No. 17 Ole Miss drops finale, series with No. 5 Georgia
OXFORD – No. 17 Ole Miss left eight runners on base in its finale against No. 5 Georgia on Sunday afternoon, and despite another quality start from sophomore Taylor Rabe, the Rebels dropped the rubber match of the series to the Bulldogs 5-1 at Swayze Field.
Ole Miss (31-14, 11-10 SEC) won the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader, while the Bulldogs won Games 2 and 3. The loss snaps the Rebels’ streak of three straight SEC series wins. Rabe pitched six innings and surrendered three earned runs.
He had six strikeouts and did not walk a batter. Sophomore Walker Hooks pitched the final three innings and surrendered two runs, though neither was earned. After scoring 17 runs on 18 hits over the first two games of the series, Ole Miss mustered just one run on five hits Sunday.
The Rebels went 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position and 2 for 13 with runners on base in the finale. Sophomore outfielder Hayden Federico did not start in center field due to what head coach Mike Bianco described as a strained quadricep, though he pinch-hit in the seventh inning. Senior Judd Utermark, the Rebels’ usual third baseman, started in center.
Georgia (34-11, 15-6) starting pitcher Caden Aoki – a day after surrendering four earned runs in 1 2/3 innings in relief – threw six innings with one earned run allowed Sunday. He struck out seven batters and walked two. Scheduled starter Dylan Vigue was scratched from the start before the game.