Doug Nikhazy earns First Team Freshman All-American honors
(Courtesy of Ole Miss Media Relations) Ole Miss baseball freshman left-hander Doug Nikhazy emerged as one of the top freshman arms in college baseball this season, and Thursday he earned his second All-American nod of the season.
(Click here for complete list of Perfect Game Freshman All-American Teams.)
The rookie out of Windermere, Florida, was selected to Perfect Game’s Freshman All-American First Team. Previously, Nikhazy was named Freshman All-SEC by the Southeastern Conference coaches, as well as a Freshman All-American by Collegiate Baseball. During the season, Nikhazy also brought home two SEC Freshman of the Week honors during conference play.
He opened the season working primarily out of the bullpen but moved into a weekend starting role around the start of SEC play. In his first SEC start, Nikhazy took a no-hitter into the seventh inning at Missouri and ultimately turned in 7.2 innings of two-hit ball, combining on one of four shutouts by the Rebel staff this season.
Nikhazy also combined with Parker Caracci on the fourth Rebel shutout of 2019 against Texas A&M during the SEC Tournament. In an elimination game, Nikhazy outdueled Aggie ace John Doxakis, going eight innings with no runs allowed on just three hits, walking four and striking out two in a 1-0 Rebel victory.
He was outstanding in the NCAA Oxford Regional as well, silencing a dangerous Clemson lineup. Nikhazy went 8+ innings, allowing just one run on four hits, walking three and striking out nine. He got into some hot water in the eighth inning but struck out the Tigers’ top bat, Logan Davidson, who was selected in the first round of the MLB Draft just two days later.
Nikhazy capped one of the best seasons by a freshman pitcher in Ole Miss history with an excellent outing against a dangerous Arkansas lineup in the Fayetteville Super Regional. He went five innings at Baum-Walker Stadium, striking out eight Razorbacks to earn a win in Game 2 of the series. In the victory, he increased his season-long strikeout total to 86, the most ever by a Rebel freshman, surpassing the mark held by two future MLB Rebels, Jeff Calhoun (1977) and Drew Pomeranz (2008).
Evelyn Van Pelt
Evelyn has covered sports for over two decades, beginning her journalism career as a sports writer for a newspaper in Austin, Texas. She attended Texas A&M and majored in English. Evelyn's love for Ole Miss began when her daughter Katie attended the university on a volleyball scholarship. Evelyn created the Rebel Walk in 2013 and has served as publisher and managing editor since its inception.
