May 12, 2018
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OXFORD, Miss. ââ'¬" No. 16 Auburn jumped out to an early lead for the first time of the weekend but couldn't hold the advantage as No. 5 Ole Miss used seven runs in its final two at-bats to defeat the Tigers, 10-3, in the series finale at Swayze Field Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers (35-17, 13-14 SEC) tied the game, 3-3, on a RBI double from Brendan Venter in the fifth inning and kept the game that way into the bottom of the seventh behind a strong relief outing from Cody Greenhill.
However, Tyler Keenan broke the tie with a solo home run coming out of the seventh inning stretch, and the Rebels (39-13, 16-11 SEC) scored six runs on six hits in the eighth to put the game away.
"I was hoping we would be the one to break the dam instead of our dam breaking," head coach Butch Thompson said. "Give credit to Ole Miss. Every weekend in the Southeastern Conference, when your best players play the best, you have a great chance to beat anybody. When your best players in key spots don't play their best, it becomes really though, especially on the road."
Greenhill (3-2, 1.60) turned in 4.2 strong innings of relief but suffered the tough luck loss with his lone blemish coming on the solo home run. Ole Miss reliever Will Ethridge (3-1, 4.53) picked up the win after pitching 6.2 innings and striking out 10.
Auburn jumped out to an early lead as Will Holland led off the game with a solo home run to left field, and the Tigers doubled their advantage an inning later when Holland came to the plate for the second time and ripped a RBI single back up the middle.
However, the Tigers left five runners stranded in the first two innings, and Ole Miss was able to claim the lead with a three-run frame in the home half of the second. Neither starting pitcher got through 2.0 innings in the game.
Still trailing by a run in the fifth inning, Venter came through with the two-out double that hit off the top of the wall in left field to score Steven Williams from third and tie the game.
The Rebels pulled away from there, though, with the aforementioned six unanswered runs.
Offensively, Venter extended his hitting streak to nine games, while Jay Estes has now hit safely in seven straight. Holland went 2-for-4 and helped Auburn to its ninth straight game with a home run.
The Tigers are back in action with a midweek matchup at Troy Tuesday at 6 p.m. before returning home to finish off the regular season with a three-game series vs. LSU from Thursday through Saturday.