Rebel Roundabout: Ole Miss football lands another RB; softball faces regional elimination
Ole Miss softball was unable to rally in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Friday night, falling 3-1 to Baylor in the Lafayette Regional.
The Rebels (31-26, 7-17 SEC) struggled to generate offense against the Bears (33-20, 14-13 Big 12). All four combined runs scored in the game were scored via the home run. Rebel senior Delaney Rummell had the one and only hit for Ole Miss, a solo blast in the fifth inning. Baylor clubbed two.
Ole Miss will now have to come out of the elimination bracket to advance. The Rebels next take on Princeton Saturday at 4:30 p.m. CT. The winner gets the loser of Baylor and host Louisiana at 7 p.m. CT. The loser will see their season come to an end.
“The game never changes,” Ole Miss head coach Jamie Trachsel said this week. The Rebels entered the postseason having won five of their last season games. “It’s always a game of execution. You just have to harness control and redirect the emotions that come with playing on this stage.
“We’re not trying to be someone we’re not. How we’ve been playing, it’s going to put us in a position, I think, to be in every single game.”
OLE MISS’ LINDER COMPLETES STELLAR FIRST ROUND AT NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Ole Miss women’s golf team finished the opening round of the NCAA Championships with a score of 299 (+11) to sit tied for 21st heading into Day 2.
Ole Miss teed off in the final grouping early Friday afternoon. The Rebels made 13 birdies on the day. Six were delivered by Sophie Linder, who shot her 10th round of the season below par (68, -4).
She sank four birdies and five pars on the front nine and closed out tied for third place among individual participants. The Rebels will try to bounce back with a 10:30 a.m. CT tee time Saturday morning.
OLE MISS FOOTBALL ADDS GEORGIA STATE RB DOMONIQUE THOMAS
Fifth-year head coach Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss football team continue to bolster the 2024-25 roster with yet another running back.
The Rebels committed Georgia State transfer Domonique Thomas on Friday. They lost leading rusher Quinshon Judkins to Ohio State in the off-season.
Little-used second-year reserve Kedrick Reescano entered the portal after the spring. Ole Miss re-upped Ulysses Bentley, IV, with a new NIL deal and added transfers Logan Diggs (LSU), Henry Parrish (Miami) and Jacory Merritt (New Mexico). Parrish is in his second run with the Rebels. He was the leading rusher for the Hurricanes the last two seasons.
Ulysses Bentley, IV, will get first crack at leading the room. Bentley is the highest-graded returning rusher in the SEC, according to Pro Football Focus and headed into his final season of eligibility. He rushed for 540 yards and four touchdowns on 95 carries and 5.7 yards per attempt a year .
Bentley, IV, has 2,172 rushing yards for his career. He missed the spring as he recovers from turf toe.
“Once you do a lot of cutting (as a running back), it starts to affect your big toe,” Bentley, IV, said of the injury in an exclusive sit-down with the Ole Miss Spirit. “What’s crazy is when I hurt it and went to the doctors and stuff, they told me I played through the whole (2023 season) with it. I’ve never felt any pain at all.
“I went through surgery and stuff. Luckily, I didn’t have to get any screws or anything. They just pulled the bone out and I’m recovering.”
