Baseball Drops Heartbreaker to Mississippi State In Round One of SEC Tournament

HOOVER, Ala. –Riley Maddox had a career night on the mound and Will Furniss hit his ninth home run of the season, but it wasn’t enough as Ole Miss (27-29) was walked-off by Mississippi State (37-19) in round one of the SEC Tournament by a score of 2-1.

Maddox worked a career-high seven scoreless innings, giving up just three hits and tying his career high with seven strikeouts. He did not issue a single walk during his outing. He became the first Rebel pitcher to work seven innings this season and the first to do it since Xavier Rivas on May 18 last season.

Both Maddox and Mississippi State’s Brooks Auger pitched four innings of no-hit ball to open the game, picking apart each other’s lineups. Maddox racked up six strikeouts in four innings and the only baserunner he allowed came on a throwing error on the infield.

As the teams headed to the fifth inning, Furniss hit the first pitch he saw for a leadoff solo shot that went off the glove of the center fielder. It was the first hit of the game on either side and would be the only run for either side for eight innings.

Maddox worked through a double and a hit by pitch in the fifth and a single and a two-base error in the sixth to keep the Bulldogs off the board. When he came back out for the seventh, he worked a one-two-three to get through seven for the first time in his career.

The junior faced one batter in the eighth, giving up a single on a 3-2 count and was then relieved by Liam Doyle. Doyle worked out the jam in the eighth, taking the Bulldogs down to their final three outs.

In the ninth, Doyle issued a leadoff walk to David Mershon who then moved to second on a passed ball. He struck out the next batter and got a groundout to bring Connor Hujsak to the plate with two outs. Hujsak hit the first pitch he saw over the fence in left field for a walk-off, two-RBI home run.

Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss baseball on X at @OleMissBSB, on Facebook at Facebook.com/OleMissBaseball, on Instagram at Instagram.com/officialolemissbsb and on TikTok at @olemissbsb. Also, follow head coach Mike Bianco on X at @CoachMikeBianco.