Ole Miss blanks Southern Miss 5-0, ends 50-year CWS drought

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) — Hunter Elliott struck out 10 in 7 1/3 shutout inniings, Jacob Gonzalez drove in the first run with an infield hit and Mississippi won the Hattiesburg Super Regional with a 5-0 victory over No. 11 overall seed Southern Mississippi on Sunday to advance to the College World Series.

Ole Miss (37-22) didn’t allow a run in sweeping Southern Miss (47-19), beating the Golden Eagles 10-0 on Saturday. The Rebels, who will appear in their sixth CWS, ended a 50-year drought with the victory.

Elliott (4-2) allowed just three hits — all singles. He threw 97 pitches, 69 for strikes. Josh Mallitz allowed only a walk in retiring the final five batters.

The Rebels scored all the runs they would need in the bottom of the fifth. Harris singled off Southern Miss starter Tanner Hall (9-3) to open the inning. Justin Bench’s one-out double put runners on second and third. Gonzalez beat out a grounder to first to drive in Harris. Bench scored and Gonzalez took second on a wild pitch for the second run. Kendall Graham singled home Gonzalez to make it 3-0.

Hayden Dunhurst singled to lead off the sixth and scored on Bench’s two-out single for a 4-0 lead. No. 9 batter TJ McCants hit a two-out solo home run in the eighth to cap the scoring.

Hall allowed four runs on eight hits and a walk in 5 1/3 innings, striking out six. The Golden Eagles’ only CWS appearance came in 2009.

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