AUBURN | In a game decided by the finest of margins, an Ole Miss freshman pinch-hitter made the difference.

Calvin Harris came off the bench in the eighth inning and hit a home run over the right field wall off a 1-2 pitch from Auburn reliever Joseph Gonzalez to give the 4th-ranked Rebels a 1-0 win Friday night at Swayze Field.

The Tigers nearly tied it in the ninth when pinch-hitter Ryan Dyal crushed a ball well over the right field wall, but it was just foul.

“Their pinch-hit, the big home run right there was definitely the difference,” Auburn coach Butch Thompson said.

Ole Miss starter Gunnar Hoglund (3-0) was dominant with 13 strikeouts in 8.0 innings. He allowed five hits and issued one walk on 117 pitches. Taylor Broadway pitches a scoreless ninth to earn his second save.

“I tip my hat to Hoglund,” Thompson said. “The 13 strikeouts definitely made a difference. We did have a chance. It was all square. We made a bunch of plays on defense.”

Auburn’s best chance to score came in the seventh after Rankin Woley doubled, Tyler Miller walked and both runners advanced to second and third on a wild pitch with no outs. Hoglund struck out the next three batters, however, to keep the game scoreless.

Auburn starter Cody Greenhill was terrific holding the Rebels to four hits and no runs in a career-high 7.0 innings. He struck out four and issued one walk on 94 pitches. He retired 15 straight batters from the first through the sixth inning.

“We’re still minus a fastball but it’s probably the best breaking ball and definitely the changeup to the left-handers that we’ve seen in his career. His pitch-ability, I think he’s doing an amazing job.

“He’s a different style pitcher right now on this journey of getting back to 100 percent but he’s giving us a chance, especially on a Friday night in the SEC.”

Gonzalez (0-1) took the loss allowing a run in 1.0 innings.

Woley and Ryan Bliss had two hits apiece for Auburn. Bryson Ware took away a home run in the fifth with a leaping catch against the right field wall.

The series continues Saturday and Sunday at 1:30 p.m. CT on SECN+/ESPN+.