Three Observations From Ole Miss' Wild Opening Day Win Over Hawaii
The Ole Miss Rebels found a way to walk away with a 5-4 win in the first game of the season on Friday night (and Saturday morning), and it wasn't without its fireworks (literally) against the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors. Here are three takeaways from the late-night action.
Ole Miss Athletics
The Two Ethans
Ethan Groff and Ethan Lege led the way for the Rebels in Game 1 at the plate. Groff started the scoring in the second inning by blasting a two-run homer to left, and he also had a sac fly in the ninth to tie the game at four apiece.
Lege, manning left field, flashed with the glove and the bat, running down a shot in the gap in the middle innings. He also turned in a 3-for-6 performance at the plate, tallying two RBI with one coming in the top of the 13th to put the Rebels up 5-4.
Despite these two great performances from veterans in the lineup, the Rebels left 19 men on base as well in the opener.
Electric Mason Nichols Earns 'W'
Nichols added length on the mount, going 4.1 innings out of the pen. He threw up zeros, notched six strikeouts and earned the win in Game 1. I don't know how many more innings he will throw on this road trip, but he could see some action in the series finale on Sunday.
Hawaiian Small Ball
Bunts, bunts and more bunts; Rebel pitchers need to emphasize first-pitch strikes. Hawaii hitters forced nine walks in last night's game, and with their brand of baseball, they make you earn every out. If this first game is a precursor to the rest of the series, look for the Rainbow Warriors to keep playing small ball and applying pressure to the Ole Miss infield.