The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Arkansas
Top-Ranked Arkansas Comes to Swayze for SEC Series
4/9/2021 | Baseball
Rebels and Razorbacks Duel for SEC West Lead
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#3 OLE MISS (23-6, 7-2 SEC) vs. #1 ARKANSAS (24-4, 7-2 SEC) Apr. 9-11 Oxford, Miss. Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field (11,477) |
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| Ole Miss Notes • SEC Notes | ||||||||
| Friday, Apr. 9 6 p.m. CT  |
Saturday, Apr. 10 4 p.m. CT  |
Sunday, Apr. 11 1:30 p.m. CT |
| PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: RHP Gunnar Hoglund 3-1, 2.47 ERA, 70 K, 11 BB Arkansas: LHP Patrick Wicklander 1-1, 2.13 ERA, 25 K, 9 BB |
PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: LHP Doug Nikhazy 1-1, 4.15 ERA, 22 K, 7 BB Arkansas: RHP Payton Pallette 1-1, 3.25 ERA, 39 K, 12 BB |
PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: RHP Derek Diamond 2-2, 3.96 ERA, 29 K, 6 BB Arkansas: LHP Lael Lockheart 1-1, 3.41 ERA, 34 K, 613BB |
| Watch • Listen • Live Stats | Watch • Listen • Live Stats | Watch • Listen • Live Stats |
SERIES INFO
Dates: Apr. 9-11
First Pitch: 6 p.m. CT | 4 p.m. CT | 1:30 CT
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Venue: Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field
Dimensions: LF-330, CF-390, RF-330 (11,477)
TV/Live Stream: SEC Network (Fri.) | SEC Network+ (Sat./Sun.)
Play by Play: Clay Matvick (Fri.)
Analyst: Ben McDonald (Fri.)
Play by Play: Richard Cross (Sat./Sun.)
Analyst: Matt McLaughlin (Sat./Sun.)
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network/TuneIn App
Play by Play: David Kellum
Analyst: Brad Henderson
Series History: Arkansas leads 51-48
Last Meeting: June 8-10, 2019 (in Fayetteville)
Results: L, 2-11 | W, 13-5 | L, 1-14
Last in Oxford: Mar. 29-31, 2018
Results: L, 4-6 | W, 5-4 | W, 11-10
• Ole Miss enters the weekend at 23-6 after sweeping two midweek games against North Alabama and Alcorn State by a combined score of 28-7. The Rebels will look to get back on track in SEC play after sustaining their first conference series defeat of the season at Florida last weekend.
• The Rebels and Razorbacks will play for the outright lead in the SEC Western Division. The two are currently tied atop the league, each at 7-2 in conference play.
• Ole Miss and Arkansas have met 99 times with the Razorbacks holding a 51-48 all-time lead. The Rebels and Hogs split eight meetings in 2019— a series win for Ole Miss in Fayetteville, a split of two games at the SEC Tournament in Hoover and an Arkansas series win at the Fayetteville Super Regional.
• Ole Miss will be without its top hitter, Tim Elko, for the foreseeable future. The day before he was awarded NCBWA Hitter of the Month for March, Elko sustained a torn ACL in Monday's win over UNA.
• Ole Miss will be without its top hitter, Tim Elko, for the foreseeable future. The day before he was awarded NCBWA Hitter of the Month for March, Elko sustained a torn ACL in Monday's win over UNA.
• After plating 28 runs in the midweek, Ole Miss is No. 7 nationally and second in the SEC in runs scored with 220 on the season. The Rebels average 7.6 runs scored per game, good for third in the conference.
• Gunnar Hoglund is No. 2 in the nation with 72 strikeouts on the season.
REBS VS. HOGS
Ole Miss and Arkansas have met 99 times with the Razorbacks holding a 51-48 all-time lead. The Rebels and Hogs split eight meetings in 2019— a series win for Ole Miss in Fayetteville, a split of two games at the SEC Tournament in Hoover and an Arkansas series win at the Fayetteville Super Regional. The three Super Regional games were all decided by eight or more runs—before that, seven of the previous eight meetings had been decided by two runs or fewer.
BIANCO V. VAN HORN
Mike Bianco and Dave Van Horn have faced one another as head coaches 64 times, with Bianco holding a 38-26 advantage in the all-time series. This weekend, the two will pass legendary LSU and Mississippi State coaches Skip Bertman and Ron Polk, who faced one another 66 times between 1984-2001, for the most meetings between two SEC head coaches. That includes nine contests in the SEC tournament, one non-conference meeting at the Dairy Queen Classic in Minneapolis in 2007 and a three-game series in 2019 for the Fayetteville Super Regional. The two also crossed paths five times between 1995-97 while Van Horn was the head coach at Northwestern State and Bianco an assistant at LSU. LSU won three of those five meetings.
FIRST SEC SETBACK
Ole Miss outscored Florida 14-12 over the weekend in its first ever trip to Florida Ballpark, but the Rebels left Gainesville with their first SEC series loss of the season. The Gators scored late to win a 4-1 pitchers' duel in Game 1. The following night, the Rebels answered back with six runs in the final two innings of an 8-2 victory to even the series at two. It appeared more late-game magic was on the way in Game 3 when brought the game to within one with a two-run seventh inning, but the home team held off a late rally of a 6-5 final.
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 three weeks of SEC play, the Rebels are tied for first in the division at 7-2.
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. 3 despite its first SEC series loss last weekend.
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 four consecutive starts in series openers, his first in the lead role of the Rebel rotation. Over those four starts, the junior out of Hudson, Florida, has gone 26.0 innings with five runs (four earned) allowed on 15 hits and six walks with 42 strikeouts. Hoglund is No. 2 in the nation with 70 strikeouts on the season, just one behind the national leader, Vanderbilt's Jack Leiter (71). 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 22-6 in games where Hoglund pitches, including wins in 10 of his last 11 starts. Hoglund has struck out 10 or more in five of his seven starts this season.
STRIKES AT SWAYZE
Ole Miss is third in the SEC and No. 3 in the nation in strikeouts per nine innings, averaging 12.2 Ks per game. The Rebels have struck out at least 10 batters in 21 of 29 games this season. Ole Miss also ranks in the top 50 nationally in strikeout-to-walk ratio, WHIP, walks per nine innings, ERA, shutouts and hits per nine innings. 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 two recent starts at Alabama and Florida, Nikhazy went 11.0 innings with just one unearned run allowed on three hits and five walks with 18 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, ranking third in the nation and first in the SEC in saves with seven. Ole Miss is 10-1 this season when Broadway pitches, including nine scoreless outings. In five SEC appearances, Broadway tallied five saves with no runs allowed on two hits and no walks, striking out 11 over 5.2 innings.
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 61. Over his career, Miller has allowed one run or fewer in 52 appearances. Eight 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.
ELKO OUT
The NCBWA named Tim Elko the National Hitter of the Month of March on Tuesday. Unfortunately, the night before, Elko suffered a torn ACL while avoiding a diving North Alabama first baseman. Ole Miss will continue to monitor the senior captain in the coming weeks. At the time of his injury, Elko led the SEC and was sixth nationally with 36 RBI and was ranked in the top 10 in the SEC in more than half a dozen offensive statistical categories. The Preseason All-American and All-SEC third baseman hit .354 with four doubles and three home runs in 2020. After a slow start, the Rebel captain exploded in Week 3 for five home runs as part of a 10-for-17 week three, earning SEC and National Player of the Week. Elko began the season at third base but moved to first base due to injuries at the position for the Rebels. Elko is a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award.
REBS ARE RUNNIN'
Ole Miss has been one of the nation's top offenses this season, ranking 7th in the nation in runs scored going into the weekend. The Rebels rank in the top 50 nationally in runs scored, walks, hits, sacrifice flies, runs per game, home runs, on-base pct., hit by pitch, doubles and batting avg.
KG THE CATALYST
It has been an outstanding junior campaign thus far for Kevin Graham, who ranks sixth in the SEC and 30th nationally with 39 hits coming into the weekend. Graham has reached base in 22 straight games and ranks 13th in the conference and first on the team with a .355 batting average. Primarily a pull, left-handed power hitter early in his Rebel career, Graham has expanded his offensive profile, including a .419 batting average against left-handed pitching.
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 seven games, McCants is 11-for-23 with nine runs scored, five RBI, two doubles, a triple and a home run. In his last six games, Gonzalez is 11-for-21 with seven runs scored, six RBI, two doubles and a home run.
LINEUP SHIFTS
Both Cael Baker (fractured hamate bone) and Trey LaFleur (mono) returned to action this week after missing the last 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.
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 the team with a .466 on-base percentage. Dunhurst is 10th nationally and fourth in the SEC with 24 walks drawn. The left-handed-hitting former Freshman All-America selection is hitting .320 against left-handed pitchers, as well as .345 with runners in scoring position.
