The University of Mississippi Athletics
Baseball Concludes Longest Road Trip of the Year
6/21/1999 | Baseball
March 16, 1999
UPCOMING THIS WEEK
The Ole Miss Rebels (7-11, 1-2 SEC) will conclude their longest road trip of the year when they travel to Monroe, La., for a 6:30 p.m. Tuesday game with NE Louisiana (13-6). The Rebels will then open a four-game homestand with a Wednesday afternoon non-conference game with Morehead State (8-6-1) at 3:00 p.m.. Ole Miss will return to SEC action this weekend by hosting Kentucky (4-10, 1-2 SEC). Game times for the Kentucky series will be 7:00 p.m. Friday, 4:00 p.m. Saturday and 1:30 p.m. Sunday. All games can be heard on Oxfords Q-93.7 FM and over the internet at www.wqlj.com. This weekends SEC games will also be available along stations on the Mississippi Network.
SCOUTING NE LOUISIANA
NE Louisiana enters Tuesday's game with a 13-6 record and riding a four-game winning streak. The Indians are coming off of a doubleheader sweep of Lamar University on Sunday, winning 12-4 and 14-13. NE Louisiana also played Baylor this season the team which Ole Miss opened the year against and split a two-game series with the Bears. The Indians have also beaten Arkansas (8-6) and taken two-of-three from Memphis; two teams which the Rebels will play later this season. Senior INF Jason Wolfe leads the Indians in hitting with a .414 average (29-for-70) and in home runs with six. Wolfe has also driven in 14 runs. Senior 1B Josh LaRue is hitting .403 (25-for-62) with five HRs and a team-leading 20 RBIs. Junior RHP Kevin Orga is scheduled to start Tuesday's game against the Rebels. Orga is 3-4 with a 5.11 ERA in 37 IP.
SERIES HISTORY
Ole Miss leads the series with NE Louisiana 17-9-1. The Rebels won the only meeting between the two schools last season, 16-4 in Monroe, La., in a game in which Ole Miss hit six home runs. The two schools were also scheduled to play in Oxford but that game was cancelled due to inclement weather. Ole Miss is 5-6 against the Indians during the 1990s.
SCOUTING MOREHEAD STATE
Morehead State enters the week 8-6-1. The Eagles will play at Memphis Tuesday before traveling to Oxford on Wednesday. Senior OF Todd Barker is the Eagles' leading hitter, batting .368 (21-for-57) with two HRs and 15 RBIs. Senior OF/INF Mark Dixon leads the team in RBIs with 16 and is hitting .327 (16-for-49) with two HRs. Junior catcher Pat Wooton is hitting .320 (8-for-25) and has hit a team-leading three HRs with 9 RBIs. The Eagles are scheduled to start senior left-hander Matt Martinez on Wednesday. Martinez is 0-0 with a 2.45 ERA in 11 IP, and has started two games this season.
SERIES HISTORY
Wednesday's game will mark the first meeting between the two schools since 1989 when the Rebels took three of four from the Eagles in a series played in Oxford. Ole Miss has dominated the series with Morehead State, having won 15 of the previous 18 meetings.
SCOUTING KENTUCKY
Kentucky is 4-10 on the year heading into this week, and 1-2 in the SEC after losing two-of-three to Vanderbilt over the weekend in Lexington. The Wildcats will host Miami of Ohio Tuesday in a non-conference game before traveling to Oxford. Sunday's 4-1 win over the Commodores snapped the Wildcats' four-game losing streak. Sophomore OF Beau Moore leads Kentucky in hitting with a .326 average (15-for-46) with two HRs and eight RBIs. Sophomore C/IF Josh Wilson leads the Wildcats in both HRs, with six, and RBIs with 12, and is hitting .305 (18-for-59)
SERIES HISTORY
Ole Miss lead the series 19-14 and has won last two series' from Kentucky, winning 2-1 in Oxford in 1997 and 2-1 in Lexington last year. Kentucky's last series win was in 1996 when they swept the Rebels in Lexington. Ole Miss' last sweep of Kentucky came in Lexington back in 1986.
THE CURRENT ROAD TRIP
Sunday's 9-7 win over South Carolina was the Rebels' first win of their seven-game road trip. Ole Miss enters the final game of the road trip with a 1-5 mark for the trip. Before Sunday's victory, the Rebels had dropped games to UAB (20-15), Delta State (13-4), Arkansas State (6-4) and the first two games of this past weekend's series at South Carolina (5-3, 8-2). Ole Miss 3-9 in games away from Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field this season.
HOME SWEET HOME
Following Tuesday's game at NE Louisiana, the Ole Miss Rebels will play their first home game in 16 days when they host the Morehead State Eagles Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. The Rebels' last home game was Feb. 28, falling 8-7 to South Alabama. Wednesday's game will mark the start of a four-game homestand as Ole Miss will play its first home SEC series this weekend against Kentucky. Ole Miss is 4-2 at home this season.
NOT SO DEAD BATS
Don't tell the Ole Miss Rebels that the new bats being used in college baseball this season are suppose to cut down on the number of home runs. Through the first 18 games of 1999, the Rebels are on pace to match last year's home run total in which they set a school with 98 in 53 games. Despite losing its top two home run hitters from last season Jason Huisman (21 HRs) and Bobby Kielty (16) the Rebels have hit 25 HRs in 18 games this season. Sophomores Robert Shelton and Justin Huisman are tied for the team lead in home runs with five. Shelton's five HRs matches his total from a season ago, and Huisman's five HRs is one more than his total from all of last season.
STREAKS AND SUCH
* The Rebels' recent six-game losing streak was their longest since dropping 10 in a row back in the middle of the 1997 season. The win also snapped an 11-game losing streak to South Carolina dating back to the 1995 season.
* Sunday's 9-7 win at South Carolina marked the Rebels' 27 straight when leading after eight innings dating back to last season. Ole Miss was 20-0 last season when leading after eight innings of play and is 7-0 in 1999.
* Senior 2B Brad Henderson led the Rebels' at the plate this weekend against USC, going 7-for-13 (.538). Unless the two teams meet in the SEC Tournament, Henderson will finish his career a .452 hitter against the Gamecocks, going 19-for-42 in 11 career games.
* With his 7-for-13 performance at the plate this weekend, Henderson surpassed Kyle Gordon (1984-87) for fifth-place on the Rebels' career hit chart. The senior from Tupelo now has 225 career hits in 158 games, and is eight hits shy of catching Kary Bridges (1991-93) in fourth-place with 233.
* Henderson collected at least two hits in all three games this weekend against USC, giving him a team-high 10 multiple-hit games this season. Henderson has five three-hit games, and five two-hit games this season.
* Henderson and junior OF Chad Hill currently have the team's longest hitting streak at four games.
* Freshman Clint Farrar recorded a career-high three hits in Sunday's game at South Carolina, going 3-for-5 with a double. Farrar also made his first career start at first base Sunday versus the Gamecocks. The Clinton High School product drew his first-ever start against SE Missouri State on Feb. 23, serving as the DH.
* Huisman surpassed his save total from all of last season when he picked up his fourth save on Sunday. Huisman is 4-for-4 in save conversions and has stranded seven of the eight baserunners he has inherited.
* Huisman's four saves ties him with Alabama's Lance Cormier for the SEC lead in saves. Huisman is also fourth in the SEC in fielding among shortstops with a .957 fielding percentage.
* The Rebels started four true freshmen in Sunday's win over South Carolina Adam Brown in RF, Kris Cox in LF, Farrar at 1B and Glen Morris started as the DH. The starts were the first career starts for both Brown and Cox.
* Shelton leads the SEC in fielding among third baseman with a .970 fielding percentage. Shelton has committed just one error in 33 chances this season after fielding at just a .784-clip last season.
* Junior OF Michael Rosamond is tied for the SEC lead in triples with three. The Rebels as a team, lead the conference in triples with nine.
* Despite getting the loss, junior RHP Jeff McAvoy struck out a career-high 10 in 6 2/3 innings Friday against South Carolina. His previous high was eight set last Feb. 28 against Memphis and this past Feb. 26 against South Alabama.
* Junior RHP Joey Cramblitt's start on Saturday against South Carolina marked his first career SEC start. Cramblitt suffered the loss, working four-plus innings, allowing five earned runs on 10 hits, while striking out two.
* Senior Alex Williamson is 10-for-22 (.455) in his career as a pinch-hitter. Williamson was 7-for-17 last season when being called upon off the bench and is 3-for-5 this season.
* Henderson, at second, Hill, in center field, and Huisman, at shortstop, are the only three players to start all 18 games at the same position this season. Senior OF Chad Mead has also started all 18 games this season, making 13 starts in left field, four on the mound and one as the DH. Rosamond started the first 16 games of the season in right field before not starting Saturday, and junior 1B Jude Voltz had been a starter in the first 17 games before not starting on Sunday.
ELEVEN TEAMS FROM THE 1998 NCAA TOURNAMENT
HIGHLIGHT REBELS' 1999 SLATE
This past weekend's three-game series at South Carolina marked the sixth NCAA Tournament participant from last season that Ole Miss has faced in 1999. In all, the Rebels will play 11 schools this season that qualified for the 1998 NCAA Tournament, including College World Series participants Florida, LSU and Mississippi State. The Rebels are 5-8 this season against 1998 NCAA Tournament teams, having played Baylor (Feb. 12-14), Tulane (Feb. 19), LSU (Feb. 21), SE Missouri State (Feb. 23-24) and South Alabama (Feb. 26-28). Other 1998 NCAA Tournament teams the Rebels will play in 1999 are: Auburn (April 23-25), Alabama (April 30-May 2), and Arkansas (May 7-9).
REVIEWING THE PAST WEEK
Tuesday- Arkansas State 6, Ole Miss 4
Matt Hale allowed three runs on seven hits while striking out five in 6 2/3 innings as Arkansas State downed Ole Miss 6-4. Clint Helpenstill then came on in relief of Hale to pitch 2 1/3 innings to earn his fourth save. Cooper Campbell (0-1) suffered the loss, pitching 1 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on three hits and walking three. Nathan Lyons came on in relief and pitched 3 1/3 innings, allowing one run on three hits and two walks while striking out a career-high six batters in the losing effort.
Friday - South Carolina 5, Ole Miss 3
Junior RHP Jeff McAvoy (3-3) struck out a career-high 10, but was touched for two, two-run home runs as South Carolina went on to a 5-3 win in the SEC opener for both teams. McAvoy worked 6 2/3 innings, allowing five earned runs on six hits and three walks in suffering the defeat. Gamecock starter Kip Bouknight pitched 7 1/3 innings, allowing three runs on five hits and three walks, and struck out 12 to earn the win. Scott Barber worked 1 2/3 innings, allowing a hit and striking out four to earn the save. Adam Poe's two-run HR put South Carolina up 2-0 in the third. Chad Hill's, two-out RBI triple to score Carl Lafferty cut the lead to 2-1, but the Gamecocks would break the game open with three runs in the seventh, highlighted by Mic Knox's two-run blast. Ole Miss would try to rally in the eighth as Chad Mead hit a RBI single to score Glen Morris and Jude Voltz would later score from third on a wild pitch for the final 5-3 margin.
Saturday- South Carolina 8, Ole Miss 2
Four hits by Bryan Roberts, including two doubles and a home run, led a 16 hit South Carolina attack. The loss was the Rebels' sixth straight. Randy Hadden (4-0) pitched 8 2/3 innings to earn the win with Ole Miss starter Joey Cramblitt (2-1) Hadden gave up a first inning run when Brad Henderson and Chad Mead, the first two Rebel hitters, singled with Henderson scoring on a sacrifice fly by Glen Morris. Hadden then shut the Rebels out until the ninth inning when doubles by Morris and John Massey produced the second Rebel run. Leading 2-1, South Carolina busted the game open with a five-run fifth inning. Roberts then made it 8-1 with his third HR of the year in the sixth. Henderson and Massey led Ole Miss at the plate with each going 2-for-4.
Sunday- Ole Miss 9, South Carolina 7
Sophomore SS Justin Huisman went 3-for-5 with four RBIs, including a two-out, three-run double in the sixth, to lead Ole Miss to a 9-7 win over South Carolina in the final game of the weekend's three-game series. Huisman also worked two innings of relief, allowing just one hit and striking out two to earn his fourth save of the year. The win snapped the Rebels' six-game losing streak and an 11-game losing skid to the Gamecocks. Freshman Clint Farrar and senior Brad Henderson also collected three hits each as the Rebels' out-hit South Carolina 15-11. Dan McShea (2-0) pitched five strong innings of relief, allowing two runs, one earned, on five hits and three walks to earn the win.
