Rebels Ready for First SEC Road Trip at Missouri

			#15 OLE MISS (16-6, 2-1 SEC) at MISSOURI (13-8, 0-3 SEC) March 22-24 Columbia, Mo. Taylor Stadium at Simmons Field (3,031)
Ole Miss Notes • Missouri Notes • SEC Notes

Friday, Mar. 22 6 p.m.	Saturday, Mar. 23 7 p.m.	Sunday, Mar. 24 2 p.m.
PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: RHP Will Ethridge 4-0, 0.46 ERA, 17 K, 8 BB Missouri: LHP Jacob Cantleberry 2-1, 2.93 ERA, 39 K, 11 BB	PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: LHP Doug Nikhazy 1-2, 4.15 ERA, 20 K, 7 BB Missouri: RHP TJ Sikkema 2-1, 1.30 ERA, 35 K, 6 BB	PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: RHP Gunnar Hoglund 1-0, 3.26 ERA, 16 K, 3 BB Missouri: LHP Tyler LaPlante 1-1, 3.00 ERA, 18 K, 3 BB
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LEADING OFF
• Ole Miss enters the weekend coming off a 25-0 victory over UAPB, in which the Rebels assaulted the offensive record books while also throwing the first combined no-hitter in program history.
• The Rebels head to Columbia at 2-1 in SEC play after opening their conference slate with a series victory at home last week against Alabama. Ole Miss capped the series win with an emphatic 12-2 victory on Sunday.
• Ole Miss will look to extend its 9-8 all-time series lead over Missouri. The Rebels and Tigers first met in 1958, with Mizzou taking both games. The two teams have met in Columbia just once, where the No. 21 Tigers took two of three.
• Ole Miss has outscored its opponents 49-4 over the last three games.
• The Rebels are No. 4 in the nation and first in the SEC with 195 runs scored on the year.
• Ole Miss ranks eighth nationally and second in the SEC with 29 home runs on the season.
• The Rebels are 14th nationally in both slugging percentage (.479) and on-base percentage (.416). Ole Miss' team OPS of 0.895 is good for eighth in the country.
• Tyler Keenan remains No. 2 in the nation and first in the SEC with 39 RBI on the season. At a rate of 1.77 RBI per game, he's on pace to finish with 99 RBI during the regular season.
• Ryan Olenek enters the weekend No. 4 in the nation and second in the SEC with 37 hits. He also leads the league in batting average at .435, good for 18th nationally.
• Thomas Dillard is No. 8 in the nation and first in the SEC with eight home runs on the year. He also ranks in the top 25 nationally in walks (12th), runs scored (18th) and total bases (21st).
• Grae Kessinger, Dillard and Olenek each have 25 runs scored this season, good for a tie for third in the SEC and 18th nationally. Anthony Servideo is just behind, having touched home 24 times this season.

REBS ASSAULT RECORD BOOK VS. UAPB

Ole Miss enters the weekend coming off one of the most dominant performances in program history, overwhelming Arkansas-Pine Bluff 25-0 on Wednesday. The Rebels scored 25 runs, their most since April 22, 2003, a 25-5 win over Southern Miss—just three shy of the program record (28). Ole Miss racked up 21 hits along the way, the most since May 13, 2016 against Kentucky. All 25 runs were driven in, tying a program record for RBI in a game.

Ole Miss hit six home runs in the win, two shy of the program record (8), including four in one inning. The six home runs were a Bianco era record. The four-home-run inning came as a pair of back-to-back home runs. The Rebels have now hit back-to-back homers four times this season.

Meanwhile, four Rebel pitchers combined for the sixth no-hitter in program history and the first since Russ Johnson no-hit Mississippi State in 1966. It was the first combined no-hitter in school history.

MENTIONABLE HONORS

Ole Miss earned four preseason All-SEC honors, the most in Rebel baseball history and tied for the most in the conference this season. Six of the Rebels' starting nine offensive players carry either 2019 preseason or 2018 postseason honors into the start of the season.

Preseason All-American
Parker Caracci - 1st Team (Perfect Game); 2nd Team (D1Baseball, NCBWA, Collegiate Baseball); 3rd Team (Baseball America)
Thomas Dillard - 2nd Team (D1Baseball)
Ryan Olenek - 3rd Team (Collegiate Baseball)

Preseason All-SEC
1B Cole Zabowski - First Team
RHP Parker Caracci - Second Team
IF/OF/DH Chase Cockrell - Second Team
3B Tyler Keenan - Second Team

2019 Weekly Honors
Thomas Dillard - SEC Player of the Week (Week 2), Golden Spikes Award Performance of the Week (Week 2), NCBWA National Hitter of the Week (Week 2), Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week (Week 2)
Ryan Olenek - Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week (Week 3)

OLE MISS VS. MIZZOU

Ole Miss and Missouri have met 17 times in their history, with the Rebels holding a 9-8 edge all-time. The Rebels and Tigers last played in 2016, with Ole Miss taking two of three in Oxford. Missouri won the series-opener, but Ole Miss fought back, taking the next two.

Several current Rebels played in the most recent series with Mizzou. Friday night starter Will Ethridge made two appearances in relief, going 3.1 flawless innings without a baserunner allowed. He earned the save in the final game of the series. Most notably on the offensive side, Ryan Olenek went .400 in the Missouri series with a double, a run scored and two RBI.

The Rebels and Tigers first met in 1958, with Mizzou taking both games. The two teams have met in Columbia just once, where the No. 21 Tigers took two of three in 2015.

STARTING OFF

Ole Miss must replace its entire weekend starting rotation as Ryan Rolison (1st Round), Brady Feigl (5th Round) and James McArthur (12th Round) were all selected in the 2018 MLB Draft.

GOOD WILL PITCHING

Will Ethridge earned the Friday night role after posting the team's best ERA over the offseason. The junior out of Lilburn, Georgia, posted a minuscule 0.60 ERA in the fall with 18 strikeouts compared to four walks (4.50 K/BB). He kept it going in the spring, holding opposing hitters to two runs over 11 innings for a 1.67 ERA.

Ethridge missed his second start of the season at Tulane with a blister, but aside from that hiccup, he has been every bit of the Friday night ace the Rebels hoped for. His 0.46 ERA would rank third in the SEC and ninth in the nation, but he is 2.1 innings shy of the NCAA ranking minimum of 1.0 IP/game.

Ethridge was phenomenal in his first SEC start of the season, going 6.0 scoreless, scattering three hits with nine strikeouts to earn the win in a 1-0 victory over Alabama.

NEW SATURDAY NIGHT STARTER

Freshman lefty Doug Nikhazy has moved into the Saturday night role this weekend and will make his first weekend start of his career. He was called upon for two tough midweek starts against ranked opponents, No. 14 ECU and No. 7 Louisville.

In those starts, Nikhazy allowed three runs in each game, yielding four hits against ECU and five against Louisville, going a total of 11 innings between the two starts, striking out 12. In six relief appearances, Nikhazy has allowed only two runs over 6.1 innings.

FAB FRESHMAN

The final starting role was taken by highly touted freshman Gunnar Hoglund. Hoglund was drafted in the first round of the 2018 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates but elected to come to Oxford. The rookie out of Hudson, Florida, has lived up to his billing thus far. His fall ERA was second only to Ethridge at 1.23 over 14.2 innings of work. He was outstanding in the spring as well, posting a 6.0 strikeout-to-walk ratio, going 8.2 innings without issuing a free pass. Before his final start of the spring, he allowed just two earned runs.

CLOSING TIME

Parker Caracci had a breakout 2018 season that ended in All-America honors and a selection in the 37th round of the MLB Draft by the Toronto Blue Jays. However, Caracci elected to return for his redshirt-junior campaign, and he has worked his way back to top form going into the season. Caracci pitched for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team over the summer, posting a perfect 0.00 ERA with two saves and an opposing batting average of .094 in 9.2 innings of work. Heading into the season, Caracci is a first-team All-American according to Perfect Game, in addition to four other All-America nods. He's also All-SEC Second Team and is on the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award Watch List.

GREEN IS BACK

Senior Connor Green has emerged as a linchpin in the Rebel bullpen in 2019. Green posted a 2.73 ERA in 20 appearnces as a freshman but saw his role diminished the two following seasons, including a switch to a submarine delivery as junior. Now, he's back over the top and better than ever. Green picked up his first two career wins in back-to-back games—Sunday at Tulane and Tuesday against UT Martin.

Green was outstanding once again against Long Beach State. He went 2.0 innings without allowing a baserunner, striking out two to bridge the gap in the Rebels' 7-6 win. He had another strong outing against ECU, throwing one inning and allowing just one hit, striking out two.

REBELS NO-HIT GOLDEN LIONS

On Wednesday against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Zack Phillips, Kaleb Hill, Pierce Smith and Taylor Broadway combined for the Rebels' first no-hitter since 1966 and the first combined no-no in program history.

The game was called after seven innings with the run rule in effect, but the foursome went a combined 7.0 IP with no runs allowed on no hits with three walks and 12 strikeouts.

SWAYZE SHOWER SEASON

With 29 home runs on the season, Ole Miss ranks 8th nationally and 2nd in the SEC. The Rebels are averaging 1.32 home runs per game, good for 12th in the nation and second in the conference.

REBS ARE RUNNIN'

Ole Miss has outscored its opponents 49-4 over the last three games. The Rebels are No. 4 in the nation, first in the SEC with 195 runs scored on the season. They are also ninth nationally and first in the conference at an average of 8.9 runs scored per game.

SEC LEADERS

Ole Miss has a trio of players who are all over the top of the SEC hitting charts. Ole Miss has the SEC leader in batting (Olenek), RBI (Keenan) and home runs (Dillard).

CROOKED NUMBERS

Ole Miss has scored 3 or more runs in an inning 28 times this season. The Rebels have had 10 three-run innings, 6 four-run innings, 6 five-run innings, two six-run innings, two seven-run innings, one eight-run inning and one nine-run inning.

DOUBLE DIGITS

Ole Miss scored in double figures 10 times this season, including a season-high of 25 Wednesday against UAPB. The Rebels have reached double figures in hits 11 times, including a season high of 21 against UAPB.

OLE MISS OPS

Ole Miss ranks 14th nationally in both slugging percentage (.479) and on-base percentage (.416). Ole Miss' team OPS of 0.895 is good for eighth in the country.

DILLY DILLY!

Thomas Dillard's incredible start to the 2019 season has drawn some major national recognition. He ranks in the top 50 nationally in home runs (8th), walks (12th), runs score (18th), home runs per game (19th), total bases (21st), slugging percentage (32nd) and RBI (44th).

Dillard's Week 2 Honors
• SEC Player of the Week
• Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week
• NCBWA National Hitter of the Week
• Golden Spikes Award Performance of the Week

OLEY ON FIRE

Ryan Olenek picked up where he left off after hitting .350 and earning All-SEC First Team honors in 2018. In addition to being named a Preseason All-American by Collegiate Baseball, in Week 3 of 2019, Olenek was named a National Player of the Week by the Publication.

The senior out of Winter Park, Florida, is the SEC leader in batting average at .435, good for No. 18 nationally. He's also second in the SEC in hits with 37, good for fourth in the nation. Olenek is also 18th in the country and third in the SEC in runs scored and is fourth in the conference and 49th nationally with a .510 on-base percentage.

OK, TK

Tyler Keenan had a tremendous rookie campaign, earning Freshman All-American honors, as well as an All-SEC Second Team nod going into 2019—and he has shown no signs of a sophomore slump.

Keenan is No. 2 in the nation and No. 1 in the SEC in RBI with 39 on the year. His 1.77 RBI/game average is also second on the country and puts him on pace for 99 RBI during the regular season. Keenan is also 16th in the country and fourth in the SEC with seven home runs on the year, including a two-homer game Wednesday against UAPB. He also leads the SEC, having been hit by eight pitches this season.

CATCHER U

Junior Cooper Johnson is off to an excellent start to 2019 and is poised to be the next in a line of prolific catchers to play for head coach Mike Bianco. Johnson is hitting just under .300 with five doubles, 11 runs scored, two home runs and 10 RBI. He also has just one passed ball through 10 games and has erased six would-be base stealers.

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Players Mentioned

Taylor Broadway

Parker Caracci

Chase Cockrell

Thomas Dillard

Will Ethridge

Brady Feigl

Connor Green

Kaleb Hill

Gunnar Hoglund

Cooper Johnson

Tyler Keenan

Grae Kessinger

James McArthur

Doug Nikhazy

Ryan Olenek

Zack Phillips

Ryan Rolison

Anthony Servideo

Pierce Smith

Cole Zabowski

The University of Mississippi Athletics