Rebels Ranked Seventh In Preseason Poll By Baseball Writers

OXFORD, Miss. The Ole Miss Baseball team will open the 2008 season as the seventh-ranked team in the nation according to the preseason poll released by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers of America (NCBWA) on Thursday.

It is the 11^th straight season of the NCBWA poll. The poll voters come from 30 college baseball writers and related media persons from throughout the nation. After a preseason Top 35 listing, the remainder of the polls will feature a national Top 30.

Ole Miss enters the 2008 season off a third-straight appearance in an NCAA Super Regional and posted a 40-25 record last season before falling to third-ranked Arizona State in the round of 16. The Rebels are one of only two teams to host a regional each of the last four seasons and one of only four teams to advance to a Super Regional each of the last three seasons.

The Rebels have also been the top performing team in the Southeastern Conference over the last five years, posting more wins in SEC play than any other team (86). Ole Miss is also the only team in the Southeastern Conference to post a winning record in conference play each of the last five seasons.

In 2008, the Rebels return one of the top pitching staffs in the nation as Ole Miss posted a 3.58 ERA and held opponents to a .240 batting average a year ago. The seven shutouts posted by the Rebels was also the most in the SEC.

Ole Miss returns to All-SEC performers on the mound, as junior right-handers Lance Lynn and Cody Satterwhite are expected to help lead the Rebels in the upcoming season. Lynn posted an 8-5 record in 2007, including wins over No. 1 Vanderbilt and complete-game shutouts of No. 4 South Carolina and Southern Miss in the NCAA Oxford Regional. Lynn also set the school record for strikeouts in a season with 146. Satterwhite posted four saves and four wins in relief as a closer for the Rebels as he posted saves over Auburn, No. 4 South Carolina, and Tennessee twice, while also notching wins in relief over No. 25 Alabama, No. 9 Arkansas, Georgia and Southern Miss.

The Rebels also return a solid offensive lineup and a bulk of its position starters including Freshman All-America selections Jordan Henry and Zach Miller. Henry, who was also named SEC Freshman of the Year, is the top returning hitter for the Rebels as he hit .376 as a freshman with 17 RBI, a home run and 60 runs scored. Miller hit .368 on the season with four home runs, 31 RBI and 39 runs scored for the Rebels. Also returning to the lineup are the top two power hitters from a year ago in junior Cody Overbeck, who hit a team-leading 14 home runs, and junior Logan Power who hit 11 home runs.

The fourth-ranked Rebels will open the 2008 season at home on Friday, February 22, 2008, when Ole Miss will host Minnesota in the first game of a three-game set. First-pitch of opening day is set for 3:00 p.m. at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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