The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
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Mississippi State
No. 6 Baseball Heads to Starkville
4/15/2021 | Baseball
Rebels and No. 3 Bulldogs do Battle at Dudy Noble
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#6 OLE MISS (25-8, 8-4 SEC) at #3 MISSISSIPPI STATE (25-7, 8-4 SEC) Apr. 16-18 Starkville, Miss. Dudy Noble Field (13,000) |
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| Ole Miss Notes • SEC Notes | ||||||||
| Friday, Apr. 16 6 p.m. CT  |
Saturday, Apr. 17 2 p.m. CT  |
Sunday, Apr. 18 1 p.m. CT |
| PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: RHP Gunnar Hoglund 3-1, 2.57 ERA, 78 K, 16 BB MSU: LHP Christian MacLeod 3-2, 62 ERA, 58 K, 12 BB |
PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: LHP Doug Nikhazy 3-1, 2.43 ERA, 47 K, 14 BB MSU: RHP Will Bednar 2-0, 2.10 ERA, 48 K, 4 BB |
PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: RHP Drew McDaniel 4-0, 2.90 ERA, 38 K, 610BB MSU: RHP Jackson Fristoe 2-2, 4.13 ERA, 49 K, 18 BB |
| Watch • Listen • Live Stats | Watch • Listen • Live Stats | Watch • Listen • Live Stats |
SERIES INFO
Dates: Apr. 16-18
First Pitch: 6 p.m. CT | 2 p.m. CT | 1 p.m. CT
Location: Starkville, Miss.
Venue: Dudy Noble Field
Dimensions: LF-330, CF-390, RF-305 (13,000)
TV/Live Stream: SEC Network (Fri.) | SEC Network+ (Sat./Sun.)
Play by Play: Tom Hart (Fri.)
Analyst: Kyle Peterson (Fri.)
Play by Play: Bart Gregory (Sat./Sun.)
Analyst: Charlie Winfield (Sat./Sun.)
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network/TuneIn App
Play by Play: David Kellum
Analyst: Brad Henderson
Series History: MSU leads 248-210-5
Last Meeting: May 10-12, 2019 (in Oxford)
Results: L, 0-2 | L, 5-8 | L, 5-11
Last in Starkville: Apr. 7-8, 2018
Results: L, 3-13 | W, 6-1 | L, 5-7
• Ole Miss enters the weekend at 25-8 a hard-fought series defeat to No. 1 Arkansas. In a top-three matchup, the Rebels and Razorbacks split a Saturday doubleheader with Ole Miss emphatically winning Game 2, 13-6. On Sunday, the Rebels overcame an 11-0 deficit to tie but ultimately drop Game 3, 18-14.
• Ole Miss slipped to a high ranking of No. 6 in the D1Baseball rankings and USA Today/Coaches Poll.
• The Rebels are now in a tie for second place in the SEC West with Mississippi State at 8-4 in league play.
• The Ole Miss offense scored 30 runs over three games against Arkansas and 58 runs over five games last week. The Rebels are second in the SEC and rank fourth nationally with 253 runs scored.
• Eight Rebels hit .400 or better last week, while Kevin Graham's .368 average made a full nine of Rebels over .350. Ole Miss now ranks No. 2 in the SEC and 16th nationally with a .302 team average.
• Ole Miss leads the SEC and ranks fourth nationally with 335 hits on the season. The Rebels have tallied nine or more hits in eight straight games, totaling 107 in that span (13.4 hits per game).
• Taylor Broadway leads the SEC and is two off the national lead with eight saves on the season.
• Gunnar Hoglund is No. 2 in the nation and second in the SEC with 78 strikeouts on the season.
• The Rebel pitching staff is No. 3 nationally and third in the SEC, averaging 12.1 strikeouts per game.
• Ole Miss and Mississippi State have met 463 times with the Bulldogs holding a 248-210-5 lead.
REBS VS. BULLDOGS
Ole Miss and Mississippi State have met 463 times with the Bulldogs holding a 248-210-5 advantage in the all-time series. MSU has had the upper-hand in the series of late, winning the last six meetings and 14 of the last 16. The Bulldogs have also won each of the past four weekend series between the in-state rivals. Ole Miss last won a series over MSU in 2015, a three-game sweep in Oxford. The Rebels last won a series in Starkville, taking two of three at Dudy Noble Field in 2014 en route to the College World Series.
WILD SERIES VS. HOGS
Ole Miss racked up 30 runs over three games against No. 1 Arkansas, but as potent as the Rebels were, the Razorbacks were a razor's edge better as they took the series win at Swayze behind 31 runs scored of their own. After a Friday rainout, the two SEC rivals staged a doubleheader on Saturday. Gunnar Hoglund took a no-hitter into the sixth inning of Game 1, but the Razorback bats broke through on the Rebel bullpen in a 7-3 final. Ole Miss swung back emphatically in the nightcap, plating 13 runs on 18 hits, including a back-breaking five-spot in the bottom of the eighth of a 13-6 victory. In Game 3, Arkansas jumped out to an 11-0 lead after 2.5 innings, but that was far from the end of the story. The Rebels never gave in, responding with five runs in the third, five more in the sixth and three in the seventh to ultimately tie the game, 14-14. However, Arkansas was able to bounce back and seal the series with four runs in the final two innings. Ole Miss outhit Arkansas in all three games for a grand total of 46-33 over the weekend.
HISTORIC SEC START
Ole Miss started SEC play at 6-0 for the first time since the 1964 team started 11-0 in league play en route to a College World Series appearance. Ole Miss swept both Alabama and Auburn to start SEC play, the first time since 2001 that the Rebels swept both Alabama schools in the same season. It's also the first time Ole Miss swept consecutive SEC series since going 6-0 against Alabama and Tennessee in 2013. This was Ole Miss' first SEC road sweep since taking three from No. 17 Kentucky in 2014. Mike Bianco's Rebels are the first team to start SEC play at 6-0 since South Carolina in 2016 and the only SEC West team to start 6-0 since he came to Oxford in 2001.
WEST AND HIGHLY FAVORED
Ole Miss was picked to win the SEC Western Division by the conference coaches, garnering seven of the division's 14 first-place votes. This marked the first time since 2008 that the Rebels were picked to win the SEC West. Ole Miss was projected to finish sixth in the division last season. After four weeks of SEC play, the Rebels are tied for second place in the division at 8-4.
ONE-RUN MAGIC
Ole Miss is 7-2 on the season in one-run games. Ole Miss has won nine straight 1-0 games. The last time Mike Bianco's squad lost a 1-0 contest was Feb. 24, 2007, against Wright State, a game that was shortened to five innings due to weather. Ole Miss also has 10 come-from-behind wins.
FIRST NO. 1 RANKING
Baseball America, D1Baseball, Perfect Game and NCBWA made Ole Miss the consensus No. 1 team in the nation after Week 1, the first No. 1 ranking in program history. The Rebels hold a high ranking of No. 6 this week after consecutive series defeats.
RECORD-SETTING STREAK
Ole Miss opened the 2020 season with a defeat at home to No. 1 Louisville, led by eventual first round MLB Draft pick Reid Detmers. Starting the next day, Ole Miss went on the greatest tear in program history, reeling off 20 straight victories before finally snapping the spell on Feb. 26, 2021, with a 3-2 loss to UCF. The streak spanned 378 days. The Rebels finished tied for the fifth-most consecutive wins in SEC history (Record: 24 - Texas A&M, 2015) and the longest win streak in the conference since Mizzou won 20 straight in 2017.
WELCOME TO THE GUN SHOW
Gunnar Hoglund has made five consecutive starts in series openers, his first in the lead role of the Rebel rotation. Over those five starts, the junior out of Hudson, Florida, has gone 31.1 innings with six earned runs allowed on 17 hits and 11 walks with 50 strikeouts. Hoglund is No. 2 in the nation with 78 strikeouts on the season, just trailing the national leader, Vanderbilt's Jack Leiter (84). Hoglund's 14 strikeouts against ULM were two shy of the program record and the most by a Rebel since Drew Pomeranz struck out 15 in 2010. Ole Miss is 22-7 in games where Hoglund pitches, including wins in 10 of his last 12 starts. Hoglund has struck out 10 or more in five of his eight starts this season.
STRIKES AT SWAYZE
Ole Miss is fourth in the SEC and No. 4 in the nation in strikeouts per nine innings, averaging 12.1 Ks per game. The Rebels have struck out at least 10 batters in 24 of 33 games this season. Ole Miss also ranks No. 18 nationally and sixth in the conference in strikeout-to-walk ratio at 3.24. The Rebels struck out 16 Texas Tech batters on Feb. 21, their most against a ranked team since fanning 16 against No. 23 UNCW in 2017. The Rebels struck out 42 batters over opening weekend in Texas. Ole Miss' 18 strikeouts against Arkansas State were its most since Game 2 against Xavier last season. The Rebels matched that season-best mark in an April 3 win at Florida.
DOUG DAY
Doug Nikhazy has come back strong after missing two starts with a strained pectoral muscle. In his three starts since returning, Nikhazy went 16.2 innings with just two earned runs allowed on 10 hits and seven walks with 25 strikeouts. Nikhazy's 11 strikeouts at Florida were a season-high and tied his career-best in SEC play. In two previous starts before injury, Nikhazy notched a 2.39 ERA over 11.1 innings with three runs allowed on five hits with 19 strikeouts and three walks.
BROADWAY IS CLOSED
Taylor Broadway has been a dominant force at the back end of the Rebel bullpen in 2021, leading the SEC and sitting two off of the national lead with eight saves on the season. Ole Miss is 11-2 this season when Broadway pitches, including nine scoreless outings.
MILLER TIME
Austin Miller has continued to be one of Ole Miss' most reliable arms out of the bullpen. The senior out of North Liberty, Iowa, is the career active leader in appearances with 62. Over his career, Miller has allowed one run or fewer in 54 appearances. Nine of those appearances have come this season, including seven scoreless outings.
GOLDEN ARMS
Doug Nikhazy and Gunnar Hoglund are expected to form one of college baseball's best one-two punches at the top of the rotation. Both are Preseason All-Americans and both were named to the Golden Spikes Award Watch List. They are also one of just three duos in the nation to represent the same team in the top 25 of the D1Baseball starting pitcher power rankings.
REBS ARE RUNNIN'
Ole Miss has been one of the nation's's top offenses this season, leading the SEC and ranking fourth nationally in hits. The Rebels also rank fourth nationally and second in the SEC in runs scored with 263. Ole Miss is second in the SEC in batting average at .302 on the year and ranks in the top five in the SEC in walks, runs per game, on-base percentage, doubles and hit by pitch. Last week, Ole Miss scored 58 runs, including 30 in the series vs. Arkansas.
ELKO OUT
The same week he was named the NCBWA Hitter of the Month for March, Rebel slugger Tim Elko suffered a torn ACL while avoiding a diving North Alabama first baseman. Ole Miss will continue to monitor its senior captain in the coming weeks. The Preseason All-American and All-SEC third baseman hit .354 with four doubles and three home runs in 2020. The Rebel captain exploded in Week 3 for five home runs, earning SEC and National Player of the Week honors. Without Elko, the Rebel offense has stepped up collectively. In five games since his injury, the Rebels have averaged 10.2 runs and 14 hits per game.
LINEUP SHIFTS
Both Cael Baker (fractured hamate bone) and Trey LaFleur (mono) returned to action last week after missing the previous three weeks. Their absence moved Tim Elko across the diamond from third base to first base and Justin Bench in from center field to third base. With Elko now out due to a torn ACL, Baker and LaFleur will likely share first base duties with Bench remaining at third.
KG THE CATALYST
It has been an outstanding junior campaign thus far for Kevin Graham, who ranks sixth in the SEC and 31st nationally with 44 hits. Graham has reached base in 26 straight games and ranks 10th in the conference and second on the team with a .358 batting average. The left-handed hitting Graham has hit .417 batting average against left-handed pitching in 2021.
THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT
True freshmen Jacob Gonzalez and TJ McCants, filling the starting shortstop and center field spots for Ole Miss, have hit their stride as the Rebels have waded deeper into SEC play. Over his last 11 games, McCants is hitting .429 with 14 runs scored, six RBI, two doubles, a triple and a home run. In his last eight games, Gonzalez is hitting .459 with 12 runs scored, nine RBI, two doubles and a home run.
CATCHER U
After a sensational freshman season, catcher Hayden Dunhurst has shown early in 2021 that he's ready to further etch his name among the long line of phenomenal catchers in Oxford. The Preseason All-SEC catcher leads all Rebel starters with a .471 on-base percentage. Dunhurst is 35th nationally and seventh in the SEC with 24 walks drawn. The left-handed-hitting former Freshman All-America selection is hitting .367 against left-handed pitchers, as well as .389 with runners in scoring position.
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