Kentucky suffers 5-4 loss to No. 9 Ole Miss in series finale

Although Ben Cleaver showed out with another masterful start for the ‘Cats on Saturday, No. 9 ranked Ole Miss downed the Kentucky 5-4 in 12 innings to take the weekend series in Lexington. With the loss (its third consecutive by two or less runs), Kentucky falls to 18-11 (5-7) and currently sit 11th in the SEC.

Unlike the opening game in which Kentucky walked it off in 10 innings, Ole Miss once again stole a game from the ‘Cats in the late innings. Kentucky stranded the go-ahead run on third base in both the sixth and eighth innings, and had the game-winning run thrown out at home in the 11th.

Ole Miss’ Luke Hill propelled the Rebels to a two-run lead with a two-run home run in the 12th, securing the series victory.

The Wildcat offense bounced back nicely from a four-hit performance Friday night, as they out-hit Ole Miss 10-8 in the loss. However, they struggled to convert those hits into runs as they stranded 10 runners on the base. Six Kentucky batters notched at least one hit, while Hudson Brown Tyler Bell and Patrick Herrera and Cole Hage totaled two apiece. Hage, Herrera, Devin Burkes and Luke Lawrence drove in Kentucky’s three runs.

Cleaver made his eighth start of the season on Saturday and continued to put the entire College Baseball world on notice. The sophomore left-hander pitched six innings, where he held Ole Miss to just three hits and one unearned run. He also tied a career-high with 11 strikeouts, which he set earlier this season against Belmont.

Prior to Saturday’s start against Ole Miss, Kentucky had won every single SEC game that Cleaver had started. That is no longer the case.

Kentucky and Ole Miss trade runs early

After scoring just one run a piece through nine innings in the second game of Friday night’s doubleheader, Kentucky and Ole Miss traded runs in an eventful second inning.

The frame was opened by Ole Miss’ Judd Utermark, who blooped a softly hit fly-ball into shallow left field. Kentucky left fielder Cole Hage and shortstop Tyler Bell however failed to call each other off for the ball, allowing it to drop in. Ben Cleaver then struck out Ryan Moerman, but was then once again let down by his defense.

Hayden Federico blooped a softly hit fly-ball down the right field line this time, which brought in a charging James McCoy. McCoy slid and attempted to catch the ball, but it fell out of his glove and allowed runners to reach second and third. Ole Miss’ Isaac Humphrey took advantage of this, as an RBI sac-fly brought home Utermark to give the Rebels a 1-0 advantage.

Kentucky however got its run back in the latter half of the inning, courtesy of catcher Devin Burkes. The reigning SEC Freshman of the Week Tyler Bell led off the inning with a double down the right field line, providing an instant spark for the Wildcat offense. Burkes, who notched an RBI-single in the first two games of the series, did it again. His 23rd RBI of the year knotted things up through two.

E2 | 1-1

The Cats come right back.

The Happiest Man in College Baseball™️ @Devin_Burkes just keeps hitting missiles. An 0-2 RBI after @BellTyler28 led off with his 12th double. Burkes followed with his 34th career steal.

📺SECN+ pic.twitter.com/yapZI9w9ja

— Kentucky Baseball (@UKBaseball) April 5, 2025

Herrera’s RBI-single aids another masterful Cleaver start

Cole Hage led off the inning with a check-swing single down the first base line, which even he didn’t know was a fair ball at first. It however was, which also caught Ole Miss pitcher Mason Nichols and first baseman Collin Reuter off guard. Nichols dropped the throw to first from Reuter however, allowing Hage to be safe.

Hage was then followed by a Hudson Brown double down the right field line, putting two on for Patrick Herrera. Herrera delivered with an RBI-single to shallow center field, which allowed Hage to easily score safely from third. Brown however was thrown out at home, which kept it a 2-1 game.

While Kentucky’s offense was busy trying to build a lead, Kentucky’s left-hander starter Ben Cleaver was busy keeping Ole Miss’ offense at bay.

M4 | UK 2, MISS 1

The Slim Reaper 🔪@ben34cleaver strikes out the side in the fourth, has 6 Ks. @PitchingNinja

📺 SECN+ pic.twitter.com/NbclMKKffZ

— Kentucky Baseball (@UKBaseball) April 5, 2025

A run scored under Cleaver’s watch in the second inning, but it was marked unearned. He didn’t allow his first earned run of the game until the top of the fifth inning, where an Isaac Humphrey solo home run tied the game up at two apiece. Humphrey is a Wildcat killer, as he improved to 9-22 at the plate with a double, two home runs and five RBI in six career games played against Kentucky (three at Louisville and three at Ole Miss).

The “Slim Reaper” dominated once again over his six inning start, as he tied his career-high with 11 strikeouts and struck out the side in both the fourth and sixth innings. His season ERA lowered to 2.36, which is third in the SEC behind just Tennessee’s Marcus Phillips (1.77) and Texas’ Luke Harrison (2.12).

‘Cats and Rebels jockey for prized third run

Kentucky put itself in great position to retake the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning, as Tyler Bell singled and Patrick Herrera reached on a bunt-single to open the frame. They were then moved over with a perfect sac-bunt from Devin Burkes, putting two runners in scoring position with just one out.

However, the small-ball came back to bite the ‘Cats in the behind. Griffin Cameron layed down a bunt to Ole Miss first baseman Collin Reuter, which attempted to score Bell from third. The freshman however hesitated and was thrown out, wiping a potential run off the board. Ethan Hindle then struck out to end the inning, stranding two on base in what was a major missed opportunity for the Wildcat lineup.

Senior right-hander Simon Gregersen took over for Cleaver to open the seventh inning and enjoyed his best relief outing of the season. Following a 1-2-3 seventh, Gregersen walked Austin Fawley to open the eighth. Fawley reached third after two groundouts, putting the go-ahead run at third with two outs in the inning.

Ole Miss’ Mitchell Sanford nearly gave the Rebels the lead with a single through the right side, but Luke Lawrence made a nice diving grab and threw him out at first to get out of the half inning and keep the game tied at two.

Hentschel sends game to extra-innings

After failing to score a run after putting runners on second and third with one out in the sixth, the ‘Cats got another chance to do so in the eighth. Instead of converting, they failed to scratch across a run once again.

Hudson Brown and Tyler Bell quickly reached base on a single and a walk, and were quickly moved over a bag on a Patrick Herrera sac-bunt. It was deja vu for a Kentucky team that had experienced this exact same scenario just two innings prior. With the go-ahead run 90 feet away from home (once again), Devin Burkes struck out and Griffin Cameron grounded out to end the eighth inning.

Ole Miss threatened to take the lead in the top of the ninth as it did in Friday night’s win, but right-hander Cole Hentschel shut it down. Rebel runners reached first and second with two outs, but Hentschel struck out Isaac Humphrey to get out of the half-inning unscathed. Once again, both teams went to extras.

Ole Miss steals series victory

Kentucky reliever Tommy Skelding kept Ole Miss scoreless in the 10th, but could not do the same in the 11th. After allowing back-to-back singles to Mitchell Sanford and Ethan Surowiec, he was replaced by right-hander Robert Hogan. The Rebels loaded the bases with no outs and scratched across the go-ahead run via a Hayden Federico RBI-groundout.

The ‘Cats however bounced back and loaded the bases with just one out in the bottom of the 11th, once again with a great position to tie the game or walk it off. Luke Lawrence delivered with an RBI-single to right field, but Devin Burkes was thrown out at home to send the game to the 12th. With imminent rain on the radar, more baseball was to be played.

Ole Miss’ Luke Hill however shut things down in the top of the 12th, as his two-run home run put the Rebels ahead by two. Cole Hage blasted a solo shot for Kentucky in the bottom of the inning, but the ‘Cats were unable to score one more run to tie the game.

What’s next for Kentucky?

Kentucky will now get a break from SEC play, but the grind never stops in College Baseball. The ‘Cats will be back in action on Tuesday, when they travel to Louisville for a rivalry matchup with the No. 18 ranked Cardinals. First pitch is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. EST at Jim Patterson Stadium.