The University of Mississippi Athletics
Friday, February 16
Honolulu, Hawaii
10:35 PM
Ole Miss
at
Hawaii
Baseball Opens 2024 Season With Weekend Series In Hawaii
2/15/2024 | Baseball
| Friday, February 16 10:35 p.m. CT  |
Saturday, February 17 5:05 p.m. CT / 8:35 p.m. CT |
Sunday, February 18 5:05 p.m. CT |
| PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: RHP JT Quinn 0-0, - ERA, - K, - BB Hawaii: LHP Harrison Bodendorf 0-0, - ERA, - K, - BB |
PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss (G1): LHP Gunnar Dennis Hawaii (G1): LHP Randy Abshier Ole Miss (G2): RHP Grayson Saunier Hawaii (G2): TBA |
PROJECTED STARTERS Ole Miss: RHP Riley Maddox 0-0, - ERA, - K, - BB Hawaii: TBA 0-0, - ERA, - K, - BB |
HONOLULU – For the first time since 2021, Ole Miss Baseball will open its season away from Swayze Field, traveling to the island of Oahu to take on the University of Hawaii in a season-opening, four-game set.
LEADING OFF
- Ole Miss finished the 2023 season with a 25-29 record and a 6-24 record in the SEC, missing the postseason for the first time since 2011.
- The Rebels had four MLB Draft selections in 2023 including the 15th overall pick in shortstop Jacob Gonzalez.
- Kemp Alderman earned the 2023 Ferriss Trophy, becoming the first Rebel to win the award since 2014.
- Alderman was also named an All-American by both the NCBWA and the ABCA.
- Gonzalez, Alderman, and Calvin Harris each earned ABCA All-Region and All-SEC honors.
- Head coach Mike Bianco moved into second place all-time in wins by an SEC head coach with 879 wins as the leader of the Rebels.
- Ole Miss is the only program in the country that has five players on D1Baseball's Top-100 2025 MLB Prospect list.
- Newcomer Treyson Hughes was named a Preseason All-American by the NCBWA.
- This is the first time in program history that the Rebels and the Rainbow Warriors have met and the first time that Ole Mis has played in Hawaii.
- Ole Miss will open their home slate next Wednesday against Arkansas State.
SCOUTING REPORT
Ranking seventh in wins among active head coaches with an overall record of 1,136-782-4, Rich Hill enters his third season as the head coach of the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors. Last season, he led Hawaii to a 29-20 record, finishing fifth in the Big West standings with an 18-12 conference record. The 'Bows returned a veteran lineup for the 2024 season with six players who started at least 30 games a year ago. In addition, Hawaii is coming off one of its best power-hitting seasons, hitting the most home runs in a season since 2010 with 36 while posting a slugging percentage of .416.
Projected to start on Friday night, Harrison Bodendorf returns for his sophomore season after a successful freshman campaign. Bodendorf earned Freshman All-America honors from Collegiate Baseball and a First Team All-Big West selection after finishing 5-2 with a 3.45 ERA and 66 strikeouts over 57.1 innings pitched with a .239 batting average against.
A veteran arm and projected to start in Game One on Saturday, Randy Abshier enters his fifth collegiate season after spending all of 2023 as Hawaii's Saturday starter, making 15 starts while going 6-3 with a 4.29 ERA and 69 strikeouts over 71.1 innings. A transfer from Arizona, Abshier leads the team with 114.1 career innings pitched and 111 strikeouts and is 11-3 over his career in 55 appearances.
CLASH OF TITANS
Head coaches Mike Bianco and Rich Hill have instilled their names into the record books as two of the most active winning head coaches in the nation. Both coaches have head coach experience at the Division I level for over 25 years. Together they have taken their respective programs to new heights as Hill (1,136-782-4) is ranked as the No. 7 winningest active head coach and Bianco (979-585-1) at No. 11 in the NCAA.
In 23 seasons leading the program, Bianco has delivered 18 postseason appearances, including eight Super Regional berths and a pair of trips to the College World Series. He has racked up 879 victories, holding a 879-514-1 (.631) record. Those wins are the most in Rebel baseball history and rank second all-time among coaches in the SEC. He also stands as the winningest and longest-active coach in the SEC among the sports of baseball, men's basketball and football.
In the past two seasons with the Rainbow Warriors, Hill has led Hawaii to its first two winning Big West seasons in each of his first two years. Prior to UH, Hill guided the San Diego Toreros to nine NCAA Tournament appearances with a three-year streak (2006-08) and a pair of back-to-back appearances (2002-03; 2012-13).
ALL-AMERICAN IN THE OUTFIELD
Treyson Hughes was named a 2024 Preseason All-American by the NCBWA last week, making the Third Team in the outfield.
Hughes is a junior transfer who played his first two seasons at Mercer where he played in 115 games for the Bears. The Georgia native boasts a career .352 batting average with 105 total RBI and 127 runs scored over two seasons.
Last season, he hit .387 and set a new single-season runs scored record at Mercer, crossing the plate 74 times in 58 games. Hughes led the Southern Conference in on-base percentage and runs scored, earning 2023 First Team All-SoCon and SoCon All-Tournament team honors.
BIG MAL IS BACK
Josh Mallitz was named to the 2024 Stopper of the Year Watch List, opening the season among the nation's best in the bullpen.
Malllitz returns to the mound this season after sitting out the entirety of the 2023 season recovering from injury.
In 2022, the Florida native was an integral part of the team's national championship run, posting a 1.45 ERA over 31 innings of work. He held opponents to a .171 batting average while racking up 48 strikeouts.
Mallitz made five appearances during the team's postseason run, allowing just one run while striking out 18 over 10.2 innings. In game one of the College World Series Final, Mallitz worked two innings and struck out four Sooners.
THE ROAD TO 1,000
Head coach Mike Bianco comes into the 2024 season needing just 21 wins to reach 1,000 for his career. He has 979 career wins, 879 as head coach of the Rebels and 100 from his time at McNeese State.
TRANSFER TO THE SIP
D1Baseball ranked Ole Miss' 2024 transfer class the No. 7 class in the country and No. 5 in the SEC back in January. Five new Rebels were ranked in the top-70 in the publication's 2024 Impact Transfer rankings including Treyson Hughes (No. 11), Andrew Fischer (No. 17), and Luke Hill (No. 20) who were all ranked in the top 20.
Jackson Ross and Kyler Carmack were also included on the list at No. 25 and No. 65 respectfully.
WHAT SOPHOMORE SLUMP?
Ole Miss has five sophomores ranked in D1Baseball's Top-100 2025 MLB Draft Prospects, something that no other program in the country can claim.
JT Quinn leads the way coming in at No. 27, followed by Luke Hill (No. 38), Andrew Fischer (No. 40), Grayson Saunier (No. 57), and Liam Doyle (No. 91).
CONTACT HIGH
Ethan Lege struck out just 16 times in his 181 at bats last season, making him one of the hardest players to strike out in the country. The Rebel infielder only struck out more than once in a game one time (2/24 vs. Maryland) in 51 games and only had eight strikeouts during SEC play.
YOUNG GUNS
220.2 innings (48 percent) of Ole Miss' innings on the mound in 2023 were thrown by freshmen. Seven freshmen pitched at least seven innings and five pitched 25 or more innings. JT Quinn lead the youngsters with 55.1 innings worked, followed by Grayson Saunier who pitched 46.
Both Quinn and Saunier, along with Brayden Jones, Sam Tookoian, and Mason Morris return to the staff this season and will play integral parts on the Rebels' pitching staff.
MISSISSIPPI MADE
Of the 44 players on Ole Miss' roster in 2024, 17 of them hail from the state of Mississippi (38.6 percent). Overall, 16 different states are represented on the roster, ranging from California to New Hampshire.
NEW LOOK SWAYZE
Ole Miss officially announced expansion plans at Oxford-University Stadium that include a new club section, increased entrance to the venue and a plaza to honor the Rebels' first baseball national title team.
The project, which will add approximately 450 premium seats, will begin at the conclusion of the upcoming season and will be in place for the 2026 campaign.
The new club will be erected where the current concessions stand is located at the end of the third base line. Club ticket holders will enjoy covered, reserved seats outdoors, and within the club area, can take advantage of a spacious social area, personal lockers, TVs, private restrooms and complimentary food. In addition, the club features 38 feet of drink rails to compliment the chairback seats.
Adjacent to the new stadium gates, the First Champions Plaza will be erected outside the facility along University Place. The exhibit will feature a statue and visuals that celebrate the Rebels' 2022 national championship.
REBS ON THE NATIONAL STAGE
The Rebels are scheduled to appear on SEC Network eight times, ESPNU twice, and ESPN2 once during the 2024 campaign. Ole Miss' first game on national TV will be March 16 as they host South Carolina for game two of their three game series. The Rebels can then be seen on the national stage five times in April and five times in May.
National TV Games
March 16 vs. South Carolina (1 p.m. CT) – SEC Network
April 4 at Arkansas (6 p.m. CT) – SEC Network
April 12 vs. Mississippi State (7 p.m. CT) – SEC Network
April 13 vs. Mississippi State (7:30 p.m. CT) – ESPN2
April 25 vs. Alabama (6:30 p.m. CT) – ESPNU
April 27 vs. Alabama (2 p.m. CT) – SEC Network
May 1 vs. Mississippi State (Governor's Cup) (6 p.m. CT) – ESPNU
May 4 at Auburn (7 p.m. CT) – SEC Network
May 5 at Auburn (3 p.m. CT) – SEC Network
May 10 vs. Texas A&M (7:30 p.m. CT) – SEC Network
May 12 vs. Texas A&M (5 p.m. CT) – SEC Network
SWAYZE CRAZIES
Ole Miss set a new average attendance record at Oxford-University Stadium/Swayze Field last season, averaging 10,095 fans per home game. The Oxford faithful also set a new single-season total attendance record as 323,047 totals fans came through Swayze Field during the 2023 season.
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss baseball on X at @OleMissBSB, on Facebook at Facebook.com/OleMissBaseball, on Instagram at Instagram.com/officialolemissbsb and on TikTok at @olemissbsb. Also, follow head coach Mike Bianco on X at @CoachMikeBianco.
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