Rebels End Cats Five-Game Win Streak
OXFORD, Miss. – The University of Kentucky baseball team saw itsseason-high five-game winning streak come to an end Saturday evening as theWildcats fell 5-3 to the Ole Miss Rebels at Oxford-University Stadium.
UK (7-8, 0-1 SEC) had opportunities to score in the fifth through ninthinnings, but left 13 runners on base in those five frames, including thebases loaded in the ninth.
Ole Miss (14-4, 1-1 SEC) evened the series with UK despite being outhit bythe Cats 11-7. Rebel starter Mike Gray picked up the win, his second of theseason by scattering seven hits and giving up only three earned runs oversix full innings.
Joseph Blanton pitched well for UK, but absorbed the loss. Blanton wenteight innings, struck out six batters, but was victimized by two unearnedruns.
The Cats got on the board with a single run in the top of the first onSeth Morris’ second home run of the season.
Ole Miss battled back with two runs in its half of the first, aided by twoWildcat errors.
UK regained the lead in the third when Vince Harrison tripled home BradPickrell and Beau Moore, giving the Big Blue a 3-2 lead.
The Rebels took the lead for good in the fourth. After Carl Lafferty drewa one-out walk, designated hitter Josh Christian belted a two-run homerover the center field wall.
Ole Miss would add a run in the seventh on an RBI single by Clint Farrar.
Rebel reliever Adam Yates would hold the Wildcats scoreless through theseventh, eighth and ninth innings to pick up his second save of the campaign.
The two teams will square off in the rubber game of the series tomorrowafternoon at 1 p.m. Rob Corrado (3-0) will put his undefeated record on theline for the Cats. Corrado will be opposed by Ole Miss’ Ronnie Goodwin.
