Midweek action on the diamond was lowlighted by Ole Miss losing to Little Rock and highlighted by Southern Miss beating Southeastern Louisiana on a go-ahead grand slam. Sprinkle in a Mississippi State run-rule victory over Southern University, and another non-conference slate is in the books for Mississippi’s major college baseball programs.
Starting in Oxford, the No. 11 Rebels (27-10) were shocked by the Trojans (16-19) in what was statistically the worst loss Mike Bianco’s group has suffered this season. Ole Miss took a one-run lead in the bottom of the first inning before allowing Little Rock to go up 3-1 in the third on a bases loaded double off the bat of Ryan Geck. An Isaac Humphrey triple off the wall tied the game in the bottom of the seventh before the Rebels allowed back-to-back, two-run frames in the eighth and ninth to lift the Trojans to a 7-3 upset.
Little Rock, with a 255th ranking in the RPI, is the lowest-ranked opponent Ole Miss has lost to. What made it even more frustrating, if you ask Bianco, was the fact that 12 runners were left on base by the Rebel offense.
“I thought it was a terrible effort,” Bianco told the Clarion-Ledger after the game. “We didn’t show up in any phase. You can point the finger wherever you want. Offensively, we were really bad.”
Ole Miss, which has now lost three of four after dropping a conference series to No. 3 Tennessee this past weekend, will return to action on Thursday for the start of a three-game series at South Carolina. The opening contest starts at 5:30 p.m.
In Hammond, La., all signs pointed to the No. 23 Golden Eagles (25-12) losing to Southeastern Louisiana (29-8). Down 7-4 with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, Nick Monistere was at the plate with the bases loaded and all SELA needed was one more strike to get the upset. But, in story-like fashion, magic came off Monistere’s bat with a go-ahead grand slam.
𝐍𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐘. 𝐃𝐀𝐆𝐆𝐔𝐌. 𝐁𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄.#EverythingMatters | #SMTTT pic.twitter.com/c4qhVEFNdE
— Southern Miss Baseball (@SouthernMissBSB) April 16, 2025
Colby Allen then retired all three batters he faced in the bottom of the ninth to close out the game and secure his seventh save. The go-ahead grand slam by Monistere was his second home run of the night and marked the second game in a row he’s hit two home runs.
Southern Miss begins another conference series on Thursday against Georgia State in Hattiesburg. First pitch of game one is 6 p.m.
In Starkville, Mississippi State (23-14) run-ruled its seventh opponent of the season by beating Southern University (15-20) 16-2 in six and a half innings. The win, being the third in four games for the Bulldogs, was propelled by Steven Spalitta’s first career home run along with three RBI.
Hunter Hines, who recently tied Will Clark for second on the program’s all-time home run list, drove in four runs against the Jaguars to take his career RBI total to 198 – just one behind Clark’s eighth-place ranking.
Mississippi State stays in Starkville to host Florida with the three-game series beginning Friday and ending on Easter Sunday. Game one against the Gators begins at 7 p.m.
