Ole Miss needed late-game heroics in its Lincoln regional debut, and an unlikely hero in Brayden Randle stepped up to the plate with a bases-loaded single to walk off Arizona State 7-6 in extras.
“Never a doubt. It was a team effort,” Randle told the ESPN2 broadcast crew after the two versus three-seed classic wrapped up.
The reserve infielder subbed in for designated hitter Collin Reuter in the bottom of the eighth, and was on the wrong side of fortune in two at-bats before the game-winning hit. Randle, in his first plate appearance, had a hard-hit line drive snagged by Sun Devil right fielder Dean Toigo. In the bottom of the 12th, he smacked a ball into what would normally be a gap, but it was scooped and slung to Arizona State catcher Brody Briggs, who tagged Hayden Federico before he reached home plate.
But when it mattered most, the junior delivered, giving the red and blue their first run in nine innings and allowing Rebel fans to sleep peacefully. The big hit followed multiple squandered opportunities by Mike Bianco’s club to end the contest earlier, including stranding bases loaded in the eighth and going scoreless with a runner on second in the 10th, along with the 12th inning blunder.
Randle calls ballgame‼️ pic.twitter.com/IorBE9hvHl
— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) May 30, 2026
Joining Randle in leading a valiant and fruitful effort on Friday were Rebel pitchers Walker Hooks and Hudson Calhoun. Hooks was brought in to replace ace Hunter Elliott to start the top of the sixth with a 6-4 lead. The southpaw from Brandon went 5.1 innings and allowed the hot Sun Devil offense to score just two runs. Calhoun took over in the top of the 11th and held Arizona State scoreless for the remainder of the game.
Ole Miss (37-21) found itself behind the eight-ball early, with Elliott surrendering two runs in the top of the first. Rebel slugger Judd Utermark countered with a solo shot, his 50th career home run, in the bottom of the first to eat into the deficit. A Nu’u Contrades home run in the top of the third negated Utermark’s feat and reestablished a two-run advantage for the Sun Devils.
The Rebels, facing one of the nation’s top arms in Cole Carlon, opened the floodgates with a four-run bottom of the third. Will Furniss sent Dom Decker and Tate Sirmans to home plate with a double before Tristan Bissetta added to the scoreboard with a two-run shot. Arizona State (37-19) eventually knotted things up by means of the longball. Toigo hit a solo home run in the fifth, and Contrades knocked a two-run deep shot of the night over the left field wall in the seventh inning.
An additional seven innings ensued before another run was scored by either team, and it was Ole Miss that eventually broke the stalemate in the wee hours of Saturday morning.
Calhoun (4-3) was credited with the win after fanning three batters, while just allowing one hit in 3.2 scoreless innings. Elliott notably had four strikeouts in his five innings on the bump, though he surrendered four runs. The three Rebel pitchers who earned playing time, all of whom are from Mississippi, had a combined 11 strikeouts.
Offensively, Federico had a team-best four hits. Will Furniss, who was subbed for freshman Luke Romine late in the game, had two hits and two RBI, while Decker had two hits and an RBI. Sophomore shortstop Owen Paino had a rough night at the plate, going 0-6 and striking out twice with an opportunity to walk things off.
Jaden Alba (3-3) was handed the loss for Arizona State after giving up the game-ending run, though he had a solid five strikeouts in four innings. Carlon surrendered an uncharacteristic six earned runs in 6.2 innings, but also fanned nine batters during his time on the bump. As a staff, the Sun Devils had a whopping 18 strikeouts.
Contrades led Arizona State offensively with three hits, three RBI, and two home runs, while Toigo had a complementary three hits, two RBI, and a home run. Landon Hairston, one of the nation’s top bats, did not record a hit in the matchup but was walked three times.
Next up
Ole Miss, the regional’s two-seed, will face host Nebraska in the winner’s bracket on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT. Arizona State, the three-seed, will face four-seed South Dakota State in an elimination matchup on Saturday at 2 p.m. CT.
