University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Tuesday, April 16
Pete Taylor Park
6 p.m.
Southern Miss
23-14
9
vs
6
Nicholls
24-14
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Nicholls State
0
4
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
6
9
2
Southern Miss
0
1
0
1
3
0
0
0
4
9
10
2
Matthew Russo 3-Run Homer Lifts Eagles to 9-6 Win over Nicholls Tuesday Night
4/16/2024 9:59:00 PM | Baseball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The magic was back at The Pete Tuesday night.
Matthew Russo capped a four-run ninth when he belted a three-run, game-winning home run to lift Southern Miss to a 9-6 come-from-behind triumph Tuesday night at Pete Taylor Park/Hill Denson Field.
It was the second-straight game that the Golden Eagles (23-14) rallied from at least four runs down to capture a victory.
Nick Monistere led the way for the Golden Eagles with three hits and four RBI, while relievers JB Middleton and Niko Mazza kept the Colonels (24-14) off the board over the final 4 2/3 innings, combining to allow just three hits, two walks with nine strikeouts.
Heading into the final half inning down 6-5, Slade Wilks opened things with a double down the left field line. The Colonels had played the left-handed hitting Wilks shifted heavily to the right side of the field and his hit went to a wide-open space at third base that dribbled into the outfield for a double.
After a groundout, Carson Paetow drew a six-pitch walk. Monistere continued his solid night at the plate by singling up the middle to tie the score at 6-6, before Russo took the first pitch from Nico Saltaformaggio the opposite way over the left field wall. The homer was the third for Russo as he has hit all three over the last four games.
Saltaformaggio had limited the Golden Eagles to a single and walk heading into the ninth since coming into the game to start the seventh. He suffered the loss and fell to 3-4 after giving up four runs on four hits with two walks and two strikeouts.
The Colonels had jumped out to an early 4-0 advantage in the second inning. After two outs, Kaden Amundson collected a two-run double, before scoring on a run scoring single by Parker Coddou. The fourth run scored via a Southern Miss throwing error on a ground ball.
Southern Miss chipped away with solo runs in the second and fourth innings.
An RBI single from Gabe Broadus drove in the first home team run, before Monistere – who reached on a single and went to second via a single, before going to third on a failed pickoff attempt – scoring via a wild pitch in the fourth.
Down 4-2, Nicholls added their final two runs of the affair in the fifth on a Drake Anderson RBI double and a bases loaded walk to Narvin Booker.
The Golden Eagles now trailed by four runs, but Monistere quickly closed the gap by collecting his seventh homer of the year in the bottom of the inning – a three-run shot that plated Davis Gillespie and Paetow, who each reached via a single and fielding error, respectively.
After Southern Miss closed the gap, the Golden Eagles' pitching took over.
JB Middleton had allowed two inherited runners to score in that fifth inning but settled down after that. Over the next two innings, Middleton retired six of seven batters, including four-straight strikeouts to end his outing.
Southern Miss then turned the game over to Niko Mazza, who came in for relief for the first time since facing Samford on June 2 last year, only allowed a single in the ninth, but that runner was cut down stealing at second to end the top of the ninth.
Mazza fanned four and got the victory to improve to 6-2.
The Golden Eagles continue the homestand when they welcome ULM for a Sun Belt Conference weekend series, starting Friday at 6 p.m.
Matthew Russo capped a four-run ninth when he belted a three-run, game-winning home run to lift Southern Miss to a 9-6 come-from-behind triumph Tuesday night at Pete Taylor Park/Hill Denson Field.
It was the second-straight game that the Golden Eagles (23-14) rallied from at least four runs down to capture a victory.
Nick Monistere led the way for the Golden Eagles with three hits and four RBI, while relievers JB Middleton and Niko Mazza kept the Colonels (24-14) off the board over the final 4 2/3 innings, combining to allow just three hits, two walks with nine strikeouts.
Heading into the final half inning down 6-5, Slade Wilks opened things with a double down the left field line. The Colonels had played the left-handed hitting Wilks shifted heavily to the right side of the field and his hit went to a wide-open space at third base that dribbled into the outfield for a double.
After a groundout, Carson Paetow drew a six-pitch walk. Monistere continued his solid night at the plate by singling up the middle to tie the score at 6-6, before Russo took the first pitch from Nico Saltaformaggio the opposite way over the left field wall. The homer was the third for Russo as he has hit all three over the last four games.
Saltaformaggio had limited the Golden Eagles to a single and walk heading into the ninth since coming into the game to start the seventh. He suffered the loss and fell to 3-4 after giving up four runs on four hits with two walks and two strikeouts.
The Colonels had jumped out to an early 4-0 advantage in the second inning. After two outs, Kaden Amundson collected a two-run double, before scoring on a run scoring single by Parker Coddou. The fourth run scored via a Southern Miss throwing error on a ground ball.
Southern Miss chipped away with solo runs in the second and fourth innings.
An RBI single from Gabe Broadus drove in the first home team run, before Monistere – who reached on a single and went to second via a single, before going to third on a failed pickoff attempt – scoring via a wild pitch in the fourth.
Down 4-2, Nicholls added their final two runs of the affair in the fifth on a Drake Anderson RBI double and a bases loaded walk to Narvin Booker.
The Golden Eagles now trailed by four runs, but Monistere quickly closed the gap by collecting his seventh homer of the year in the bottom of the inning – a three-run shot that plated Davis Gillespie and Paetow, who each reached via a single and fielding error, respectively.
After Southern Miss closed the gap, the Golden Eagles' pitching took over.
JB Middleton had allowed two inherited runners to score in that fifth inning but settled down after that. Over the next two innings, Middleton retired six of seven batters, including four-straight strikeouts to end his outing.
Southern Miss then turned the game over to Niko Mazza, who came in for relief for the first time since facing Samford on June 2 last year, only allowed a single in the ninth, but that runner was cut down stealing at second to end the top of the ninth.
Mazza fanned four and got the victory to improve to 6-2.
The Golden Eagles continue the homestand when they welcome ULM for a Sun Belt Conference weekend series, starting Friday at 6 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Mazza, Niko (6-2)
L: Saltaformaggio, Nico (3-4)
Batting:
2B: Anderson, Drake 1 ; Amundson, Kaden 1
RBI: Coddou, Parker 1 ; Anderson, Drake 1 ; Booker, Narvin 1 ; Amundson, Kaden 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Coddou, Parker 1 ; Villarreal, Gerardo 1 ; Felix, Garrett 1 ; Williams, Basiel 1 ; Booker, Narvin 1 ; Amundson, Kaden 1
CS: Ordonez, Erick 1
Batting:
2B: Wilks, Slade 1
HR: Monistere, Nick 1 ; Russo, Matthew 1
RBI: Monistere, Nick 4 ; Russo, Matthew 3 ; Broadus, Gabe 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Faust, Brady 1 ; Gillespie, Davis 1 ; Paetow, Carson 2 ; Monistere, Nick 4 ; Russo, Matthew 1
HBP: Pratt, Ozzie 1 ; Butler, Billy 1
Game Leaders
2b/cf
AB
3
R
4
H
3
RBI
4
AB
5
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
1b/lf
AB
5
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
2
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
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RHP
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INF
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