LINCOLN, Neb. — Ole Miss completed its run through the Lincoln Regional with a walk-off victory over Arizona State, scoring the winning run in the 10th inning to claim a 5-4 decision Sunday night at Haymarket Park. The Rebels, the No. 2 seed in the regional, closed the weekend with a perfect 3-0 mark, sending Arizona State home and moving on to the super regional round of the NCAA Tournament.
The game’s decisive moment came in the top of the 10th when Dom Decker delivered a sacrifice fly to left field that plated pinch-runner Cannon Goldin, who beat the throw to the plate to score the winning run. That play capped a tense extra-inning contest between two teams that had already played a marathon 14-inning game earlier in the regional. Ole Miss bullpen arms Wil Libbert and JP Robertson combined to hold Arizona State scoreless over five relief innings, allowing just one hit between them and setting the stage for the late-game finish.
Ole Miss players swarm the field and douse teammates with a cooler after the walk-off run in the 10th inning to beat Arizona State and advance to the super regional.
The contest itself was a back-and-forth affair. Arizona State jumped on the board immediately when leadoff hitter Dean Toigo homered to left in the top of the first to make it 1-0. The Sun Devils extended their lead to 3-0 in the second when Toigo drove in two with a ball that glanced off Tristan Bissetta’s glove, scoring two runs. Ole Miss began a rally in the bottom of the second when Brayden Randle ripped a bases-loaded single to bring home a run and reduce the deficit.
Tristan Bissetta answered for the Rebels in the third with a leadoff solo home run to center, a long blast that brought Ole Miss within one. Dom Decker later produced a sacrifice fly that cut Arizona State’s lead to a single run, but the Rebels stranded three runners in that inning. The game remained tight, and a key defensive sequence in the fourth saw Owen Paino make a diving stop to rob Dominic Longo of what would likely have been a run-scoring hit.
Hayden Federico had an opportunity to tie the game when he dove for the plate, but ASU left fielder Ky McGary’s throw arrived on target and Federico was called out at home — a call that stood after review. The two clubs traded chances and runs, and the game was knotted at 3-3 heading into the middle innings. Austin Fawley ripped a double off the left-field wall in the bottom of the seventh to drive in Hayden Federico and even the score at 4-4, sending the game into the late innings.
Cade Townsend started on the mound for Ole Miss and worked five innings, throwing 115 pitches and allowing four runs; his day ended with a runner on first. Wil Libbert came on in relief after Townsend and, along with JP Robertson, logged five scoreless innings to keep Arizona State off the board while preserving a chance for the Rebels to score late. Townsend’s counterpart in the starting rotation, Colin Linder, was listed for Arizona State; the two clubs battled through a close, physical game in front of the Lincoln crowd.
An Ole Miss player moves toward the dugout amid postgame celebration following the Rebels' 10th‑inning walk‑off victory over Arizona State.
With the 5-4 win, Ole Miss improves to 39-21 on the season and captures the Lincoln Regional title with a 3-0 record for the weekend. Arizona State, which saw its season end at 39-21, put up strong resistance but couldn't overcome the bullpen work by the Rebels in the game's second half. Ole Miss will advance to the super regional round and will face either No. 1 seed Auburn or No. 4 seed Milwaukee; if Milwaukee wins its matchup, Ole Miss would host the super regional, while an Auburn victory would send the Rebels on the road.
The regional’s full slate featured Nebraska, South Dakota State, Arizona State and Ole Miss, with Ole Miss opening the regional by beating Arizona State on Friday and later posting a 6-3 win over Nebraska. Arizona State had bounced back earlier in the bracket with an 11-8 win over Nebraska to force the decisive matchup Sunday night at Haymarket Park. A win-and-advance format in the regional meant the Rebels needed to win three games, and they accomplished that task with the extra-inning finale to close the event. A seventh game for the regional had been scheduled for June 1 only if necessary.
Sunday’s result closed out the Lincoln Regional and moved Ole Miss into the next phase of the NCAA Tournament. The Rebels will await the outcome of the Auburn–Milwaukee pairing to learn whether they will host the super regional or travel for it. Arizona State’s season concludes with the loss, leaving Ole Miss as the lone team remaining from the four-team bracket in Lincoln.