The University of Mississippi Athletics
No. 20 Ole Miss to Host Arkansas State, April 20
6/21/1999 | Baseball
April 19, 1999
OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss, ranked No. 20 in the latest Collegiate Baseball newspaper poll, will host Arkansas State Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. in the final game of a nine-game home stand. The Rebels are 7-1 on the current home stand and 15-3 overall at home this season.
The Rebels, 23-17, cracked Collegiate Baseball's Top 30 poll after winning two-of-three from Georgia this past weekend and having won seven of their last eight. The ranking is the first in-season ranking since the final poll of 1995 when Ole Miss was ranked No. 17 by Collegiate Baseball, No. 18 by Baseball America and No. 19 by USA Today/Baseball Weekly.
"This is a great honor for our team," said third-year head coach Pat Harrison. "We've worked hard and have gotten better as the season has gone on. You look at the schedule we've played, and you'll see that we've played several teams this season that are either currently ranked or have been ranked, and it has paid off for us. We really feel that we're deserving of this."
Senior second baseman Brad Henderson continues to lead Ole Miss in hitting with a .398 average. Henderson went 6-for-13 in three games against Georgia, including going 3-for-6 Sunday to break Kevin Kessinger's school career hit record of 262.
Junior outfielder Michael Rosamond is hitting .342 on the year with 14 home runs and 30 RBI after hitting three home runs this weekend.
Arkansas State will bring a 14-24 record in to Tuesday's game after losing two-of-three to Western Kentucky in a Sun Belt Conference series this past weekend in Jonesboro, Ark. The Indians are hitting .245 as a team led by Reed Bredensteiner's .314 average. Bredensteiner also leads the Indians in home runs, eight, and RBI, 32.
Ole Miss is scheduled to start sophomore right-hander Ronnie Goodwin. It will be Goodwin's 10th appearance and third start of the year. He is 1-3 with a 6.55 ERA, and has put together solid back-to-back starts against Memphis and Southern Mississippi.
Arkansas State is slated to start Brant Epperhart, 0-0 with a 18.00 ERA in five innings this season.
Tuesday's game will be the second meeting of the year between the two schools. Arkansas State beat Ole Miss 6-4 in Jonesboro back on March 9. The Indians have since gone 8-16, while Ole Miss has posted a 17-8 mark since its lost to Arkansas State.
Following Tuesday's game, Ole Miss will travel to Memphis Wednesday for a 7:00 p.m. non- conference match-up with the Tigers.
Ole Miss will step back in to Southeastern Conference play on Friday when the Rebels open a three-game series at Auburn. The Rebels are current in second-place in the SEC West Division with a 12-6 record, two games behind first-place Arkansas.
COLLEGIATE BASEBALL TOP 30
1. Miami (FL) 28-9 2. Florida State 38-6 3. Cal State Fullerton 33-8 4. Rice 39-8 5. Stanford 27-11 6. Mississippi State 31-8 7. Texas A&M 35-9 8. Wichita State 35-8 9. Pepperdine 32-710. Arkansas 29-1311. Florida Atlantic 41-212. Baylor 35-913. North Carolina 33-814. Auburn 33-915. Southern California 26-1816. Wake Forest 28-1117. Texas Tech 34-918. Alabama 30-1219. Georgia Tech 28-1220. OLE MISS 23-1721. Nebraska 27-1122. South Carolina 27-1223. Ohio State 27-724. Texas 28-1725. Tulane 30-926. Arizona State 32-1527. Loyola Marymount 24-1628. Oklahoma State 29-1029. Arizona 29-1630. Notre Dame 28-9
