Ole Miss ends losing streak, defeats Tennessee to notch win heading into SEC Tournament

Nick Suss
Mississippi Clarion Ledger

Behind a three-run home run from third baseman Tyler Keenan and six impressive innings from freshman starting pitcher Gunnar Hoglund, the Ole Miss baseball team ended its six-game losing streak on Saturday.

Ole Miss avoided a weekend sweep with a 5-4 win over Tennessee in Knoxville on Saturday. With the win, Ole Miss improves to 33-23 on the year and 16-14 in SEC play heading into next week's SEC Tournament. The Rebels will participate as the No. 7 seed in the SEC Tournament and play their first-round game against Missouri.

Keenan led the Ole Miss offense, batting 1-for-2 with his home run, three RBI and two walks. The home run came in the third inning with Ole Miss already leading 1-0 after the Rebels took a lead in the first inning on a double steal that scored Cole Zabowski.

Hoglund allowed three runs on five hits across six innings, striking out four batters with one walk. The freshman used just 84 pitches before being removed after allowing two base runners to start the seventh inning. Hoglund's six-inning performance tied a career-high for his longest outing.

The two runners Hoglund put on base in the seventh eventually came around to score off a walk, a double and a sacrifice fly allowed by relievers Connor Green and Tyler Myers. Other than allowing one inherited runner to score, Myers pitched well in relief, throwing two innings with one hit allowed.

For the second consecutive game, Ole Miss batted left fielder Thomas Dillard in the leadoff position. Dillard batted 1-for-4 with a walk, while shortstop Grae Kessinger and centerfielder Ryan Olenek each notched two hits. Olenek also pitched the ninth inning for the Rebels, throwing a clean, 1-2-3 frame to notch his first career save.

Ole Miss will return to action on Tuesday in an elimination game in the first round of the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala. 

Contact Nick Suss at 601-408-2674 or nsuss@gannett.com. Follow @nicksuss on Twitter.