Ole Miss Baseball Visits No. 1 Arkansas for First SEC West Battle
OXFORD, Miss. – (Release) Ole Miss baseball (18-12, 3-6 SEC) will face its first SEC West opponent this weekend in No. 1 Arkansas (24-3, 8-1 SEC) starting on Thursday in Fayetteville.
Here’s the game info for each:
LEADING OFF
- Ole Miss is in the midst of a four-game losing streak after dropping a series to Kentucky last weekend and Tuesday’s road midweek to Memphis.
- Freshman Trenton Lyons got his first career start behind the plate on Tuesday, going 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base.
- The Rebels hit a season-high seven doubles on Tuesday, five of them coming off the bats off Ethan Lege and Judd Utermark.
- This is the first series against an SEC West opponent for the Rebels after opening conference play with three-straight series against foes from the East.
- The Rebels are ranked 13th in the nation in strikeouts per nine, averaging 10.8 punchouts per game.
- Ole Miss has hit 45 home runs this season, the 32nd-highest mark in the NCAA.
- Ole Miss is fourth in the NCAA in walks drawn (196), averaging 6.53 per game. They are one of three SEC teams in the top five.
- The Rebels are tied for second in the country in sacrifice flies with 23. The next closest SEC team has 19 (Alabama).
- Ethan Lege is the hardest hitter to strikeout in the SEC, striking out just five times in 101 at bats this season.
- Connor Spencer has five saves this season, tied at the top of the SEC with Arkansas’ Gabe Gaeckle.
SCOUTING REPORT
Dave Van Horn is in his 22nd year as head coach for Arkansas. The three-time SEC coach of the year has led the Razorbacks to seven College World Series appearances, 19 NCAA Tournament berths, and three overall SEC titles. Coach Van Horn and Coach Bianco are two of only five coaches in college baseball history who have 300 or more SEC wins in their career.
Arkansas finished the 2023 season with an overall record of 43-18. The Razorbacks made it to round three of the SEC tournament beating Texas A&M and LSU but fell to Texas A&M in an elimination game. They then made a run in the NCAA College World Series, beating Santa Clara but fell to TCU which concluded their postseason run.
Arkansas is unanimously ranked No.1 in all five college baseball polls and holds a 24-3 (8-1 SEC) overall record. The Razorbacks are coming off a 3-0 sweep of LSU and a Tuesday night win over Arkansas State.
The Rebels head to Fayetteville for the 74th meeting between the two SEC foes. Last season, the opponents played in a three-game series in Oxford. Arkansas walked away with the 2-1 series win to move the overall series record to 37-36, Razorbacks.
SATURDAY FISCH FRY
Andrew Fischer is hitting .387 (12-for-31) with eight home runs, 14 RBI, and 13 runs scored in games played on Saturdays this season. He has hit at least one home run on four of this season’s seven Saturdays and has hit two or more on three Saturdays. Over the first two Saturdays of SEC play, Fischer hit five total home runs and drove in seven total runs.
DOYLE RULES
Liam Doyle struck out 10 batters in each of his first two SEC starts, becoming the first Rebel since Dylan DeLucia in 2022 to post multiple double-digit strikeout games in a season. He is also the first Rebel since Doug Nikhazy in 2021 to have double-digit strikeouts in consecutive outings.
STEALING YOUR HEART
The Rebels have stolen 38 bases so far this season, just four short of their entire season total from 2023 and already four more than 2022. Since setting a new single-season program record in 2019 (93), Ole Miss has not stolen more than 44 bases in a season. They are currently averaging 1.27 stolen bases per game.
Ethan Groff has stolen 10 bases in 2024, having not been caught yet. Luke Hill is 9-for-10 in stolen base attempts.
THE ROAD TO 1,000
Head coach Mike Bianco needs just three more wins to reach 1,000 victories in his career. He currently sits at 997 career wins, with 897 coming at Ole Miss. His first 100 wins came from his three seasons at McNeese State.
Once Bianco reaches the milestone, he would be the 21st active coach with 1,000 wins under his belt. He would also become the 98th head coach in NCAA history to reach the mark.
In 24 seasons leading the program, Bianco has delivered 18 postseason appearances, including eight Super Regional berths and a pair of trips to the College World Series. He is the winningest-coach in Ole Miss history and ranks second all-time in wins by an SEC head coach.
CAPTAIN CLUTCH
Ethan Lege has been the Rebels’ most clutch hitter, hitting .424 (14-for-33) with two outs in an inning. He has 14 two-out RBI, is hitting .308 with runners in scoring position, and is 8-for-11 when hitting with a runner on third base and less than two outs.
GETTING THEIR STEPS IN
Ole Miss has drawn the fourth-highest number of walks in the nation with 196 free passes in 30 games. The Rebels are averaging 6.53 walks per game and are one of three teams from the SEC in the top five (South Carolina, Texas A&M, Ole Miss). Their 196 walks come out to 17,640 total feet or 3.34 miles of free bases.
Jackson Ross is ninth in the NCAA and leads the SEC with 31 total walks himself. He is averaging 1.03 walks per game.
During their series against High Point, the Rebels set a new single-game program record for walks with 19 in game three.
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.
