Southern Miss took an early lead vs. South Alabama on Saturday, and Billy Oldham made sure it stood up in a 5-1 victory at Stanky Field.

Oldham (4-1) held the Jaguars in check for 6 1/3 innings, allowing just one run on three hits as Southern Miss improved to 20-11 overall, 8-3 in the Sun Belt. The senior right-hander struck out five and walked one, throwing 74 strikes on 107 pitches.

“He just pitches,” South Alabama coach Mark Calvi said. “It’s nothing special; he just mixes good, change-up pitches up, down, moves it around. Just a solid college pitcher, and we weren’t taking good at bats in there against him. We knew exactly what he was. We were prepared for him and didn’t do a good enough job handling him.

“Three hits is inexcusable. I know we’re not super-offensive to this point, but three hits is inexcusable. … But credit Southern Miss. We weren’t good enough today all the way around and they were.”

The win means the Golden Eagles — who won 6-5 in 11 innings on Friday night — claimed the series victory in their first venture to Mobile as a Sun Belt Conference opponent. The Jaguars (16-15, 3-8 Sun Belt) have now lost three of four conference series this season and five of their last six games overall.

Oldham retired the Jaguars in order in four of his six full innings, allowing just four baserunners. JG Bell singled and scored on Joseph Sullivan’s two-out single in the third, while Micah Morgan led off the sixth with a single and Brennan Holt walked to begin the seventh.

Left-hander Chandler Best, a Mobile native, replaced Oldham with one out in the seventh and finished the game. The former McGill-Toolen star allowed just a walk in 2 1/3 scoreless innings, with three strikeouts.

“It’s not easy,” Southern Miss coach Christian Ostrander said. “Any game at this level in this conference, you’ve got to earn it. Last night was an epic battle and I thought this team grew by finding a way to win an extra-inning game on the road. And then to come out today with some good energy and win the series, that’s what we strive for. But you’ve got to go earn it and I thought our guys did today.”

Southern Miss got to South Alabama star Cam Hill (3-2) for five runs in the first four innings. Billy Butler and Davis Gillespie both singled home runs in the first, with Hill getting a piece of the latter hit, but slowing it just enough to allow Gillespie to reach.

Slade Wilks homered to lead off the third, making it 3-0. After Sullivan singled home a run for South Alabama in the bottom of the third, the Golden Eagles scored twice in the fourth to go up 5-1.

Sullivan could not hold onto Tucker Stockman’s drive when he crashed into the wall in left, then Gabe Broadus reached on an infield single and Dalton McIntyre was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Ozzie Pratt and Wilks followed with back-to-back sacrifice flies, scoring Stockman and Broadus.

McIntyre, Southern Miss’ leadoff hitter, went 4-for-4 and reached base five times on Saturday. He’s 7-for-10 in the series, all of his hits singles.

Hill allowed five runs on nine hits with three strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings. Jaxon Shineflew and Tyler Smith combined to hold the Golden Eagles scoreless over the final 3 2/3.

“They do a good job with two strikes,” Calvi said of Southern Miss. “(Hill) didn’t walk anybody, but gave up nine hits. He needs to land his off-speed better. They were taking off-speed. … He wasn’t landing his off-speed pitches, so they didn’t have to honor it. They turned him into a one-pitch guy and that’s how you give up nine hits in 5 1/3.”

The series concludes with Game 3 at 1 p.m. Sunday.