Diamond Rebels Season Comes to A Close in Los Angeles

Errol Robinson safe at second against Bakersfield
Photo courtesy Joshua McCoy, Ole Miss Athletics

The Ole Miss baseball team saw its 2015 season come to an end, dropping a tight 2-1 contest to CSU Bakersfield Saturday, May 30, at the Los Angeles Regional of the 2015 NCAA Tournament. One swing of the bat, a two-run home run by CSU Bakersfield’s Soloman Williams, was the difference in the game that gave the Roadrunners (37-23-1) the win and ended the Rebels’ (30-28) Road to Omaha.

Each team tallied seven hits throughout the ballgame. Sophomore Errol Robinson went 3-for-4 with a double to lead Ole Miss. His performance at the plate was the sixth time this season that he recorded at least three hits, a team high. Classmate J.B. Woodman added a pair of hits as well, and senior Sikes Orvis smacked a single in his final game as a Rebel.

Redshirt sophomore Brady Bramlett (7-4) was saddled with the loss although he pitched effectively for seven innings. The right-hander allowed two runs on seven hits, while striking out five and walking just one. Sophomore Wyatt Short pitched a perfect eighth inning, retiring all three batters he faced.

Along with the home run by Williams, CSU Bakersfield was led by a complete game from starting pitcher Hayden Carter (9-3). He gave up one run on seven hits with just two strikeouts and a pair of walks. Carter tossed 117 pitches for his eighth complete game of the season.

Bramlett held the Roadrunners in-check, but the Rebels were kept off the scoreboard as well through the early innings of the contest. In the bottom of the fourth, the Roadrunners struck first. David Metzgar doubled to lead off the inning before Williams cleared the fence with a home run to right field. CSUB added another hit for its third to start the frame, but Bramlett retired three straight hitters to end the inning. Through four innings of play, the Rebels found themselves trailing 2-0.

Ole Miss got a run back in the top of the fifth, nearly tying the game on a deep flyball by Colby Bortles. Robinson led off an inning with a hit for the third time in the game, doubling to left field. A Will Golsan groundout advanced Robinson 90 feet, giving Bortles a chance to knock his teammate in on a sacrifice fly. The Rebels’ third baseman did just that, but it could have been more. Bortles belted a ball to deep center field that was caught at the top of the wall by CSUB center fielder Jordie Hein. Instead of a two-run homer to tie the game, Ole Miss had to settle for one run to cut the margin in half, 2-1.

After giving up the two runs in the fourth, Bramlett finished his outing by retiring nine of the last 11 batters he went up against and kept the Roadrunners off the scoreboard. However, Carter matched Bramlett by preventing the Rebels from tying the game. He retired the side in the top of the ninth to complete the game and eliminate Ole Miss from the 2015 NCAA Tournament.

Along with Orvis, four other seniors played their final game in an Ole Miss uniform: Scott Ashford, Austin Knight, Sam Smith and Scott Weathersby.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports Information