Weekend ‘magic’ for Ole Miss did not last through Sunday as No. 3 Texas A&M wins series finale

The weekend magic against No. 3 Texas A&M lasted for the first two games with Ole Miss wins and five innings of Sunday’s match, but as abruptly as the Rebels had found some mojo elixir, it ended for the offense in the fourth inning and for the pitching in the sixth.

Trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the fourth frame, Ole Miss center fielder Ethan Groff doubled and designated hitter Judd Utermark walked with two outs. Captain Reagan Burford, who had homered in Saturday’s game, launched a high drive to right field that looked like it would have cleared the fence had Aggie RF Braden Montgomery not made a back-to-the-wall snag.

Then, after starter Mason Nichols had limited the Aggies to the lone run through five frames, reliever J.T. Quinn came in, gave up a three spot and all the momentum drained from the team and the Mother’s Day crowd.

“I was happy with my five innings, but it was just a tough game. Texas A&M was locked in after losing the first two games of the series and we just couldn’t respond to the pressure they put on us,” Nichols noted.

Even though there was a lot of baseball left in the game, the flow of adrenaline had clearly shifted to the Aggies and they showed why they are the third-ranked team in the nation. Explosive on offense and more than competent on the mound and defensively.

For seven innings, Aggie starter Shane Sdao, a 6-foot-2 170-pound string bean sophomore lefty who pitched at 93-94 MPH with his fastball, but had control of his breaking ball and changeup as well, kept the Rebels at bay with just three hits before giving way to relievers who closed the game out with two more goose eggs on the Rebel ledger.

“We never worked him enough to put any pressure on him,” said Groff. “He was throwing three pitches for strikes and we never got his pitch count up to get him out of there. I’m not taking anything away from him – he was really good – but we have to swing the bats better than that.

“We have to get the offense going next weekend in Baton Rouge the way we had it on Saturday.”

Ole Miss hit the ball hard several times, but unlike the first two days when hits were finding holes in the A&M defense or leaving the yard, they were shots right at them for easy plays and warning track flies that just didn’t have the juice to clear the fence.

The 6-0 setback, while deflating since it took away the sweep opportunity for the Rebels, could not eliminate the encouraging results of the series with the home team winning the first two before Sunday’s loss.

In total, it was a successful weekend with Ole Miss needing a showing like the series win versus Texas A&M to keep slim postseason hopes alive.

Now they travel to Baton Rouge to take on LSU in a Thursday-Saturday series that will decide if the Rebels make the SEC Tournament or not.

“We control our own destiny and have to put some things together when we go to LSU,” Groff noted.

Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco said it’s easy to figure out from this point on.

“Everyone can do the math – we have to take care of business and win some games as the regular season winds down,” said Bianco. “This was a big series win and puts us in a better position than we were in two or three weeks ago, but we still have to finish strong and win some more games.”

Ole Miss will be looking for some of the magic they had the first two games of the Texas A&M series, first in Hattiesburg Tuesday night against Southern Mississippi and then on to Baton Rouge, never an easy place to play, to take on the defending national champions who have also had some struggles this season.

Stay tuned. . . . 

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