How It Happened: Ole Miss Baseball Earns Top-10 Series Win Over No. 6 Auburn Tigers

OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss got an early lead and never lost it, although the Auburn Tigers chased the Rebels the rest of the game. The final score Friday night: Rebels 15, Tigers 11.

Ole Miss improved to 37-17 on the season and 16-13 in Southeastern Conference play. Auburn has identical records of 37-17 and 16-13.

The two teams wrap up the series at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. Ole Miss was victorious in game one 9-2 on Thursday night.

Judd Utermark led the way for Ole Miss in game two with seven RBI on two home runs and a single.

After starter Riley Maddox took care of the Tigers in the top of the first inning, Utermark gave Ole Miss a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first with a home run to right after Mitchell Sanford walked and Luke Hill singled.

The Tigers got a run in the second and a run in the third before the Rebels put up four in the bottom of the third for a 7-2 lead.

Utermark singled to score Hill who had reached on a walk. Will Furniss, who singled, scored when Ryan Moerman was hit by a pitch with bases loaded and Furniss at third.

Campbell Smithwick singled to score Utermark and also Isaac Humphrey who had singled.

Ole Miss added two runs in the fourth and another in the fifth to take a 10-2 lead. Auburn cut the lead to 10-4 in the top of the sixth.

But it was Utermark who expanded the lead for Ole Miss in the bottom of the sixth.

Hill reached on an error and Furniss singled to set things up for Utermark. The junior second baseman sent one deep into the left field terrace for a 13-4 Ole Miss advantage through six innings.

But over the next two innings the Tigers found two runs in each frame to trim the Rebel lead to 13-8 after the top of the eighth.

During that time, Ole Miss sent five pitchers to the mound - Mason Morris, who was already in and ended up pitching 3.1 innings, Gunnar Dennis, Hudson Calhoun, and Walker Hooks.

It was Hooks who got the last out of the top of the seventh with the bases loaded when Ole Miss led 13-6 after the Tigers had already plated two.

After Auburn got two more runs in the top of the eighth and with runners on second and third, closer Connor Spencer was called on to end things in the inning.

And he did, getting Auburn's Deric Fabian to strike out looking. Ole Miss led 13-8.

In the bottom of the eighth, Furniss sent one out of the park into the batters' eye in center field with a two-run homer after Hill had reached on a walk. It was 15-8.

Auburn added three runs in the top of the ninth, but it wasn't enough as Ole Miss prevailed.

For the Rebels, Furniss and Utermark had three hits each. Hill and Smithwick had two hits. Smithwick had three RBI.

Morris (5-1), the second of six Rebel pitchers in the game, got the win. Auburn starter Samuel Dutton (6-3) got the loss.

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