No. 17 Ole Miss Gets Demolished on Rocky Top Friday Night by No. 7 Tennessee

The No. 20 Ole Miss Rebels did not get their weekend series versus the No. 7 Tennessee
Volunteers started on the right foot, as they were obliterated 15-3 in Knoxville on Friday night.

After starting SEC play last weekend with a successful upset of the No. 20 South Carolina Gamecocks at Swayze Field, the Rebels missed a handful of opportunities at the plate against the Vols in game one of their series. Junior LHP Gunnar Dennis started on the mound for the Rebels, but only made it through one scoreless inning versus Tennessee.

An RBI single put the Vols on the board in the bottom of the second, and Dennis proceeded to allow back-to-back homers to let Tennessee take an early 5-0 lead. The next frame was not much kinder to the former JUCO pitcher, as a three-run homer in the bottom of the third forced Mike Bianco to end Dennis’ evening on the mound.

In his sixth appearance of 2024, the Pearl, Miss., native registered nine hits, 10 earned runs, two walks, and five strikeouts in 3.2 innings of work.

Dennis was relieved by a combination of three Ole Miss relievers: Kyler Carmack (1.1 IP), Patrick Galle (0.1 IP), and Ryne Rodriguez (0.1 IP). Combined, the Rebels’ bullpen gave up four hits and four walks.

The Rebels finally got on the board in the top of the fifth inning after freshman infielder Brayden Randle hit his first collegiate home run to score two runs. A frame later, a fielder’s choice helped get Jackson Ross cross home plate, but Ole Miss failed to manufacture another run for the rest of the game, while Tennessee just kept pouring it on.

The Rebels will get an opportunity to turn things around on Saturday in game two of their series with Tennessee. First pitch is set for 5:00 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised on SEC Network+. Ole Miss’ projected starter is LHP Liam Doyle.