Clemson Tigers Baseball: Luke Hill Dominates as Ole Miss Run-Rules Clemson
- Luke O'Reilly
- Feb 16
- 3 min read
The Clemson Tigers faced off against the Ole Miss Rebels in the final game of the Shriners Children's College Showdown. Ole Miss dominated Clemson, winning 15-5 and run-ruling the eighth-best team in the country. Luke Hill went 3-for-3 with two home runs, an RBI triple, and two walks for Ole Miss. Justin LeGuernic got the loss for Clemson today, pitching just 1.2 innings and allowing seven runs. Will McCausland got the win for Ole Miss, throwing 3.2 innings and allowing just one run on three hits.
Ole Miss Starts Game Off Red Hot
In his second career start, Justin LeGuernic did not get off to the start he was hoping for, as Ole Miss took an early 5-0 lead against Clemson. Hayden Federico started the game with an opposite-field single, and Luke Hill walked, putting runners on first and second for Ryan Moerman. The Senior from Lockport, Illinois, took advantage of the runner in scoring position with a three-run bomb to give the Rebels an early 3-0 lead. But the damage didn’t stop there. In the top of the second inning, a Luke Hill RBI triple would put Ole Miss up 5-0, and Judd Utermark’s two-run homer would give the Rebels a 7-0 lead to knock Justin LeGuernic out of the ball game. In just 1.2 innings pitched, LeGuernic allowed seven runs, six hits, two walks, and two home runs.
Clemson Strikes Back
In the bottom of the third inning, the Tigers responded to the Rebels’ hot start with two runs of their own. Jarren Purify started off the inning with a double down the left-field line to get the Clemson bats going. Listi’s sac fly got the Tigers on the board, and Josh Paino’s base hit cut the Rebels' lead to five. The inning ended on a funky play, as an error allowed Collin Priest to reach base but led to Cam Cannarella being thrown out at the plate.
Ole Miss Takes Convincing Lead
Just a half-inning after the Tigers were able to cut the lead to five, the Rebels punched right back by taking an eight-run lead. The inning started with a Luke Cheng walk and a single from Hayden Federico, which set up Luke Hill with two runners on. The Rebels' number two hitter, who had an RBI triple two innings before, sent Luke Brown’s pitch into the right-field seats to give Ole Miss a 10-2 lead and knock Brown out of the game.
After the Tigers' two-run fourth inning, thanks to RBI singles from Andrew Ciufo and Dominic Listi, the Ole Miss lead was cut to six. But Luke Hill continued his domination over Clemson pitching with his second home run of the day to put the Rebels up by seven runs.
Ole Miss Blows it Open
The Rebels entered the top of the seventh, up 11-5, looking to increase their lead. Ole Miss took advantage of Clemson’s sophomore pitcher, Jackson Cole, loading the bases with two walks and a single. After just three batters, Erik Bakich had seen enough and called on freshman Dion Brown to put out the fire. Brown also only faced three batters before being pulled, allowing a sacrifice fly, RBI single, and throwing two wild pitches. Once Brown was done with his night, the Rebels had amassed a 15-5 lead. Chayce Kieck could hold the Ole Miss lead to 10 after forcing a fly-out and a line-out immediately after entering the game.
Key Takeaways
Sunday Starter Concern
Coming into the season, there were concerns over who the third starter would be for the Clemson Tigers. Justin LeGuernic proved those concerns to be valid today, as he went 1.2 innings, allowing six hits, seven runs, and two walks.
Good Weekend
Although the Tigers got trounced by the Rebels today, it was still a successful weekend for Clemson, as they got two strong wins against Oklahoma State and Arizona. Clemson showed this weekend that they can beat anyone in the country, even though they struggled in today’s game.
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