No. 8 Southern Miss Falls to Old Dominion Despite Feverish Ninth-Inning Rally

No. 8 Southern Miss got off to a good start in its Sun Belt series against Old Dominion on Thursday night with a blowout win, but the Monarchs flipped the script on the Golden Eagles at Bud Metheny Ballpark on Good Friday. It was a not-so-good Friday performance for the Black and Gold, as the Golden Eagles got ambushed in the bottom of the sixth inning and never recovered in a 10-8 loss.

With the loss, Southern Miss falls to 22-9 (6-5), while Old Dominion improved to 14-16 (4-7). Friday's result sets up a massive rubber match for Saturday. It will be the fourth consecutive weekend that the Golden Eagles have played in a winner-take-all game.

Monarchs Pull Away in Sixth Inning

After a back-and-forth battle through nearly a full six innings that resulted in a 3-3 tie ballgame, senior reliever Colby Allen came into the game for starting pitcher Camden Sunstrom with two ODU runners on base and just one out needed to get out of the frame unharmed. Unfortunately for the Golden Eagles, the sixth inning wasn't the charm for No. 6, as Allen uncharacteristically walked the first two batters he faced, scoring the go-ahead run for ODU. Then, disaster struck, as an ODU two-RBI single and a three-run homer blew the game open. Before you could even blink, the Golden Eagles were down 9-3 with the game essentially over at that point.

That inning was eerily similar to last weekend's Saturday loss to App State, where the Golden Eagles gave up a combined six runs in the sixth and seventh innings to spoil Sunstrom's career performance. Sunstrom (2-2) suffered the loss on the day while registering three strikeouts with eight hits and five runs given up in 5.2 innings.

Massive Ninth-Inning Rally Falls Short

The Golden Eagles entered the top of the ninth inning down 10-3, but they didn't go down without a fight. Southern Miss saw 11 batters come to the plate in the ninth and trimmed its deficit to 10-8 before running out of magic.

With the bases loaded and freshman pinch hitter William Tonsmeire, who walked earlier in the frame, up to the plate with two outs, Old Dominion was starting to sweat a little bit. However, Tonsmeire grounded out to first, and the feverish comeback attempt officially fell short. It was a case of too little, too late for the Golden Eagles' bats.

Eags' Inconsistency Rears Its Head Once Again

For those keeping score at home, the Golden Eagles are now 7-7 in their last 14 games. Despite being a .500 ballclub over the last several weeks, the national media has given Southern Miss the benefit of the doubt due to the early-season strength of schedule and numerous high-quality wins. At some point, that respect is going to run out if the Golden Eagles can't figure out a way to piece together some 3-1 or 4-0 weeks.

Perhaps that benefit of the doubt will linger for one more week if Southern Miss can salvage this weekend in what feels like a must-win rubber match for the Golden Eagles in Norfolk. Stay tuned to Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI for more baseball coverage as this Sun Belt series concludes tomorrow.