The University of Mississippi Athletics
Baseball to Host Tennessee This Weekend
3/16/2000 | Baseball
March 16, 2000
OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss baseball team will step back into Southeastern Conference play this weekend when the Rebels open a three-game series with the Tennessee Volunteers Friday at 6:30 p.m., at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field. Game two on Saturday is also scheduled for 6:30 p.m., and Sunday's series-finale is at 1:30 p.m.
The Rebels are 13-6 overall after defeating in-state rival Southern Miss 12-4 on Tuesday before having Wednesday's game with Eastern Illinois was rained out. Ole Miss is 2-1 in conference action after opening SEC play by taking two-of-three from Florida last weekend in Gainesville.
Last weekend's series victory over the Gators continued the Rebels' trend of recent success against the SEC Eastern Division, as they have won 19 of their last 25 games against the East dating back to 1998.
Senior right-hander Jeff McAvoy is scheduled to be Ole Miss' game one starter. He is 4-1 on the year with a 5.68 ERA, and has a streak of nine straight victories at home. The last team to beat McAvoy in Oxford was South Carolina on April 4, 1998.
Saturday's starter is still to be determined and Ole Miss is expected to go with senior right-hander Joey Cramblitt (3-2, 4.34 ERA) on Sunday.
Tennessee brings a 19-6 overall record and a 1-2 SEC mark into this weekend's series. The Volunteers opened conference play last weekend by dropping two-of-three to Arkansas in Knoxville.
Senior left-hander Jamie Bennett (5-1, 1.92) will start the series on the mound for the Volunteers. Bennett pitched eight shutout innings against the Razorbacks during Tennessee's 14-0 win last Sunday to avoid the sweep.
Right-hander Brian Gates (3-1, 3.63) is penciled in to start Saturday on the mound, followed by right-hander Brandon Crowe (1-0, 2.13) in game three.
This weekend's series will mark the first meeting between the two schools since 1997 when Tennessee took two-of-three from the Rebels in Oxford.
