Ole Miss rallies to sweep Vandy

By Staff
From special reports
April 8, 2002 Ole Miss rallies to sweep Vandy
OXFORD Burney Hutchinson was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to score Jonathan Swearingen in the 10th inning to lift No. 11 Ole Miss to a 10-9 win and complete a rally from a 9-1 deficit Sunday afternoon in front of 2,482 at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field.
The win gave the Rebels (25-7, 8-4 SEC) a three-game sweep of the Commodores (14-12, 3-7 SEC) and extended their winning streak to 10 games, Ole Miss' longest since the 1964 season.
Trailing 9-1, Ole Miss scored three runs in the eighth, highlighted by Josh Christian's two-run triple. The Rebels then rallied for five runs in the
ninth. A Hutchinson double made it 9-5, and Seth Smith followed with a walk to load the bases with one out. Bryce Morrison hit a high fly ball to center
that was deep enough to score Clint Farrar and make it 9-6. Chad Sterbens then sent the game into extra innings with a three-run home run to left center.
In the 10th, Swearingen was hit by a Steven Faulkner pitch with one out and Barry Gunther hit an infield single. A passed ball moved the runners to
second and third, forcing Faulkner to intentionally walk Farrar to load the bases and set-up a force play at home. However, Faulkner's second pitch to
Hutchinson came inside and hit him to score Swearingen.
Al Simontis (4-0), the third Ole Miss pitcher of the afternoon, worked 2.1 scoreless innings to earn the win. Faulkner (2-3) suffered the loss as he was charged with two runs on two hits and one walk in an inning of work.
Farrar led Ole Miss at the plate, going 3-for-3 with an RBI, and also drew three walks to reach base in all six plate appearances.
John Kaye went 2-for-5 with three RBIs at the plate for the Commodores. His solo home run in the sixth gave Vanderbilt a 4-1 lead, and he added a
two-run double in the seventh as the Commodores took advantage of an error to score four runs and extend the lead to 8-1.
The Rebels committed five errors on the afternoon. Both teams recorded 11 hits each.
Ole Miss will continue its nine-game home stand Tuesday when the Rebels host Memphis at 6:30 p.m., at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field.
Tuesday's game will be carried by stations along the Ole Miss Radio Network.