Fischer, Doyle Shine as Rebels Win Opening SEC Series Over South Carolina
OXFORD, Miss. – The Ole Miss Rebels pulled away late to earn another win over the No. 20 South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday, claiming the opening series of conference play with a 12-3 final score at Swayze Field.
Third baseman Andrew Fischer and LHP Liam Doyle proved to be the heroes of the day for the Rebels (15-5, 2-0 SEC) after productive outings at the plate and on the mound, respectively. Doyle registered double-digit strikeouts in his outing, and Fischer helped propel Ole Miss with the long ball en route to the win.
Ole Miss Rebels Andrew Fischer (left) and Liam Doyle on Saturday vs. South Carolina
Ole Miss Athletics
Ole Miss struck first on Saturday afternoon, as Jackson Ross brought home Ethan Groff with an RBI single in the first inning. That lead would grow to 2-0 in the bottom of the third on a solo home run from Fischer, his first of three on the day.
Carolina then got in on the home run party with a solo shot in the top of the fourth and a two-run blast in the fifth to claim its first lead of the day at 3-2, but back-to-back home runs by Groff and Fischer put Ole Miss back on top in the bottom of the fifth.
From that point on, the game was a nail-biter until the Rebels struck for eight runs in the bottom of the eighth, including a three-run shot from Fischer, marking his third and final home run of the day. A solo home run from Ethan Lege later that inning gave Ole Miss a mark of five big flies on the day.
Doyle’s outing on the hill for Ole Miss lasted 5.1 innings, and he was tabbed for three earned runs on the day. The biggest part of his stat line, however, was his 10 strikeouts, He was relieved by a combination of Wes Mendes, Josh Mallitz and Mason Morris who kept the Gamecocks off the board for the final 3.2 innings.
Saturday's win for the Rebels makes them 2-0 in conference play, meaning they already have one-third of their SEC win total from a season ago.
Ole Miss will seek to sweep the opening series of conference play on Sunday afternoon as it concludes its bout with the Gamecocks. First pitch is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised on SEC Network+.