Ole Miss Overcomes Shaky Start, Blows Out VCU 14-3 to Secure Series Sweep

The Rebels committed two errors in the first inning, but they dominated the remainder of the game on Sunday, capped off by a walk-off Tywone Malone home run in the seventh.

OXFORD, Miss. -- After falling behind 3-0 in the top of the first inning, Ole Miss settled in and routed Virginia Commonwealth to the tune of a 14-3 final score on Sunday afternoon.

VCU claimed its early lead via a Drew McDaniel walk and two Rebel errors in the frame, but Ole Miss responded in a big way, scoring runs in each inning from the first to the fifth. Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco addressed some of the fielding issues his team saw on Sunday as well as McDaniel's performance.

"We have to be better, and we will be," Bianco said. "We can field and field better than that, but I'm proud of the way he handled it. Last year, he might not have been able to handle it, and he did. He pitched well after that and put some zeros up."

Three Rebels hit home runs on the day: Jacob Gonzalez with a two-run blast in the second and a Tim Elko three-run shot in the fifth. Tywone Malone also ended things in the seventh with a two-run home run in his second plate appearance as a Rebel.

"It felt amazing," Malone said. "It was just an amazing feeling to come out and swing it and finally get one. It was a fastball outside, and I knew I could handle it. I just put the barrel out there and let the bat do the rest."

"Walking to the stadium today, I saw him," Bianco said, "and I said 'Hey, you got a standing ovation for just walking to the plate the other night. Can you imagine when you hit a home run?' I didn't think he'd hit one in a walk-off fashion today, but he's a neat kid, and he deserves it."

Peyton Chatagnier had his best day at the plate so far this season, putting up two hits and two RBIs. Kevin Graham and Justin Bench also had three hits apiece.

Ole Miss entered the day wanting to throw both Drew McDaniel and John Gaddis. McDaniel pitched 3.0 innings on Sunday, walking and striking out three batters and allowing one earned run. Gaddis, scheduled to start on Saturday prior to the inclement weather cancelation, also threw three complete innings and struck out one batter.

"You get into a zone when you know you're starting," Gaddis said, "and up to an hour before the game [on Saturday] I thought was going to pitch in really bad weather. That's baseball. It's just something you have to deal with.

"I got hot, then cold, then hot again," Gaddis continued. "That's the only big difference between starting and relieving."

Brandon Johnson saw his first appearance of the year in relief of Gaddis, entering the game in the seventh. Johnson threw one inning and struck out one batter.

With the win, Ole Miss now improves to 6-0 on the year, and it will return home on Tuesday and Wednesday for midweek bouts with Louisiana-Monroe. First pitch is set for 6:30 and 4 p.m., respectively.

Bianco announced following the game on Sunday that Jack Washburn will get the ball for the Rebels on Tuesday followed by Hunter Elliott on Wednesday. Both games will be broadcast on SEC Network +.

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