole Miss lead earned in the third inning when Will Furniss doubled in two runs and Tristan Bissetta clubbed a two-run homer.
Hayden Federico went 4-for-7 on the night for Ole Miss, with Decker, Furniss and Randle each finishing with two hits. Nu’u Contrades and Dean Toigo each went 4-for-7 for Arizona State.
Hudson Calhoun (4-3) earned the victory for Ole Miss, allowing just one hit over 3 2/3 innings in relief. Ole Miss pitchers combined to strike out 11 Sun Devils. Despite fanning 18 Rebels in all, Arizona State’s bullpen let them down and Jaden Alba (3-3) took the loss.
An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
